The Role of Citizen Participation in Fostering Political Trust: A Quantitative Study on the Impact of Consultation Meetings and Citizen Initiatives on Political Trust among Different Educational Groups in the Netherlands

Local governments are increasingly implementing new forms of citizen participation to engage citizens in politics and foster political trust, particularly, among less-educated citizens, who show lower levels of political trust and participation. However, limited knowledge exists regarding the extent to which these participatory activities influence political trust, and moreover, whether their effects vary across educational groups. Drawing on two main perspectives of political trust, this research explores the underlying mechanisms that shape political trust in relation to participation in consultation meetings and citizen initiatives. This study discerns the explanatory power of each perspective. The findings reveal that the willingness to participate in a citizen initiative plays a role in fostering trust in local politics. This is driven by two main factors: firstly, citizens perceive a greater range of opportunities to express their opinions, aligning with the rational perspective; secondly, they perceive that individuals similar to themselves can exert influence, aligning with the social-structure perspective. Furthermore, this study finds that participation in a consultation meeting is more beneficial for less-educated citizens, as their perceived to express an opinion experience an increase after participating. Conversely, attending a consultation meeting has minimal impact on the perceived opportunities to express an opinion among more-educated citizens.