The effect of the Lebanese electoral law on sectarianism in a student sample of the American University of Beirut

Abstract

Under Ottoman rule and later the French Mandate, electoral districts were divided based on the confession of constituents. As Lebanon gained independence, the National Pact and Taiif Accord institutionalized the confessional representation system (Choucair, 2006). The youth’s high level of sectarian bias could be attributed to the maintenance of the confessional socio-political system (Harb, 2010). The manner in which the confessional system could be abolished has been debated between those who favor a top-down approach and those who advocate a bottom-up approach (Al Hayat, 2010; Asharq Alawsat 2009). While many bottom-up techniques have been implemented to reduce sectarianism, little has been done to test the effectiveness of the top-down approach. The following study aimed to examine the effectiveness of a top-down strategy to reduce sectarianism. The study investigated the effectiveness of a merit-based electoral law to reduce sectarianism in a sample of students enrolled at the American University of Beirut. A 2 x 3 between-group experimental design was implemented using 152 AUB students. The first between-group factor consisted of priming or not priming a sectarian context, while the second between-group factor involved three electoral law conditions including a confessional-based law, a merit-based law, and a no-law control. A 2 x 3 factorial ANCOVA was conducted to check for between-group effects while controlling for: concern with acting prejudiced, knowledge about Lebanese politics, and involvement in Lebanese politics. Results suggest that a merit-based electoral has the potential to produce lower sectarian scores, whereas maintaining the confessional electoral law will only increase sectarian bias. Implications of the results are discussed; and limitations and recommendations for future research are also suggested.