What explains the EU north-south gap in institutional trust: socioeconomic conditions or behavioural differences? A case study

ABSTRACT

A characteristic of institutional trust levels in EU members is the difference detected between north and south. Using the Blinder–Oaxaca decomposition methodology, the paper examines whether behavioural or socioeconomic conditions explain the observed differences in institutional trust. The findings indicate that the biggest part of the observed gaps in trust towards both EU and national institutions are primarily attributable to the observed characteristics of the individuals and not to behavioural or cultural differences.

KEYWORDS:

• Social capital
• institutional trust
• decomposition analysis
• European Union