ABSTRACT
This chapter analyses simultaneously trust in political institutions in Europe between 2008 and 2010 in six European democracies. Trust in political institutions is a very important indicator of a system’s legitimacy and it reflects individuals’ identification with their political system. Even if trust in political institutions is in decline in many western democracies; results show that economic crisis has created visible differences in European democracies, eroding significantly institutional trust in those countries more affected by the economic crisis. Moreover, results also show important differences across countries appear in terms of the impact of relevant explanatory factors for trust in political institutions.
