Widening the gap? How socio-economic status moderates the relationship between political participation and trust

This study argues that political participation is a key factor when explaining levels of political trust among citizens. It explores how this relationship is moderated by the socio-economic status (i.e., household income and educational level) of citizens. The article contributes to the field of political trust by employing European Social Survey data from 2016 and 2018. Two findings stand out: firstly, whereas political participation through institutionalized channels is positively related to higher levels of trust among citizens with high socio-economic status, this effect is not present among citizens with lower levels of socio-economic status. Secondly, citizens that highly engage in non-institutionalized modes of political participation and with lower levels of socio-economic status are the ones with lower levels of political trust.