Authoritarian rule — in which dictators impose their will by eroding institutional, legal, and political constraints on their power — is one of the biggest threats to democracy today. It afflicts many countries, including Russia, Venezuela, Hungary, and others. Its architects may be elected democratically, as was the case with Tunisian President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali and Senegal’s Idriss Déby, or they may overthrow their opponents in a military coup. Often, they make democratic institutions appear legitimate while undermining them behind the scenes.
The core elements of autocratic politics are simple: Foment mistrust and division; divide and rule; spread lies, conspiracies, and other falsehoods; and destroy checks and balances by gutting institutions, smothering opposition, and declaring national emergencies to seize unconstitutional powers. These tactics have long been common in dictatorships, but they have become more sophisticated over time. The more a dictator relies on these tools, the more stable his regime will be and the more people he can persuade to support his system of government.
Fortunately, there are ways to protect democracy. For example, research shows that when a leader offers people a trade-off between their economic needs and democracy, people are less likely to support autocracy. In addition, our work suggests that a leader’s ability to set high-level goals has a positive impact on the performance of his or her team members. This is because leaders who are more competent in these areas are more likely to create a strong learning goal orientation, and subordinates will want to meet those high standards.