Germans' trust in politics: A look at five years of crisis

Germans' trust in politics: A look at five years of crisis

The first corona lockdown was imposed in Germany on March 22, 2020, which began as a drastic measure to contain the pandemic. This two-week measure led to extensive contact restrictions, curfews and closed schools and daycare centers. Five years ago, the consequences of these decisions were noticeable and had a lasting impact not only on public life, but also on the population's trust in political institutions. A study of the University of Oldenburg and the Leibniz Institute for Educational Trajectories (LIfBi) examines this change in political trust in the context of the pandemic.

The first year of the pandemic saw an increase in trust in Germany's political institutions. The so-called “rally around the flag effect” caused confidence to rise from 2.37 to 2.55 on a scale of 1 to 4. Especially at the beginning of the crisis, the federal government and the Bundestag received a bonus of trust. However, in the second year of the pandemic, trust fell again, both in the federal government and in the Bundestag. The police, who played a central role during this time, also lost lasting trust and no longer reached the pre-crisis level. This highlights the complex dynamics at work during the pandemic.

Media trust in times of crisis

The study also looked at trust in different types of media. While trust in local and public media was considered stable in the first year, trust in social media fell significantly. Interestingly, average media trust rose again in 2023, but print media remained below its pre-crisis level. An analysis presented in the article by GWP – Society. Business. policy illuminates how specific trust in key decision-makers and generalized trust in the political system changed during the pandemic.

The research was based on survey data from 7,008 respondents to the National Education Panel (NEPS) between 2017 and 2023. Regional differences, incidence rates and pandemic-related stressors were also taken into account. The study is part of the project “Political attitudes and political participation as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic” (PEPP-COV), which was funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research.

Long-term social impact

The challenges Germany faced were not limited to the coronavirus pandemic. The social situation has been characterized by crises since the financial crisis of 2008, followed by the euro crisis and the refugee crisis. Russia's current war of aggression against Ukraine as well as the associated energy crisis and inflation have further influenced trust in the media Federal Agency for Civic Education reported. In this context, trust in the media plays a crucial role in citizens' information transfer and decision-making.

In 2022, 62% of respondents said they trust public broadcasting, but this represents a decrease from 70% in 2020. Despite the ongoing challenges, the majority of the population believes that public broadcasting is important and 62% believe that it makes a significant contribution to democracy. Younger people and those with higher education tend to have a higher level of trust in public broadcasting. These developments illustrate the gradual change in media trust, which is particularly tested in times of crisis.