Education and Social Cohesion in Europe: Testing the Post-Modernization Thesis

In this paper, I test predictions coming from the modernization thesis by examining the relationships between social cohesion and educational at-tainment in Europe. Social cohesion is measured using indices of institu-tional trust, solidarity, and political and socio-cultural participation. I ex-plore how education influences social cohesion and interacts with coun-try-level characteristics, based on the assumption that the transition to modernized societies diminishes the role of economic resources in shap-ing lifestyles and opportunities. As a result, education is expected to play a crucial role in influencing social cohesion in these societies. Two hy-potheses are tested: (1) education has a stronger impact on social cohe-sion in more modernized countries, and (2) education is more influential than social class in shaping social cohesion, particularly in these coun-tries. Using multilevel models and structural equation modelling, I analyse data from the European Value Study. The results demonstrate that a higher level of education is associated mainly with greater social and po-litical participation, and that this effect is significantly stronger in more modernized countries, partially supporting the proposed hypotheses.