Listening to the people: how perceived responsiveness shapes citizen-government relationship & engagement across contexts

This study examines the extent to which citizen-initiated contact with elected representatives and perceived responsiveness of representatives to citizens are related to government approval ratings, trust in political institutions, satisfaction with democracy, and turnout across 30 countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Findings from a multilevel analysis of Afrobarometer survey data (N = 42,684) support existing work indicating that responsiveness is crucial to government-citizen relationships. Heightened benefits appear for responsive representatives in less democratic countries. Practical and theoretical implications are discussed.