Abstract

The quality of democracy has become a critical concern in emerging democracies where formal democratic institutions coexist with persistent governance challenges. Mongolia represents a notable case in this regard, as democratic consolidation has been accompanied by public concerns over corruption, elite control of resources, and media freedom. This study examines how perceived corruption, resource capture, and media freedom influence the quality of democracy, and how democratic quality subsequently affects trust in democracy and political participation. Data were collected through a survey of 307 Mongolian citizens. Preliminary analyses were conducted using SPSS, and the proposed research model was tested using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) with Smart-PLS. The results indicate that perceived corruption and resource capture have significant negative effects on the quality of democracy, while media freedom exerts a significant positive effect. Furthermore, the quality of democracy positively influences both trust in democracy and political participation. The findings contribute to the literature on democratic quality by integrating governance-related risks and informational factors into a unified empirical framework. Practically, the results underscore the importance of anti-corruption efforts, limiting elite capture of public resources, and safeguarding media freedom to

enhance democratic quality and strengthen democratic trust and citizen engagement in Mongolia