Group involvement and democratic orientations: Social capital in the postelection context

Objective. This article tests the relationship between involvement in voluntary associations and attitudinal changes considered supportive of democratic principles and system legitimacy. Methods. We utilize 1996 pre- and postelection American National Election Studies panel data to test the proposed relationship. The effects of reported levels of group involvement are examined across three attitudinal measures of democratic support: trust in government, external efficacy, and absolute differences in postelection evaluations of the winning and losing candidates. Results. Greater involvement in voluntary organizations contributes to increased levels of postelection trust in government and external efficacy and a reduction in postelection polarization of comparative candidate evaluations. Conclusions. In addition to supporting the social capital proposition linking group involvement to orientations viewed as enhancing of democracy, this study also contributes to a growing literature linking individual-level behavior to changes in systemic-level attitudes.