Enhancing, suppressing or something in between–loneliness and five forms of political participation across Europe

Abstract

This study investigates the link between perceived loneliness and five forms of political participation. A bidirectional re-affiliation model of political action is proposed, stating that loneliness increases the probability for political participation if the political act fosters social belonging and interaction (enhancement hypothesis). However, if the political act has little potential for re-affiliation, a decrease in participation is expected (suppression hypothesis). Using data from the European Social Survey (ESS), the study investigates the relationship between loneliness and (1) reported voting behavior, (2) signing petitions, (3) contacting politicians, (4) being a member of a political organization and (5) participating in public demonstrations. The analysis finds strong support for the suppression hypothesis and mixed support for the enhancement hypothesis. With that, the study is one of the first to highlight the importance of perceived loneliness alongside objective social embeddedness as a predictor for political participation. Furthermore, it shows that the relationship cannot simply be generalized to all political acts but is dependent on its potential for social interaction.