Identidad y actitudes politicas en jovenes universitarios: El desencanto de los que no se identifican politicamente

In: Revista de ciencia política, Volume 25, Issue 2, p. 65-90

Abstract

This paper reports a study which analyzes attitudes & orientations of a group with growing significance in Chilean politics: people who do not identify with political parties or coalitions. The study was organized around a set of hypotheses derived from Social Identity Theory & previous research on generalized political attitudes. Participants of the study were university students in Santiago (N=1460), who answered a self-administered questionnaire. Results confirmed that those who are politically disengaged tend not to identify with other collective referents: the nation or religion. Their political attitudes are also distinctive: in comparison with people who identify with political parties or coalitions, their political cynicism is higher & their sense of political efficacy is lower. The political tolerance & authoritarianism of this group was significantly different from the levels exhibited by participants identified with right-wing parties & coalitions. Their support for democracy was intermediate as compared to that showed by left-wing & right-wing participants. In general, this group exhibits a clear retraction from basic referents of social identity & social integration. The paper concludes recommending longitudinal studies which can help establishing & characterizing the identity transitions that lead to political disaffection in Chilean politics. Tables, Figures, References. Adapted from the source document.