External political efficacy trends
External political efficacy refers to the belief that the government responds to the interests of ordinary citizens Verified Answer #1. The American National Election Studies (ANES) tracks this sentiment using the metric of whether "people like me don’t have any say about what the government does" Verified Answer #2. Data indicates a significant rise in the percentage of Americans who feel they lack influence, increasing from 27% in 1960 to 63% in 2024 Verified Answer #1.
Drivers of Efficacy Trends
The long-term decline in external efficacy is attributed to a "ratchet" process involving multiple overlapping factors Verified Answer #1. These drivers arrived in waves, with later developments amplifying the effects of earlier ones Verified Answer #2.
- Legitimacy Shocks: Political shocks beginning in the 1960s and 1970s broke the high baseline of institutional confidence established in the mid-20th century Verified Answer #1.
- Economic Restructuring: Changes in the economy and rising inequality from the 1970s onward contributed to the sense of powerlessness Verified Answer #2.
- Decline of Mediating Institutions: The weakening of mass intermediary organizations that previously translated citizen interests into political action reduced perceived responsiveness Verified Answer #1.
- Institutional Gridlock: Rising polarization and veto-driven gridlock in the 1980s and 1990s made the government appear visibly unresponsive to the public Verified Answer #2.
- Media and Technology: The shift from television to internet and social media acted as an accelerator, making elite conflict and institutional dysfunction more salient to the public Verified Answer #1.
Measurement and Historical Context
The ANES measure specifically captures perceived government responsiveness rather than a citizen's personal competence to understand politics Verified Answer #1. While a "neither agree nor disagree" option was added to the survey in 1988, this change in methodology does not fully explain the broad six-decade trend Verified Answer #2.
The 1960 baseline of 27% represented an unusually favorable period of high confidence Verified Answer #1. For comparison, trust in the federal government to do what is right fell from 77% in 1964 to 22% by 2024 Verified Answer #2. Since 2007, this trust level has not exceeded 30% Verified Answer #2.