The Civil Society–State Relationship
in Contemporary Discourse:
A Complementary Account from
Giddens’ Perspective1
Karel B. Müller
The article attempts to offer a framework for understanding the interdependence between modern
civil society and the democratic state in its complexity. The author seeks inspiration mainly from
two very significant sources—in Toqueville’s social theory and in Giddens’ theory of reflexive
modernity. In the first stage the author summarises basic arguments in empirical discussions on
the civil society concept. In the second stage he offers the overview of a robust normative perspective
of the concept and, in the third stage, he tries to outline the complex interpretative framework
for an empirical analysis of state–civil society relations. The author follows the ambition of
overcoming to a certain extent the crucial sociological paradox between the macro- and microsociological
approaches and considering both the functional-structural perspective and the
empirical point of view of the civil society concept.
When attempting to provide a summary of how research on the issue of civil society
has evolved, several difficulties immediately come to light. The first is the fact that
a mere list of relevant literature on the subject would easily exceed the scope of
any particular study. The second is that it is a subject that is considerably interdisciplinary
in character, and because different disciplines have different approaches
and perspectives, we are confronted with a maze of more or less interconnected
arguments and discourses.2
Civil society as a concept has increased in prominence,
not only in the academic sphere, but also in the political and public spheres. It is
not surprising that the complexity of the issue, and its overuse, have led to the
concept’s devaluation. The third and certainly by no means least of the difficulties
is the extent to which any such discussion must be culturally and linguistically conditioned.
Thus, there will be no avoiding a certain amount of reductionism in the
ensuing analysis.3
The concept of civil society has both empirical and normative aspects (Alexander
1998; Barber 1999; Fullinwider 1999). It is a concept used to refer to those social
and institutional structures that enable us, however imperfectly, to fulfil and meet
particular expectations and values. Some claim (Tester 1992, 9), in my view correctly,
that the concept of a modern civil society has, since its Enlightenment beginnings,
been characterised by a predominantly normative bent. In order to simplify
the structure of this article I adhere to this normative–empirical distinction. Moreover,
however artificial this differentiation may be in practice, it is a tangibly
present part of any contemporary discussion of the subject. In this analysis,
however, both perspectives pervade to some degree.
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312 KAREL B. MÜLLER
In the first part of this study I attempt to summarise the current discussion of civil
society from an empirical perspective. In the second part, I proceed to address the
issue from a normative perspective. The third part is an attempt at discovering a
complementary approach to the concept of civil society and overcoming the
dichotomy between the empirical micro-sociological approach and the normative
macro-sociological view of the subject. This is an attempt to formulate a theory
capable of grasping the issue in all its complexity and explaining certain structural
aspects, while also taking into account the behaviour of specific social actors in this
broader contextual framework. Here I draw on Anthony Giddens’ (1990) approach
to the theory of reflexive modernity.
1. The Empirical Account
Charles Taylor (1995, 207) summarises the broad range of possible definitions of
civil society in a manner that takes in both the prescriptive and descriptive dimensions.
His description may be a useful starting point for encompassing both the normative
and empirical perspectives.
In a minimal sense, civil society exists where there are free associations,
not under tutelage of state power. In a stronger sense, civil society only
exists where society as a whole can structure itself and co-ordinate its
action through such associations which are free of state tutelage. As an
alternative or supplement to the second sense, we can speak about civil
society wherever the ensemble of associations can significantly determine
or inflect the course of state policy.
At the most general level, the concept of civil society may be interpreted as an
issue of the relationship between the public and the private spheres (Cohen 1999,
66; Calhoun 1999; Janoski 1998, 16; Habermas 1989 [1962]; Seligman 2000,
13), referring especially to the nature of the relationships between the sphere of
political decision-making (state or government), the market and the nongovernmental
public sphere. From an empirical perspective it is possible to distinguish
two basic approaches to the concept of civil society: socio-cultural and
reductionist (economic). The group of socio-cultural approaches may be further
sub-divided into three predominant conceptions of the issue: generalist, maximalist
and minimalist. The reductionist approach may also be further differentiated
into the left-wing and the right-wing interpretations. These individual perspectives
will be dealt with below.4
For generalists who identify most with the way of thinking of the Scottish Enlightenment
philosophers, among the basic characteristics of a civil society is the existence
of a restricted and responsible public authority. The representatives of this
interpretation include, among others, Ernest Gellner and Victor Pérez-Díaz. They,
moreover, consider civil society as a concept competing with democracy, adding
that it encompasses better and more realistically the conditions of its own
existence.
Others, who conceive of civil society broadly similarly, but see it more as a nongovernmental
sphere, may be called the maximalists. Representatives of this view
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include John Keane, William Sullivan, Edward Shils and Charles Taylor. Among
the main forms of civil society they rank the political public and also the market.
They are the proponents of what Jeffrey Alexander (1998, 3) refers to as the
‘umbrella-like’ concept. This refers to a platform of institutions outside the state
sphere, encompassing the market economy and its institutions, public opinion,
political parties, public and private associations and the wide variety of forms of
social co-operation that establish ties of commitment and relationships of trust.
Finally, a third group of socio-culturalists can be referred to as the minimalists.
Among the main contemporary advocates of this view are Jeffrey Alexander,
Andrew Arato, Jean Cohen and Jürgen Habermas. In this minimalist interpretation,
civil society is defined as a sphere, or sub-system, of society that is analytically—and
to some degree also empirically—separate from the spheres of politics
and the economy but also from other social spheres perceived as not engaged in
supporting the solidarity of individual members. Even though civil society is itself
dependent on the resources and results of activity in the sphere of political life,
economic institutions and the broader cultural context, it represents an independent
sphere of social solidarity that transcends particular ties and interests and facilitates
the discovery of a collective identity among otherwise separate and detached
individuals. It is a sphere of solidarity within which a kind of universalising
society is gradually being defined. Civil society in this perspective can be viewed
as a synonym for impartiality, the bearer of universal and transcendent values,
above and outside critical disputes between different interest groups. This kind of
civil society can never exist as such, but rather can only exist ‘to some degree’
(Alexander 1998, 97). The minimalists more or less call civil society that which the
maximalists interpret as the public sphere (Pérez-Díaz 1998, 213).
Civil Society: Contested Structural Arguments5
The fundamental dispute is essentially between generalists and maximalists on the
one hand and minimalists on the other. Most minimalists refuse to acknowledge
the existence of systematic links between varied components of what maximalists
call civil society. The market, like the state, provides, in their view, only scant
support for social solidarity, and it does not contribute to establishing conditions
for fostering a civic ethos. Minimalists are inclined to perceive fundamental conflicts
between the market economy, the state and the public sphere (or what they
call civil society). According to them, civil society is not just separate from the state
and the market, it is the mirror opposite of the state and the market. The relative
asymmetry of resources that is characteristic of the economy, the sphere of material
and individual interests, tends also to have a negative effect on the civic (public)
sphere. It is often difficult for citizens who are not economically successful or
wealthy to communicate effectively in the civic sphere and to gain the respect of
their institutions and of other citizens (Alexander 1998, 9).
According to Pérez-Díaz (1998, 213), minimalists, on the one hand, exaggerate the
repressive nature of the market economy and the bureaucratic state and, on the
other, equally overestimate the ‘liberating potential’ of the public sphere. Civil
society is thus conceived of as a defensive bulwark against the combined oppres©
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sion of the state, the market and other social spheres. In other words, the public
sphere (civil society) should in their view provide the foundations for a transformation
of the state and the economy.
This argumentation conceals the assumption that the quality of civil society cannot
exceed the quality of its organised forms. Minimalists therefore focus mainly on
analysing these forms. Consequently, some minimalists do not count churches as
forms of civil society as, in character, they belong to the area of sacred activity and
do not contribute much to the formation of a civic ethos in the profane sphere
(Alexander 1998, 97). Among the most important forms of civil society minimalists
primarily rank voluntary associations and social movements, which are the
forms that most exhibit non-market oriented behaviour and the least degree of
hierarchy. Voluntarism here is manifested as the basic precondition for conducting
open dialogue. When a person is somewhere voluntarily, the space for coercion
seems to be minimised. New social movements, in particular, are characterised by
greater spontaneity, openness and flexibility. Their activities can often be described
as symbolic appeals against existing power structures and established cultural patterns;
they are not political in the traditional sense of the word. Their arena is the
public space independent of government institutions, the party system or the state
structure. The forms of their activities and the space in which they engage make
them non-hierarchical and prevent them from establishing strong institutionalised
structures (Ahrne 1998, 91).
To what degree are these expectations justified? As Goran Ahrne has pointed out
(1998, 90), like other associations, voluntary ones in accordance with Michels’
famous ‘law’ may also have a strong tendency towards oligarchisation. Moreover,
their voluntary nature may at times be specific, in that matters of compliance and
subordination also play an important role here. All volunteer associations are
exclusive clubs, membership of which is granted on the condition of acceptance of
certain values and ideas. Volunteer associations can often in this regard be very
intolerant and members who do not have the ‘right’ opinions can be expelled by
others. In addition, the particular nature of the new social movements is limited
in both space and time. Research on the new social movements has shown that
after any longer-term existence each social movement is eventually confronted
with an insoluble dilemma. As soon as a movement is faced with the strategic need
to decide on the use of collective resources, it has to renounce its openness and
establish criteria for admitting members. In a long-term perspective social movements
in no way differ from volunteer associations. The fact that a social movement,
after a time, either dissolves or is transformed and institutionalised in no
way decreases its significance. But, the question remains as to what extent it is
possible to regard them, given their limited longevity, as a key manifestation and
guarantee of the existence of civil society (Ahrne 1998, 91).
Conversely, with regard to the market, generalists and maximalists believe that a
market economy founded on private property and a public sphere characterised by
voluntary activity are theoretically complementary and have a pragmatic affinity,
and they point to the many connective links between the market and the public
sphere, which they consider as two key components in their understanding of civil
society (Pérez-Díaz 1998, 215; Taylor 1990, 19). This dispute is not just a termi©
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nological one, but rather also a material one, referring to the issue of how much
and if at all the market economy contributes to strengthening the civic ethos. Opponents
of minimalism cite firstly the fact that the very advancement of the public
sphere has been fundamentally linked to the discussion of economic issues and the
question of the role of public authority. Pérez-Díaz (1998, 215) points out that the
origin of civil society is historically connected with the initiation of the debate on
tax policy and the limits and conditions of the exercise of power while, as Habermas
demonstrates (1989 [1962]), economic issues and questions about the rules
of contact in the sphere of the exchange of goods and labour all preceded political
issues. In short, maximalists and generalists argue that in the European historical
tradition the market is an inherent component of civil society, just as civil society
is inconceivable without the market. The market is its inseparable, civilising
medium, and amid the current efforts to conceptualise civil society this cannot be
overlooked (Calhoun 1993, 392).
The development of the public sphere is dependent on the cultivation of certain
preconditions and customs that can also be reinforced by active participation in the
market. Trade and exchange, which are based on certain value assumptions, when
they are possible, provide those participating in these activities with positive experience
and become a kind of civic training, which leads to the reinforcement of the
participants’ self-confidence and responsibility. A precondition, but also a confirmed
starting point, is the recognition of the interests of the other actors in the
exchange as justified. Exchange not only teaches participants tolerance but also
leads them to strengthen their attachment to a plurality of interests and opinions
and their capacity for (voluntary) self-restraint.
In the view of Pérez-Díaz (1998, 216) the majority of minimalists tend to overestimate
the rationalising character of the public sphere as a space in which rational
argument takes place in accordance with certain defined and moral rules of communication
games. He adds that tolerance towards others, balanced by a readiness
to confront individual violence and a determination to limit public authority,
are customs and assumptions that cannot be the result of communication
experience alone or stem from rational convictions; instead they are derived from
practical experience based on repeated participation in the market and in liberal
politics.
Furthermore, the relationship between civil society generally and the market
economy, as one of the irreplaceable components of civil society, is, as Gellner indicates
(1994, 203), even closer than it may first appear. ‘Civil societies’ are societies
dedicated to basic egalitarianism, and thus to impermanence and changeability,
which prevent the establishment of inert hierarchy. They are therefore also dependent
on economic growth. It is only with the aid of technological innovation and
economic gains that they are able to approach such a state and keep it within reach.
These societies require not only social and political pluralism, which is able to counterbalance
any strong tendencies towards centralism and authoritarianism, but also
economic pluralism for reasons of production efficiency. Civil societies are, from
the perspective of their legitimacy, dependent on economic growth, without which
changeability becomes a risky zero-sum game, in which one person’s gain is
someone else’s loss. In this light the economy appears as one of the irreplaceable
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institutions able to check the power of the state and ideological monopolies.
Reliance on economic growth requires cognitive growth, which makes the existence
of any kind of ideological monopoly impossible.
According to Pérez-Díaz (1998, 218) one serious danger lies in the fact that the
minimalist concept of civil society leads paradoxically to the formation of a society
of irresponsible citizens. If we limit human expectations and aspirations with a view
to the rules that restrict the market economy and the state in the civic interest, we
risk becoming advocates of a new version of Epicurean morality. If cultivating the
garden is all that is set aside for the fulfilment of civic aspirations, combined with
a rejection of responsibility for the economic and the political system, this allows
and reinforces both a low level of rational discourse in the political sphere and the
loss of practical morality in the sphere of the economy.6
This is not to say that maximalists and generalists hold the market as the most
important, perhaps even the only, guarantee of the existence of civil society. They
simply point out that to view the state and the economy as the only spheres that
have a tendency to fuse together and a tendency to manipulate the public to
become uncritical and submissive is a dangerously simplified way of looking at
things. It is necessary to assess all large organisations with a critical eye, not just
the state, political parties and economic entities, but also unions, the media, the
church and cultural, consumer, environmental, feminist and other associations of
any sort. None should be perceived without criticism, as all such associations are
striving for power and influence. To place some of them a priori beyond criticism
solely on the basis of their motives would be wrong (Pérez-Díaz 1998, 218).
Equally, according to this view, it would be wrong to disadvantage and rule out
certain organisations in advance with regard to how much liberating and participative
potential in the public sphere they have to offer.
The degree to which mentioned expectations are warranted in the age of a globalising
economy is of course a question. We often hear the objection that global
markets and corporations threaten local civil society. From the minimalist viewpoint
there is of course a justifiable fear that the institutions of local civil societies
(public spheres) are incapable of forming a protective bulwark against the threats
and injustices of a globalising economy. Therefore, it is necessary to globalise also
the public (civic) sphere, and there are visible signs that just such a process is
already at work. Organisations such as, for example, Greenpeace, Global Watch
and Transparency International genuinely appear to represent a globalising civil
society (Salamon et al. 1999; Keane 2003).
From the maximalist perspective the globalisation of the network of civil societies
(public spheres) also appears to be a necessity. The global market can be part of
civil society as long as the latter is also global in other respects. In other words,
only a global public sphere can ensure that the global economy becomes part of
global civil society. Yet, the possibility of being able to escape the consequences of
one’s actions is, according to Zygmunt Bauman (1998), one of the most valued
privileges of the mobile global elites. Freedom from responsibility and exemption
from the obligation to contribute to the development of local communities is typical
for today’s global capital. A new asymmetry appears between the extra-territorial
nature of economic power and the continuing territoriality of common human
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experiences. Local economic elites are on the retreat and the global ones are never
where they are needed (Putnam 2000, 282).
Insofar as the dispute between the generalists and the maximalists is concerned,
the generalists interpret the concept of civil society as also encompassing the existence
of limited, accountable and transparent government. Their arguments are
similar to those used in the case of the market, and they cite the historical, theoretical
and pragmatic connection between the development of civil society and of
this kind of public authority. As stated above, in reality they consider the concept
of civil society as one that rivals democracy (Gellner 1994, 187–189).
2. The Normative Account
There is more agreement among social scientists with regard to the normative
account. Generally the majority of social scientists today do not regard civil society
as some sort of cure-all, but instead view it as something that is simply a necessity
and without which democracy has difficulty functioning. It is clear that within civil
society from time to time serious and irreconcilable conflicts emerge that require
the intervention of the state. Although the emphasis on the concept of civil society
tends at times to be linked to a weakening of the principles of representative
democracy, there is no question that the relationship between civil society and the
democratic state is one of mutual dependence. Although from a certain perspective
the relationship can be characterised as being indirectly proportional (the more
civil society there is the smaller the scope of the state, and vice versa), there is no
justification for deeming it a relationship of mutual rivalry or competitiveness
(Dahrendorf 1990, 96; Hall 1995, 16; Shils 1991, 9; Neocleous 1996, VIII). While
it may be that the greater the trust civil society is able to develop in its own abilities,
the less the need for intervention from state institutions, we still need the
democratic state for the protection it provides against abuses of freedom, and we
also need an autonomous and open civil society, at the very least for the protection
it offers against abuses of state power.
To understand the normative account it will be useful to recall the context and
causes that lie behind the current revival of interest in civil society. There are four
such causes, which actually form a series of interconnected phenomena. The first
cause was the battle against the communist totalitarian regime in the CEE countries.
Civil society was viewed by Central European dissidents like V. Havel (1985),
A. Michnik (1987) and G. Konrád (1984) primarily as the defence of human and
civic rights and as a platform for the struggle against the abuse of state power.
The second cause was the ensuing collapse of these regimes. The discussion was
no longer motivated by a fear of the expansiveness of totalitarian power but
centred, instead, on reflections about the shortcomings of post-communist societies
in their efforts to build, in a short period of time, democracies comparable to
those already in place in the West (Dahrendorf 1990; Sztompka 1998). The concept
of civil society began to be understood as an attempt at the most complex reflection
of the cultural, social and economic requirements of a functional democracy
and as a condition of the survival and development of democracy, even in reference
to the west (Keane 1998).
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The third cause is the crisis of the welfare state, which had been cited as a factor
by many even in the 1980s (Offe 1984; Keane 1988b), but after the fall of the communist
regimes the crisis became even more acute (Cohen 1999; Offe 1996; Powell
2000; Putnam 2000). Any increase in the powers of the state occurs to the detriment
of civil society’s ability to look after various matters and solve numerous conflicts
and problems and, as many have noted, with the increase in power of the
welfare state that occurred after the Second World War the sphere of civil society
came to be colonised. The current crisis of the national welfare state, which in the
age of globalisation is incapable of solving serious economic and other problems,
is now manifested in the decline in the legitimacy of political institutions, including
political parties (Peréz-Díaz 1998, 235).
The final and fourth cause is a reaction to new forms of social mobility and diversity
and to the speed and scope of technological, economic and cultural changes
that globalisation has ushered in (Cohen 1999, 55). Social and political integration
and participation that, up to this point, had been regarded as something natural
and to be taken for granted, are now becoming a central subject of interest among
social scientists. Not only is it becoming increasingly difficult to address serious
social problems through effective collective action, but in the conditions of
radicalised modernity, where the physical density of the human population significantly
exceeds its moral density and is beginning to overwhelm the capacity of
human intimacy to absorb others (Bauman 1998), it is no longer possible to take
the existence of society for granted (Tester 1992).
On the basis of the preceding arguments, and with reference to Taylor’s previously
mentioned definition of civil society, it is possible to formulate four basic functional
dimensions (values) that are present in the relationship between civil society and
the democratic state. These four functional dimensions are cited with varying
degrees of emphasis by all authors dealing with the issue of civil society. These are
the defensive, legitimising, participative and integrative dimensions. Below we will
look at these individual dimensions in greater detail.
The main value of civil society lies in its extra-political nature and its independence
from state power, and in its ability to maintain this independence. Civil society
should above all be capable of acting as a defence against the potential expansionism
of state power (Cohen 1999, 63; Hall 1995, 15; Janoski 1998, 16; Shils
1991, 10). It is a part of the European historical experience that every power, often
in the name of efficiency and the ability to mobilise itself, has a tendency to gravitate
towards centralisation; this increases the risk of the abuse of power. This is
where the defensive function of civil society comes into play.
The legitimising function of civil society is based on the fact that it is civil society
that, through its independence and autonomy, creates the social resources of political
power and gives the state and its government legitimacy (Dahrendorf 1990;
Taylor 1995, 207; Tester 1992, 5). The power of the state or of the government is
only legitimate when it is able to enjoy the trust of its citizens. The extra-political
status of civil society guarantees, among other things, that political power is executed
‘rationally’, as civil society establishes public opinion independently of political
power. Nonetheless, for the political power this public opinion has a binding
and normative character. It is not possible in any democracy to rule for any real
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period of time if the government is in conflict with public opinion. But, in order
for it to be possible to form public opinion, civil society must constitute a relatively
large structure within which social interests and priorities that condition and substantiate
the democratic state and the policy of the government are consistently
articulate, agreed upon and verified.
A third dimension is the participative function (Cohen 1999, 55; Fullinwider 1999,
2; Shils 1991, 13; Taylor 1995, 207). Civil society ought to facilitate the more effective
involvement of citizens in the public sphere than established political parties.
If someone wants to block the construction of a gas station or promote the construction
of a children’s playground, it is not necessary that they enter into politics
to do so—say, at the communal level, attending party meetings and paying
membership fees—nor is it necessary, at the opposite extreme, that they wait for
the next elections. Broadly based civic participation may consist of the massive
mobilisation of resources that is facilitated by the widespread dissemination of
information and knowledge, which helps ensure that the process of democratic
political decision-making is of higher quality. Instead of political centralisation, civil
participation involves multi-levelled decentralisation, which provides citizens with
an unobstructed link to public administration and, potentially, access to the process
of political decision-making. It leads to the more economical and more effective
use of material resources. The nature of interest groups, and specifically their focus
on a particular problem or issue, means that they are generally able to recognise
or identify serious risks or dangers much sooner than political parties can, and they
are also able to propose useful solutions. It is then up to the public and the politicians
to assess this group action and how they react to it.
The last, but by no means the least important, expectation associated with civil
society is the fact that within it relationships of affinity and loyalty are formed, and
this is civil society’s integrative function (Cohen 1999, 55; Dahrendorf 1997, 58;
Shils 1991, 10; Sullivan 1999, 37). From our repeated involvement in the goings
on of civil society we eventually come to realise that in order for our voice to be
heard and our interests to be taken into account we need to join forces with
someone else. In an egalitarian and democratic society, if we want to be of influence
and effect change we must work together with others. This in turn engenders
a sense of belonging to or affinity with an interest group. More broadly there
then emerges a sense of belonging to the society as a whole and identifying with
the given political system. Civil society creates room for the reproduction of shared
symbols, values and norms. But, it is not about everyone being able to achieve
their own interests. It is necessary to consider the character of the political process,
not just its outcome. The feeling that our wants or requirements are being heard
is important, and even if they are not being acted on at the moment, it is possible
to try and assert them again at any time in the future (Taylor 1990).
3. An Attempt at a Complementary Account:
Giddens’ Perspective
The contemporary liberal interpretation of the concept of civil society is rooted in
the European Enlightenment, and this philosophical tradition can be traced at the
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very least back to Locke (1963), but A. de Tocqueville may be regarded as the first
modern theorist of civil society (Cohen and Arato 1992, 116). Tocqueville’s Democracy
in America reveals his extraordinary sociological imagination to pinpoint, while
observing emerging young American democracy, all the crucial aspects and risks
to be found in this new social order that we have discussed above.
Inspired by Giddens’ approach (1990) to an analysis of the nature of contemporary
modern societies, I define the functional dimension in relations between civil
society and the democratic state as depicted above in Figure 1.
In this figure the outer circle represents the whole of civil society, and the small
circle around the centre represents the state and the sphere of political power, i.e.
the sphere of control of information and social supervision. The above-mentioned
functions or expectations associated with the concept of civil society can be plotted
in the figure as follows: at the top end of the vertical axis is the protective or defensive
function, which is an analogy of the concept of ‘negative freedom’ (Giddens
(1990) speaks of emancipatory politics). This function relates primarily to the provision
of legal guarantees, securing the space of civic autonomy, and the liberation
from inequality. At the opposite end of the vertical axis is the participative function
which, conversely, corresponds to the concept of ‘positive freedom’ (corresponding
to Giddens’ ‘life politics’). This dimension concentrates on the overall
quality of the social environment, which features the opportunities for political
self-realisation and a fulfilled and satisfied civic life. Both values form the content
of the shifting dynamics in the relationship between civil society and the state.
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Figure 1: The Functional Dimension in Relations between Civil Society and
the State
THE CIVIL SOCIETY–STATE RELATIONSHIP 321
The legitimising function of civil society is at the right end of the horizontal axis,
the entire right half of which indicates the mutual dependency and interconnectedness
of civil society and the democratic state. Civil society creates the social
resources of political power and establishes the credibility, or legitimacy, of the
democratic state, which in turn is responsible for protecting civil society and establishing
the relationships of trust in democratic political institutions. At the left end
of the horizontal axis is social integration, the value that expresses the fact that
civil society is capable of reproducing and integrating itself as a society, but also
illustrates the fact that civil society is integrated within the framework of a single
political system. The process of democratic decision-making, as Taylor argues
(1990), cannot take place in a society in which the members do not see themselves
as members of one society. Silhouetted against this figure it is possible to detect
two of the key value dimensions of liberal democracy: human freedom and security—see
Figure 2.
The vertical axis represents the values of human individuality, freedom and particular
interests. In the social sciences these issues usually tend to be the subject of
research focusing on agency (the agency approach). The horizontal axis represents
the value dimensions of social cohesion and shared norms, i.e. values of safety,
security and shared orientations in action. In the social sciences this level of
research tends to be the subject of macro-theoretical analyses focusing on society
as a whole and on its structural nature and aspects. The social sciences usually refer
to this analysis as the structural or the structural-functional approach. It may
perhaps be said that in the figure the vertical axis represents the more liberal values,
while the horizontal axis represents rather republican values and convictions.
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Figure 2: Values of Modern Democracy
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The level of utopianism that is present in Figure 1 is reduced and a dose of scepticism
or realism is added to the configuration to produce the image in Figure 3.
This figure represents a configuration of the serious risks and causes that are connected
to the failure of the process of democratic political decision-making and
which can occur in the relationships between civil society and the democratic state
and seriously threaten their cohesion and reciprocal dynamics. This refers to the
loss of legitimacy of political institutions, a decline in political participation, uncontrolled
growth of state surveillance and finally the threat of social atomisation or
even anomy. There are certainly numerous connections that exist between these
risks, and in this respect Figure 3 may offer a new cognitive tool for use in both
theoretical and empirical analyses. Let us take a brief look at each of the
dimensions.
One of the most serious hidden dangers in the democratic political process is the
excessive centralisation and concentration of political power, which is accompanied
by an increased risk of its abuse (Cohen 1999, 77; Putnam 2000, 78). As Tocqueville
(1968) convincingly demonstrated, democracy, owing to its love of
equality, is particularly susceptible to succumbing to this danger. The formation of
democratic mechanisms aimed at providing protections against inequality and at
the elimination of privileges—in the name of equal treatment and equal material
security—leads to the gradual accumulation of power in the hands of the centralised
state. In order to achieve democratic equality the state becomes regulator,
adviser, teacher and judge, a kind of shelter for a forming power that presents itself
less and less as the source of violence and more and more as the guarantor of public
© 2006 The Author. Journal compilation 2006 Political Studies Association
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Figure 3: The Risks in Modern Democracy
THE CIVIL SOCIETY–STATE RELATIONSHIP 323
interest. The power of civil society that is democratically entrusted in the state then
turns against the freedom of civil society. While the growth of state power for the
purpose of the efficiency and alertness of the state is a tendency that may at first
glance appear commendable or even necessary, its consequences can be social
atomisation, the loss of legitimacy and even a decline in social cohesion.
The legitimising function of civil society also serves to counter yet another risk—
the danger of the loss of legitimacy on the part of the state and its political institutions
(Cohen 1999, 78; Fullinwider 1999, 2; Sullivan 1999, 33). The democratic
state loses the trust of its citizens when it is incapable of apprehending their interests.
Without the trust of the citizenry, the state and political institutions cannot
effectively and democratically operate and govern, the laws of the state cease to
be effective and the entire political system is put in jeopardy. But, to establish and
maintain the necessary ties of trust between citizens and the state, political parties
are inadequate. The low level of trust in political institutions among citizens is cited
by many as the main obstacle in the democratic transformation of the postcommunist
CEE states (Müller 2002; Mishler and Rose 1997; Sztompka 1998). If
political institutions lose their legitimacy the probable consequences are a decline
in political participation, the unregulated growth of state power, the deterioration
of social cohesion and the emergence of social cleavages.
The third risk of modern democracy is a decline in political and civic participation
and a reduction of the public’s ability to influence the processes of public decisionmaking
(Cohen 1999; Putnam 2000; Sullivan 1999). This may of course be a result,
for example, of alienation from political institutions owing to their loss of legitimacy.
Declining participation establishes generally inauspicious conditions, which
tend only to be favourable to the reinforcement of oligarchic tendencies. The fewer
acute problems that civil society is capable of solving by itself through the active
participation of its members, the more the state must intervene. Furthermore, if
what Giddens says is true (1990, 156), that a sign of modernity is the fact that selfrealisation
becomes a fundamental factor in the formation of individual identity,
then there is a direct link between civic participation and group or individual identity,
and a decline in civic participation can thus ultimately lead also to the serious
erosion of social cohesion.
Finally, there is also the danger of social fragmentation, which may result from
both centralisation and a decline in political and civic participation, as well as from
the concomitant increase in political alienation.7
It was Robert Putnam (1993 and
2000) and Francis Fukuyama (1995) who focused the discussion about the quality
of civil society in the direction of issues regarding the relationships between interpersonal
trust and so-called social capital,8
which today dominate the discussion of
civil society in the United States.9
The danger of social atomisation, as Tocqueville
(1968) again demonstrated brilliantly, is particularly characteristic of egalitarian
societies, and it has the ability to produce a tendency towards anomy, the loss of
social values and norms, the disintegration of the moral code and the overall loss
of a sense of moral direction. If we speak of a loss of social cohesion, according to
Putnam (2000) we are referring not only to a decline in the quality of the social
environment but also to a decline in the quality of public administration—it is
therefore a matter of a political loss.
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324 KAREL B. MÜLLER
Social disintegration has a tendency to escalate, and it may result in society finding
itself in a vicious circle. A weakened sense of mutual belonging can be both a result
and a source of the loss of shared norms, values and symbols, and of the decline
in the capacity for self-restraint. Self-restraint is exercised in exchange for the
recognition of the common interests of the whole, of which I am a part and whose
interests are therefore also my interests (Taylor 1990). The development of a moral
vacuum and the disintegration of social norms and shared values can be considered
among the greatest risks to the democratic political process. To this kind of
threat may also be added the danger of society breaking up into political cleavages
and the risk of a significant segment of society becoming alienated from the political
system.
Clouding the normative perspective further beneath the proposed configuration,
which puts the state and civil society in a somewhat unequal position (civil societycentred
analysis), it is possible to silhouette against the basic figure yet another
group of four serious risks that pose a threat to the dynamics of civil society and
the state. With regard to the protective functional dimension in relation to civil
society and the state, it was Mill and Tocqueville who first pointed out that just as
it is necessary to protect civil society against state power it is also necessary to
protect the individual against the will of the majority. As stated above, within the
framework of civil society itself serious conflicts can emerge, and not all interests
formulated by an independent public are necessarily desirable and beneficial. In
sum, it is not within the power of civil society to safeguard the rights of the individual
without effective state power. A serious danger for civil society and democracy
therefore also lies in the weakening of the strength and independence of state
authority and in the deterioration of the effectiveness of public administration and
its capacity for action. A weak state cannot lead to anything other than the colonisation
of state institutions, at best by political parties (partitocracy), and at worst
by influential interest groups; and most likely by both at once. Pervasive clientelism
and the rampant spread of corruption are the only alternatives to the incapacity
of the state.
Proceeding along the vertical axis the next risk that can be formulated is that of
overloading the process of political decision-making with an excess weight of civic
participation. Particularly in the case where the decision-making mechanisms
have been weakened this risk can evoke serious problems (Almond and Verba
1963).
At the right end of the horizontal axis there is the danger of ‘too much trust’, to
the point where civil society is uncritical of state institutions and where the rational
discourse within civil society itself is weakened (Habermas 1989 [1962]).
This can be both a result and a cause of the weakening of rational discourse
in the sphere of political power. At the left end of the horizontal axis there is
the danger posed by a highly integrated social system, which suppresses the internal
pluralism of civil society. Although from a historical perspective it is erroneous
to contrast the civic ethos and the national ethos as two contradictory
principles, there is no question that for civil society and democracy exalted nationalism
represents one of the most serious dangers (Calhoun 1993; Gellner 1994;
Hall 1995).
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THE CIVIL SOCIETY–STATE RELATIONSHIP 325
The Guarantees of the Functional Dimensions in the
Relationship between Civil Society and the State
In conclusion let us attempt to address the question that forms the basis of the
current discussion in the social sciences: how does one build civil society? Is it at
all possible or even desirable to strive for the advancement of this kind of ‘creative
chaos’—as Ralf Dahrendorf (1997, 56) euphemistically refers to civil society—
which emerged in the West and is the product of poorly transplantable historical
experience? In my opinion the former question is fully justified, and however
much some authors may argue that civil society as a concept is unnecessary (Kumar
1993), it is no accident that today it represents one of the most influential concepts
in the social sciences. It attempts to approach the contemporary problems of
radicalised modernity with greater sensitivity than other well-known concepts, and
it tries to analyse these problems in relation to each other and in their entire complexity
(Bryant 1993, 399; Smith 1998, 133).
If we are willing to accept the Marxist principle that the route to desired social
change has little practical effect if it is not accompanied by the possibilities of institutionalisation
(Giddens 1990, 155), then in Figure 4 we can redraw the configuration
to incorporate the institutional guarantees of the above-mentioned
functional dimensions and the institutionalised prevention of the above-mentioned
risks. It is, however, clear that the institutional expression of the functional dimensions
in relationship between civil society and the democratic state is itself influ©
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Figure 4: Guarantees of the Functional Dimensions in the Relationship between
Civil Society and the State
326 KAREL B. MÜLLER
enced by the counterfactual character of modernity and, therefore, even in this
case, a strict division between realistic and utopian thought is, as Giddens notes
(ibid.), impossible.10
For each of the four relationships mentioned above it is possible to distinguish two,
often unbalanced, counterpoints, which enter into the relationship and guarantee
its vitality and advantageousness. Starting at the top end of the vertical axis, the
institutional prevention of the risks of centralisation, bureaucratisation and the
growth of state power can clearly be found in the active control of political power
by an independent public. This requires, among other things, the active development
and support of the public sphere by the public itself, including actively cultivating
the quality and development of the public space (Barber 1999, 26). A key
requirement is the guaranteed independence of the media and a pluralist media
market, and the establishment of the appropriate mechanisms of public control
over the media, especially television.
Moving further along the vertical access of ‘freedom’, the guarantee can, on the
one hand, be the existence of a widely decentralised system of public administration
or, on the other hand, the introduction of particular measures, such as
provisions for ensuring transparency and openness of information in public
administration. This signifies the direct involvement of the public in public administration
and the establishment of new institutional mechanisms aimed at facilitating
this. In this connection Giddens (1998) refers to the democratisation of
democracy. A positive role could also be played in this by the active participation
of the state in the protection of small and middle-sized business and in the
promotion of programmes of corporate social responsibility. It is the task of
governments actively to protect the market environment and to ensure that
global corporations become responsible members of civil societies (Barber 1999,
26).
At the very bottom of the vertical axis is the existence of an autonomous civil
society with a strong capacity for communication. Among concrete proposals for
ensuring this, it is possible to cite the development of a good education system,
which is capable of apprehending and cultivating the many varied interests and
outlooks of children and students. It is also essential to build up educational democracy
and promote literacy in democratic intercourse at schools at all levels. As
Putnam claims (2000, 186), the more education there is in general, the more civic
participation.
Let us now look at the horizontal axis in Figure 4. Many psychologists claim that
the conditions for establishing relationships of trust, which are more of an emotional
than cognitive phenomenon, are formed as part of the primary socialisation.
Erik Erikson, who is cited by Giddens (1990, 92–99), points to the connection
between relationships of trust and the sense of so-called ontological security. A
feeling of ‘ontological security’, which apparently develops during early childhood,
is by definition the precondition for personal integrity and healthy mental and personality
development. Ontological security represents a sort of trustfulness in the
permanence of one’s own identity and in the stability of the social and material
environment in which we act; a sort of elemental sense of the reliability of persons
and things. Erikson considers a sense of ontological security to be a fundamental
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THE CIVIL SOCIETY–STATE RELATIONSHIP 327
precondition for establishing relationships of trust in the more complex sense of
the word.
Moving along the horizontal axis towards the centre we can turn the discussion
towards the number of guarantees that can be indicated as the state’s means of
protecting and maintaining relationships of trust. Among the forms of state protection
and cultivation of public trust it is possible to include the maintenance of
professional and moral integrity at ‘access points’ (Giddens 1990, 83–88; Sztompka
1998, 208), i.e. where the citizen is directly confronted with the state. Further could
be mentioned the protection of children and the provision of a quality system of
children’s social aid. While the state cannot secure children’s sense of ‘ontological
security’, it can attempt to protect the ‘less fortunate’ from needless deprivation
by, for example, actively working to prevent domestic violence.
We proceed further along the horizontal axis to the left and towards the integrative
dimension. Among the many tools of systemic integration are affirmative
action and, where appropriate, the introduction of elements of ‘consociational’
democracy. Again it is important that there is institutional progress in issues of education,
and that the state takes an active role in fostering tolerance and an understanding
of plurality of opinion (Cohen 1999, 72).
Finally, moving further left along the horizontal axis to the outer edge we come
to social integration, the formation of social cohesion and the quality of social interactions.
Of course, no reliable guidelines exist on how to produce social capital and
thus also social solidarity and cohesion. The quality of social interactions depends
on numerous factors, among the most important of which is without question the
role of the family. Putnam (2000, 277) has concluded that the family (and its transformation)
probably holds the key to how social capital is formed (and has declined
in its power). While a well-functioning, democratic family is something hard to
achieve, even so it is for all that the most reliable remedy for strengthening social
capital. Therefore, the state should strive to promote an active policy with regard
to this issue.
There exist numerous ties and repercussions among the four functional dimensions
discussed above. It is not always possible to determine without question
which risks represent the causes and which the effects of a breakdown in the functional
dimensions in the relationship between civil society and the state. It is,
however, certain that all of the risks can pose a serious threat to the security and
stability of democracy and represent a threat to the level of freedom that has been
achieved in the West. The concept of civil society is not motivated by anything less
than the effort to seek the guarantees of democratic development. The proposed
configuration of this entire issue represents an attempt to grasp the relationship
between civil society and the democratic state in all its complexity. It has been
inspired by a long list of authors, all of whom more or less draw on Tocqueville’s
legacy and Giddens’ complementary approach to the theory of reflexive modernity.
The latter is also the source of the effort in this article to formulate a complementary
theory of civil society, i.e. with a view to both the manifestly utopian
normative perspective and the empirical account with its sense for factuality and
readiness to operationalise subjects within adequate limits.
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328 KAREL B. MÜLLER
About the Author
Karel B. Müller, Department of Political Science, Faculty of International Relations, University
of Economics, Winston Churchill Square 4, 130 67 Prague 3, Czech Republic, email: mullerk@vse.cz
Notes
1. This essay is derived from a paper presented to the Enlargement and Civil Society workshop at the School
of Politics, University of Nottingham, in January 2005. I am grateful to colleagues who have commented
on the draft.
2. First and foremost are the historical-philosophical discussions relating to civil society’s genealogy as
a concept, followed by the ethical-philosophical discourse relating to the moral foundations of the
social order (the dispute between communitarianism and liberalism), and the historical-sociological
discourse on the origin and nature of the public sphere, and these are often incorporated into the
larger more general theories of modernity. In this general framework mention can also be made of
the political discourse that addresses theories of interest intermediation, political culture and democratic
transition, or the social-scientific discourse on the crisis of the welfare state, social movements,
discussions on nationalism, the globalisation of civil society, the influence of new technology in the
field of communications, globalisation and a supranational (global) system of governance, and multiculturalism,
or methodological debates such as the criticism addressed at the one-sided normative
perspective of the concept of civil society. And the list could go on.
3. It is necessary to add that the aim of this study is not to provide an account of the genealogy of civil
society as a concept or to present its historical development in the West, although these perspectives
on the subject would certainly be useful in helping to understand the current discussions surrounding
civil society. A sophisticated theoretical account can be found in the book by Cohen and Arato (1992).
However, there are plenty of shorter studies that may be more accessible for readers (e.g. Bell 2000;
Hall 1995; Keane 1988a, 1988b and 1998; Kumar 1993; Pérez-Díaz 1993; Seligman 1992; Shils 1991;
Taylor 1995; Walzer 1991).
4. A warranted objection in relation to the empirical perspective is that the west is in reality confronted
by considerable diversity of historical experience, numerous intellectual traditions and varied forms
and issues of civil societies (on the diversity of traditions, see e.g. Bell 2000; Habermas 1989 [1962];
Kocka 1997; Peréz-Diáz 1993; Müller 2002; Skocpol 1999). Nevertheless, in connection with the
processes of European integration and globalisation, today increasing reference is being made to the
form of some sort of European or even global civil society (Keane 2003; Pérez-Diáz 1998; Walzer
1995), and new thought and analysis are being devoted to the relationships between government,
the market and the public at the supranational (global) level. An equally justified objection is that
the relationship between civil society and the state displays shifting dynamics, and in reality, as
Giddens correctly points out (1998), there are no firm boundaries between the two.
5. I will leave aside the reductionist approach here owing to its obvious handicaps. These concepts in
my view offer little appeal for the discussion at hand. With regard to the current shape of the reductionist
approach at least two varieties can be mentioned. One could be labelled as the left-wing variant
and the other the capitalist. Many advocates of utopian and left-wing oriented ideas, especially state
socialism and communism, can be ranked in the first category. Libertarians especially can be ranked
in the second one (Walzer 1995, 12–14).
6. Owing to its strong moral emphasis the term civil society has sometimes been interpreted in the
modern social sciences as a synonym for a morally based community (Gemeinschaft), which contrasts
with the formally founded society (Gesellschaft) and the amoral state, and is the intermediary
between the micro-sphere of the family and the macro-sphere of the state, and which has its own
non-political identity (Sztompka 1998, 191). The term civil is in this interpretation reserved for the
meaning of cultivating general welfare and the ability for self-restraint in the interest of general
welfare. The idea of modern citizenship is here dangerously narrowed and purged of its emphasis
on autonomy and individualism, which are an integral part of the western notion of citizenship (Hall
1995, 10). As Alexander notes (1998, 2), civil societies are not systems that are good but systems
that are procedurally decent and polite (civil).
7. Development in the CEE countries under communism is a good example of this.
8. Among the many ways of distinguishing social capital Putnam (2000, 20–23) considers one to be the
most important—bonding and bridging social capital, which refer to a certain kind of exclusion and
inclusion, in which the former produces a specific type of reciprocity and strong group solidarity, but
may also give rise to strong group antagonisms, and the latter creates a more general understanding
of reciprocity and identity and may produce more positive externalities. However, according to
Putnam (ibid.) it is not a question of ‘either or’, but rather more or less of one or the other.
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9. Convincing criticism of this kind of discourse can be found in Cohen (1999). She criticises it both
for its overly conservative tones and for its reductionism and cultural-historical determinism, which
on the one hand overestimates the role of cultural factors (society-centred analysis), and on the other
hand underestimates institutional aspects, especially the role of the state, while also neglecting to
analyse the forms and meanings of the public sphere.
10. In this connection Giddens (1990, 154–157) mentions the requirement of so-called utopian realism,
with reference to the fact that too much utopianism without a foot in social reality can potentially
be quite dangerous while, conversely, too much emphasis on realism can hinder productiveness and
innovation if it is not balanced with a certain amount of utopianism and moral conviction.
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