Grass roots participation in the Nordic countries

Abstract. Despite the similarities between the Nordic countries with regard to social and political structures, major differences in grass roots participation are found. Participation is highest in Sweden and lowest in Finland, with Denmark, Norway and Iceland falling in between. There are also striking differences between the countries regarding the relationships between participation and factors as age, gender, education, social class and party choice. Two theories may help us to understand these differences. The first, mobilization theory, claims that grass root participation is used to mobilize new social groups. This theory is supported by evidence from Denmark, Norway and Iceland. During the 1970s and the 1980s all three countries experienced political mobilization of the well-educated, the new middle class and the women. The second theory, supplement theory, claims that grass root participation is nothing but an extension of the conventional modes of participation. This theory is supported in Sweden. The last section of the paper argues that differences between countries may be explained by differences in the strength of traditional political organizations.