Thresholds of Trust: The Political Consequences of Cumulative State Interactions During Adolescence

Adolescents from low-income families often have cumulative interactions with the state via welfare policies, school discipline, and the criminal justice system. Previous research provides little evidence about the political effects of cumulative negative experiences. I argue that these early experiences serve as a hidden curriculum of citizenship that sends individuals repeated signals of political exclusion and powerlessness, shaping trust in government. Using the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), I find that among non-Hispanic white individuals, initial negative experiences with the state diminish political trust, but that subsequent experiences begin to reverse this pattern as individuals learn to normalize negative treatment by the state. I find no significant relationship among non-Hispanic Black or Hispanic individuals. The results have implications for understanding the connection between sociopolitical experiences and political inequality.