It is tempting to explain the crisis in Australian democracy as reflecting the same forces that installed Donald Trump in the White House and removed Britain from the European Union.

After all, the common denominators are there for all to see: anger at the establishment, distrust of the so-called elites and the ascendancy of opinion over fact.

But that would be letting the current crop of leaders in Australia and their recent predecessors off the hook, along with their party machines, minders and spin doctors.

Truth is, the alarming levels of distrust, cynicism, betrayal and disappointment recorded in the latest Australian Election Study are, overwhelmingly, the result of home-grown forces.