政黨作為一項制度攸關現代代議民主之運行，該項制度在民主臺灣遭致高度不信任甚至強烈非難。該現象並無奇特之處，各地(即使在成熟民主政體)政黨殊少享有高度的公眾信心。事實上，臺灣的政黨體系之發展與制度化相當完善，此不同於南韓、菲律賓及泰國等其他新就任或恢復的亞洲民主政體之政黨的易變、淺薄與碎裂。然而，國家認同議題已使臺灣的政黨體系呈現分極化，其結果是臺灣的政黨雖熟稔於選舉動員之藝術，卻仍未能於政策之深思熟慮上展現其技巧及專業。

Political party as an institution is essential to the functioning of modern representative democracy. This institution is highly distrusted and even strongly condemned in democratic Taiwan. There is nothing peculiar to this phenomenon. The party system everywhere (even in mature democracies) has rarely enjoyed a high level of public confidence. In fact, the party system in Taiwan is quite well developed and institutionalized, unlike its counterparts in other newly installed or restored Asian democracies, like Korea, the Philippines and Thailand, where political parties are fluid, inchoate, and fragmented. The national identity issue, though, has been polarizing the party system in Taiwan. Consequently political parties in Taiwan have mastered the art of electoral mobilization and are yet to hone their skills and expertise in policy deliberation.