Who Supports Political Violence? A Cross‑National Study of Prejudice, Trust, and Participation

This paper examines the factors associated with individuals’ acceptance of political violence across contemporary democracies. Acceptance of political violence, defined by attitudes approving of the use of violence (physical, psychological or otherwise defined) in order to achieve (explicit or implicit) political goals, has become an increasingly salient indicator of democratic vulnerability (Norris, 2017). Prior research highlights the roles of affective polarization (Iyengar et al., 2019), threat perceptions (Huddy et al., 2006), and institutional distrust (Piazza, 2024) in shaping support for political violence, yet less attention has been paid to how prejudicial worldviews contribute to the legitimization of violent political action. Drawing on original survey data collected between 2 and 23 September 2025 using a CAWI (Computer Assisted Web Interviewing) online panel, with a total sample of 10,111 respondents (n = 2,014 in Germany; n = 2,023 in Hungary; n = 2,010 in Romania; n = 2,053 in Spain; n = 2,011 in the United Kingdom), we analyze how misogyny, racism, and other forms of discriminatory attitudes correlate with the willingness to condone political violence, while controlling for political interest, institutional trust, and prior protest experience. We advance three hypotheses: H1: Individuals expressing stronger prejudicial attitudes, such as sexism or beliefs minimizing discrimination, will show higher acceptance of political violence. H2: Higher institutional trust will be associated with lower acceptance of political violence. H3: Engagement in non‑violent political participation, such as protest attendance, will be negatively associated with support for political violence (Bosi et al., 2016). Preliminary analyses support these expectations: prejudicial attitudes, traditional gender norms, and perceptions that discrimination is no longer a problem are positively associated with endorsing political violence, whereas institutional trust, support for advancing women’s rights, and recent protest participation predict lower acceptance. These findings underscore the importance of discriminatory worldviews as drivers of democratic instability and highlight how both institutional orientations and participatory experiences shape citizens’ willingness to justify political violence.