The ideological polarization of young Europeans

This study examines ideological polarization among young Europeans using all rounds of the European Social Survey since 2002. It shows that, contrary to common narratives, polarization is not experiencing a sustained rise among young people. Ideological dispersion among young people is lower and more episodic than among older adults, suggesting that cumulative radicalization is not a major factor. However, a growing gender gap among young people emerges as a key source of ideological divergence and a potential future cleavage.