Trust, respect, and the psychology of political engagement

Local community involvement has long been regarded as central to citizens' participation in the political process because it is believed to create attitudes of generalized trust that encourage citizens to become involved in governance. Recently Putnam (1995a) has argued that declining opportunities for community involvement have led to decreased trust in others, and this contributes to declining rates of voting in elections. This paper directly tests the validity of Putnam's argument. It shows that civic participation is related to political participation, but only through the mediating, mechanism of generalized trust. The paper further examines why citizens participate in their communities. It finds that people participate more in their communities when they feel that they are respected members of those communities. Implications for psychological theory and political mobilization are discussed.