Affective Polarization and Partisan Differences in Political Trust in Norway

Recently, there has been a steady increase in comparative studies of affective polarization, commonly defined as the difference between positive feelings towards in-parties/partisans and negative feelings towards out-parties/partisans. Probably the best explanation for this interest in affective polarization is the many negative consequences ascribed to it: ranging from biased interpretation of information and discrimination towards out-party supporters, to a more polarized media environment. Yet, despite of this, surprisingly little empirical research has actually been devoted to studying the political consequences of affective polarization thus far. With this in mind, the aim of this study is to examine how affective polarization shaped partisan differences in political trust during two very different types of circumstances in the Norwegian multiparty system. First, when the cabinet shifted from a right- to left-of-center government and vice-versa; and, secondly, during the increase in political trust that coincided with the government’s response to the 2020 coronavirus outbreak. While we would expect affective polarization to increase partisan differences in political trust after cabinet changes, the national response to the coronavirus may work as a unifying experience, where political trust changes homogenously across levels of affective polarization. The results show that affective polarization did in fact correlate with greater partisan differences in both instances, as polarized supporters of the government parties became more trusting, while the effect was negative for more polarized supporters of the opposition parties. However, this effect was primarily evident for trust in the government, while the relationship was more inconsistent for other measures of political trust.