MOSCOW, June 29 – RIA Novosti. According to Belgian scientists, people of low socioeconomic status trust politicians less because they are more prone to a phenomenon called anomie. their article published Bulletin of Social Psychology in the scientific journal.

Previously, it was known that people’s socio-economic status (SES) is associated with their political confidence. This is often explained by socialization. People with high SES are more familiar with democratic values ​​or more likely to interact with trusted institutions. This increases political interest and ultimately improves attitudes towards statesmen.

In a new study, Thierry Bornand and Olivier Klein of the Free University of Brussels offer an additional explanation: Low SES reinforces the perception that the social structure is collapsing, which in turn undermines political trust.

Anomie is a state of society in conditions of disintegration of social norms and institutions, in which moral standards and mutual trust among people disappear. The concept was first proposed by the French sociologist Émile Durkheim.

The study was carried out on the basis of a survey of the population of Wallonia, a French-speaking region of Belgium known for its economic difficulties. It turned out that people with low SES felt more anomie than people with higher status. Also, the lower a person’s social status and income, the more the social fabric seems to be destroyed.

Therefore, according to scientists, the authority of politicians in the population depends not only on their actions. If people perceive the processes in society as a whole negatively, this reduces the credibility of statesmen.

The researchers also showed that perceived anomie was associated with lower levels of interpersonal trust. The authors believe that a social policy aimed at reducing inequality in society will help improve the situation.