Imagined Community and Ideational Capacity of State

• In Event: Elites and State Capacity in Autocracies

Abstract

Our study explores how states shape national identities, which are essentially imagined communities. We introduce the concept of ideational capacity to capture this phenomenon, highlighting its crucial role in nurturing a shared national identity. To measure ideational capacity, we propose a novel approach using the number of national museums as an indicator. Our empirical analysis reveals that regions and countries with higher ideational capacity tend to exhibit stronger national identity. This underscores the significance of ideational capacity as an often-overlooked aspect of state capacity. Our research contributes to the literature on state capacity and nationalism by focusing on the ideational dimension.

Authors

• Peng Peng, Washington University in St Louis

• Charles Chang