Liberal democracies are rapidly being transformed. Traditional mechanisms of linkage between citizens and the state, like elections or political parties, apparently have lost some of their legitimacy, as both voter turnout and party membership are declining in most Western countries. At the same time, however, we can observe that new forms of engagement and citizenship seem to be on the rise, although there are few empirical studies available on what exactly are the consequences of the spread of these new forms. We also do not have sufficient information on the way democracies manage to tackle new problems like increasing diversity, new forms of communciation, the impact of mass media on political communication, or the perceived lack of political interest among younger age cohorts.

The Centre for Citizenship and Democracy wants to tackle these current problems, by conducting theoretically informed comparative research. Our research is focused on questions of political participation, trust, political knowledge and political efficacy. In collaboration with our colleagues at McGill University (Montreal, Canada) we investigate how young people are being socialized with regard to political attitudes and behaviors. What does increasing ethnic diversity mean for political stability and social cohesion? How does new communication technology influence the flow of information between citizens and the political system? These are just a few of the questions that lie at the heart of our research program.