There is increasing support for the Scottish parliament to be granted more power, according to a new study.

But research published by the Electoral Commission on Tuesday found that support for further devolution of powers had coincided with growing perceptions that the Scottish parliament has less influence than first thought.

Written by MORI Scotland and the Institute of Governance at the University of Edinburgh, the study was designed to assist the commission in planning its voter education campaigns for next year's elections.

And after the resignation of former first minister Henry McLeish and the latest wave of sleaze allegations to hit his successor Jack McConnell, the researchers warned of alienation from the conduct of party politics.

"People in Scotland continue to attach relatively high importance to the Scottish parliament despite what is perceived to be negative media coverage, and despite a prevailing mood of disaffection with party politics," they concluded.

The study found that while remaining positive overall, expectations of the Scottish parliament's impact in key policy areas have generally become less positive.

There is also declining belief that the parliament will work in Scotland's interests, though it remains "substantially higher" than trust in the Westminster parliament.

The findings suggest that turnout in the 2003 elections could fall from the 59 per cent level recorded when the first elections were held in 1999.

Focus group research among more disaffected groups found a range of reasons for non-voting, ranging from a lack of interest in politics to a belief that voting "does not make a difference".

But the study also pointed to a degree of public confusion over differences between Scottish and British politics.

It found that for many of those less likely to vote there was a belief that there was "no difference between political parties".

"Curiously, while this perception appears to influence people's propensity to vote in Scotland, it seems to be largely driven by consideration of UK politics," said the report.

Another theme highlighted in the report is the perception that the Scottish parliament has not met expectations.

Blaming, in part, high expectations created during the referendum campaign, the research suggested that the parliament needs to set more "realistic" targets for what it can achieve.