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For some people, protests don't seem like rational and responsible forms of political participation in a democratic system. According to the latest , 28.6% of Canadians and 27.7% of Americans said they would never, under any circumstances, attend a peaceful demonstration.

Yet citizens often lack opportunities to influence government decisions outside of voting during elections, leaving them feeling powerless about the direction of their elected government.

From this perspective, it's easy to understand why millions may attend protests against .

Some argue that citizens should email, call or write letters to political leaders, but these individualistic activities are easily ignored because they occur behind closed doors. The visibility of protests, combined with a large turnout, helps raise awareness of issues among other citizens and political leaders.

Protests serve a critical function in a democratic system—they offer a collective and visible method for citizens to express their political views. These events can attract —many more than the number of respondents to public opinion polls or attendees at government public consultation events.

Perceptions of effectiveness

When deciding whether to participate in a march or demonstration, anger, are important, but these sentiments alone are insufficient to motivate people to act.

Instead, citizens must interpret their experiences as unjust or unfair to feel compelled to participate in a protest. Likewise, people must believe that the protest will be effective in influencing political leaders.

In 2019, I conducted an online survey in —the U.S., Canada, the U.K and France—asking respondents to rate the in influencing political leaders.

Across the four countries, the averages were similar, based on the five-point scale ranging from "not at all" to "a great deal." And those who believed that protests were effective were far more likely to report having participated in a march or demonstration in the past 12 months compared to those who did not view protests as effective.

Who protests and why?

The involves weighing a variety of factors that may encourage or discourage participation, as well as views about the effectiveness of public protests.

People will often join if , and whether they're asked to depends on their ties to others who are also interested in attending, or if they're a that encourages its members to attend.

This social network effect is as important, if not more important, than simply being angry or frustrated.

People who identify as left-wing are more likely to participate in marches and demonstrations. Historically, this has been , but in contemporary research, individuals on of the political continuum participate in protest.

Furthermore, these ideological differences and . Whether a protest attracts those from the right versus the left depends on the issue. .

Paying attention

Rather than focusing on left vs. right, research should pay attention to . Are people paying attention to current events or what's going on in government? Political interest precedes the development of ideological views.

Furthermore, people can only form their views about the effectiveness of protest once they start paying attention to politics.

The recent global Hands Off protests attracted citizens who are dissatisfied with Trump's newly imposed tariffs and other recent government decisions, such as , , , especially those with a diversity, equity and inclusion focus.

These demonstrations were part of a , similar to those after Trump's first election.

To truly understand who participates and who does not in public protests, we need to consider social connections, views about the effectiveness of protest and people's interest in politics.