Crisis of legitimacy in Captalist economies

Discuss the 'crisis of legitimacy' in capitalist societies. (Habermas) UPSC 2015 Paper 1A - Qn 4a

Marxists perceived legitimacy as a bourgeoise myth and concluded that legitimacy could not be achieved in conditions of inequality. However, Habermas admitted that liberal democracies have a system to generate consent and support from the people. According to him, the democratic system, the party system, social and welfare reforms, etc. play a key role in maintaining the legitimacy of the state.

But, he also noticed that it is hard to maintain legitimacy in a biased political system that produces sustained unequal class power.

Habermas in his work, 'Legitimation Crisis (1973)' noticed that crisis tendencies emerged in liberal democracies as a result of the contradiction between capitalist accumulation and populist demands. Democracies put pressure on the state to expand its social responsibilities and raise demands for social welfare provisions. 

As the social welfare provisions are non-profit-seeking issues, they raise pressure to increase taxation and constrain capitalist accumulation by restricting profit levels. Yielding to popular pressures is putting the economy at risk, and therefore legitimacy. Thus, a capitalist society constantly faces crisis tendencies. While the system invests in legitimation measures through democratic institutions, there is a possibility that the core principles of capitalism (capital accumulation and profit-seeking behavior) are undermined. 

These societies struggle to balance between giving in to people's demands and avoiding economic failures. As crisis situations disrupt the unity of society and the rules of the capitalist system, the State uses ideological measures such as decoupling the economy from politics to maintain stability.

Dissociation or 'uncoupling' of the economic (wage, labor, and capital relations) and the political spheres (institutions of governance) leads people's focus away from politics. The exploitative relationship between labor and capital is no longer part of politics. The political sphere becomes less participatory, more bureaucratic, and distant from people. However, the system is held together through ideologies that promote rights, justice, and citizenship, giving the rulers a moral reason to govern.

 

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