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In the light of the theory outlined by Robert Putnam, this article explores the political consequences of "social capital" through membership of associations. Two surveys conducted among the French electoral population in 2000 and 2002 demonstrate that membership of one or several associations does not necessarily make the individual more confident or civic-minded once the effects of socio-cultural level, age, and gender have been taken into account–“except for a minority of more committed members. Whatever the association, however, even the ordinary members appear to be more politicized, as Tocqueville suggested more than a century ago.