The Relationship between Education and Political Self-Efficacy: Features of Influence on Political Participation

This article examines the influence of education level on political self-efficacy and citizens’ participation in po-litical life. The theoretical part includes an analysis of the concepts of “causal theory” and “sorting mechanism”, as well as a discussion of the role of political self-efficacy as a mediator. The empirical analysis uses data from the 11th round of the European Social Survey (31 countries) and employs logistic regression modeling. Three hypotheses are tested: a positive relationship between education and political self-efficacy; no direct link be-tween education and participation; and the mediating role of self-efficacy. The results confirm that education significantly affects political engagement both directly and indirectly through increased self-efficacy. Education strengthens citizens’ confidence in their ability to influence political processes, fostering greater political in-volvement. These findings have practical implications for civic education policy and strategies to enhance polit-ical participation.