Do well-being and democracy walk together? Mexico (2010-2023) from the HDI and the DDI-Mex

Main Article Content

Ángel de Jesús García Iñiguez

Abstract

The association between the Human Development Index (hdi) and the Democracy Development Index of Mexico (ddi-Mex) in the annual national average from 2010 to 2023 is analyzed. A non-experimental design of correlational scope is used with secondary data from the United Nations Development Program and the ddi-Mex. Due to the absence of the data corresponding to 2016 in the ddi-Mex, the contrasts in levels are estimated with 13 aligned observations per year and those of interannual variations with 11. Based on levels, the association is weak and statistically non-significant (Pearson r = −0.207, p = 0.497; Spearman ρ = −0.201, p = 0.510). If we look at the interannual variations, the sign changes to a positive result and the strength of the association increases, although its interpretation remains restricted by the sample size and the discontinuity of the series (Pearson r = 0.682, p = 0.021; Spearman ρ = 0.294, p = 0.379). The results suggest that, within the national aggregate, improvements in the hdi do not translate linearly into higher levels of democratic development. In institutional terms, this indicates that electoral bodies and actors devoted to the promotion of democratic culture should not assume the recovery of social welfare as indirect evidence of democratic strengthening, but rather, they should carry out specific diagnoses regarding citizen participation, institutional trust, electoral integrity, and quality of democratic life.

Article Details

How to Cite
García Iñiguez, Ángel de J. (2026). Do well-being and democracy walk together? Mexico (2010-2023) from the HDI and the DDI-Mex. Revista Del Instituto Electoral Del Estado De México. Apuntes Electorales, 25(75), 141–166. https://doi.org/10.53985/ae.v25i75.977
Section
Research
Author Biography

Ángel de Jesús García Iñiguez, El Colegio de Veracruz, México

Maestro en Administración por la Universidad Veracruzana (uv). Adscrito a El Colegio de Veracruz, a la Universidad Euro Hispanoamericana y a la Universidad de América Latina. Sus líneas de investigación son desarrollo humano y democracia, economía aplicada y desarrollo regional, procesos administrativos en materia electoral, legitimidad y participación electoral. Correo electrónico: angel.iniguez6@gmail.com.

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