When Indoctrination Fails: Education and State Consolidation in Myanmar

• In Event: Institutions, Identity, and Intergroup Conflict in Myanmar

Abstract

Recent literature on the political economy of education emphasizes indoctrination as the primary motivation behind education expansion under non-democratic states. However, existing literature fails to explain a paradoxical consequence of state-led education: emergence of educated youth as a force of resistance against non-democratic rule. Modeling the strategic interaction between educated youth and government under changing economic situations, I argue that education through indoctrination only works when loyalty to the state continues to generate economic advantage in a low-development context. Therefore, education’s potential for indoctrination weakens as education access expands and economic returns to education declines. I evaluate this theory in the context of Myanmar after the 2021 military coup. Using novel panel data on economic development and access to education at township level, I show that, while education levels are negatively associated with the number of resistance events, the relationship is significantly weaker in townships that experienced strong economic growth after the emergence of civilian-military government in 2010. The findings yield new insights into the dynamics of state consolidation through education in developing economies.

Author

• Htet Thiha Zaw, University of British Columbia