Government Dissatisfaction and Populism.
Evidence from 1968 in Europe
In 1968, young people grew up in an atmosphere of strong dissatisfaction and distrust
against the status quo. We show that higher exposure to protests in 1968 leads
to higher dissatisfaction toward national governments and raises the probability of
voting for populist parties. Consistently with the impressionable years hypothesis,
we find these effects valid only for those between 18 and 25 during 1968. Our results
are robust to a series of placebo tests and to alternative definitions of our treatment
and control groups.
against the status quo. We show that higher exposure to protests in 1968 leads
to higher dissatisfaction toward national governments and raises the probability of
voting for populist parties. Consistently with the impressionable years hypothesis,
we find these effects valid only for those between 18 and 25 during 1968. Our results
are robust to a series of placebo tests and to alternative definitions of our treatment
and control groups.