Political discontent in the Netherlands in the first decade of the 21th century

This book introduces a refreshing perspective on the popular idea that citizens' political discontent is on the rise. Citizens' perspectives on politics are studied thoroughly through survey studies and in-depth interviews. Results reveal that there is no sudden crisis of politics or democracy, but a persistent image problem of a privileged political class, resulting in an urgent call for political virtue and moral leadership.

The research also examines the strong rise of attention for the issue of political discontent in newspapers articles and parliamentary documents. Surprisingly, newspapers and parliament prove to have a perspective on current political discontent in the Netherlands that is very different from that of politically dissatisfied citizens.