Patterns of Immigrant Political Participation: Explaining Differences in Types of Political Participation between Immigrants and the Majority Population in Western Europe

Abstract

This article explores differences in the pattern of political participation between immigrants and the majority population in Western Europe. Using data from the European Social Survey, I find that for immigrants the pattern of political participation is less distinct, that is, participation types are more strongly related than for the majority population; and that this cannot be explained by differences in levels of resources and engagement, but by differences in the importance of mobilization and by the amount of time spent in the new country of residence. This indicates that the explanatory mechanisms operate differently for immigrants than the majority, impacting not only on the decision on whether not to participate, but also on how. These findings are important, not only for what they tell us about the process of political integration, but also for how we study political participation more broadly.

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