The Nature of Ethnicity in Africa: A Test of Political Relevance

Why do some individuals of sub-Saharan Africa express stronger ties to their own ethnic group than others? Using a compilation of Afrobarometer Round I surveys, I test the influence of economic conditions, good governance, and ethnic pride on individual ethnic strengths. Although my hypotheses predict that ethnic identity is politically and economically utilitarian in nature, multivariate OLS regression suggests that the strengths of ethnic ties are largely determined by ethnic pride. These results demonstrate that ethnic identity is largely constructive and support the use of ethnicity in explaining political phenomena