Online youth political engagement and bureaucratization: The Australian Youth Forum

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 767-781
Author(s):  
Prashanth Pillay
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Political Participation ◽  
Political Engagement ◽  
Youth Participation ◽  
Political Involvement ◽  
Youth Policy ◽  
Political Values ◽  
Digital Society ◽  
Online Engagement ◽  
Depth Interviews

Through in-depth interviews with all 10 youth representatives who worked in the Australian Youth Forum (AYF), Australia’s first online government youth forum, this article explains how online engagement was experienced and understood by those who managed its day-to-day operation. While the AYF was decommissioned in 2014, it was the first, and, till date, only online federal initiative that invited young people to run a government-funded youth public forum. Despite its relatively short existence, the AYF provokes questions about the influence of historically entrenched political values on online youth political participation and policy. Findings from this article have uncovered a series of challenges faced by youth in adjusting to government efforts to regulate consultation within the AYF. Building on Collin’s (2015, Young Citizens and Political Participation in a Digital Society: Addressing the Democratic Disconnect. London: Palgrave Macmillan.) observation of a ‘democratic disconnect’ in Australian youth policy, an incompatibility between government expectations of youth political involvement and how young people value participation, this article suggests that the AYF provided key insights into the centralized bureaucratic arrangements that have historically defined Australian youth participation and how they influence youth participatory experiences in online government initiatives.

scholarly journals Environmental activism as a new form of political participation of the youth in Serbia

Sociologija ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 54 (2) ◽  
pp. 387-399 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jelisaveta Vukelic ◽  
Dragan Stanojevic
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Political Participation ◽  
Political Engagement ◽  
Environmental Activism ◽  
Political Life ◽  
Political Involvement ◽  
Political Expression ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
New Form ◽  
Established Democracies

The aim of this paper is to explore whether the environmental activism is a new form of political participation of the Serbian youth. One of the characteristics of the postindustrial societies is a general citizen withdrawal from the traditional channels of political participation. Political disengagement is thought to characterize all citizens but most of all the young people. However, although young people may have turned away from mainstream politics, they are nevertheless concerned with a wide range of issues that could be considered political in a broader sense of the term. In the post-socialist Europe young people tend to be even less involved in political life than the youth in the established democracies. However, they are also likely to adopt novel forms of political expression. Whether the Serbian youth follow the same pattern of political involvement, we intend to explore in this article. In searching for the answer to this question, we will focus our analysis on the environmental activism, as one of the forms of the new political engagement widely accepted among young people.

Behind the Popular Narrative: Negotiating Life and Political Engagement in Conflicted Kashmir

2021 ◽  
pp. 232102302110430
Author(s):  
Wahid Ahmad Dar
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Political Participation ◽  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Good Life ◽  
Political Engagement ◽  
The State ◽  
Comprehensive Understanding ◽  
Popular Narrative ◽  
Political Actions

The article focuses on the subaltern system of micro appropriations or Jugaads used by young Kashmiris to survive within precarious situations inflicted due to armed conflict. More particularly, it argues that such Jugaads are invoked by the subaltern consciousness of Tehreeq-e-Azadi, which offers space for not just the negotiation with the state but also the creative improvisation of daily political actions. It is illustrated that young people’s political participation is entangled with the attempts to overcome the uncertainty around their lives, thereby offering them pragmatic solutions in advancing their interests. It is further elaborated that the existing polarization between separatism and mainstream is obscure at the experiential level, living within precarious situations has taught young people to silently craft possibilities of a good life without looking confrontational to either side. The article argues that localized forms of engagement are crucial for a comprehensive understanding of how modern states operate.

VALUE ORIENTATIONS AND CIVIL-POLITICAL ACTIVITY OF YOUNG RUSSIAN PATRIOTS

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 62-70
Author(s):  
ANTONINA SELEZNEVA ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Political Participation ◽  
Social Activity ◽  
Value Orientations ◽  
Political Activity ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Values ◽  
State And Society ◽  
Patriotic Education ◽  
High Level

Purpose of the study. The article is devoted to the analysis of value orientations, forms of civic engagement and political participation of young Russian citizens who consider themselves patriots. In accordance with the conceptual and methodological provisions developed within the framework of the political and psychological approach, the author examines how the cognitive and behavioral components of the personality structure, which determine the patriotic orientation of youth, relate to each other. Research results. Based on an analysis of the data of an all-Russian survey of young people aged 15 to 30, the author comes to the conclusion that young Russian patriots are interested in politics and identify with Russia. They demonstrate a fairly high level of social activity and have a wide repertoire of forms of civic participation and political behavior. They have attitudes towards conventional forms of political participation (primarily electoral). In the system of values of young patriots, the most significant are human rights, peace, order, legality, security, freedom and justice. Young Russian citizens who consider themselves patriots differ in their political values and behavioral orientations from «non-patriots». The author comes to the conclusion that young patriots have a connection between values and behavioral practices of their implementation, which determines their focus on interaction with the state and society. But this is not typical for young people in general. It is noted that in the future, patriotism can become a factor in the serious intragenerational demarcation of young people. Therefore, significant efforts are required from various institutions of socialization in the field of political education and patriotic education of youth.

Gender inequalities in political participation and political engagement among young people in Europe: Are young women less politically engaged than young men?

Politics ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 026339572110288 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Grasso ◽  
Katherine Smith
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Political Participation ◽  
Young Women ◽  
Young Men ◽  
Political Engagement ◽  
Gender Inequalities ◽  
Political Inequality ◽  
Political News ◽  
Current State ◽  
Detailed Picture

This paper contributes to the literature by examining gender inequalities in political participation and political engagement among young people from a comparative perspective. By analyzing data on young people from nine European countries collected in 2018, we examine gender inequalities in participation in various modes of conventional and unconventional activism as well as related attitudes, broader political engagement and key determinants, cross-nationally, in order to provide a detailed picture of the current state of gender inequalities in political activism among young people in Europe. Our results allow us to speak to extant theorizing about gender inequalities by showing that the extent of political inequality between young men and women is less marked than one might expect. While the gender gaps in political participation for activities such as confrontational types of protest are small or absent, we find that young women are actually more active in petitioning, buycotting, and volunteering in the community. Young men instead are more active than young women in a majority of the nine countries analysed with respect to more institutional forms of participation linked to organizations and parties, various types of online political participation, and broader political engagement measures, such as internal political efficacy and consumption of political news through various channels. However, young men also appear to be more sceptical at least of certain aspects of democratic practice relative to young women.

Sustaining Democracy

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert B. Talisse
Keyword(s):  
Political Participation ◽  
Political Engagement ◽  
Democratic Citizenship ◽  
Democratic Participation ◽  
Political Values ◽  
Political Alliances ◽  
Political Views ◽  
Collective Self ◽  
Political Commitments ◽  
Politically Active

Democracy is hard work. It can flourish only when citizens actively participate in the business of collective self-government. Yet political participation gives rise to deep political divides over core political values. In the midst of these divisions, citizens are required to recognize one another as political equals, as fellow participants who are entitled to an equal share of political power. Research shows that political engagement exposes citizens to forces that erode their capacities to regard their political opponents as their equals. In the course of democratic participation, we come to see our opponents as inept and ill-motivated, ultimately unfit for democracy. This tendency is especially pronounced among those who are the most politically active. Democratic citizenship thus can undermine itself. With this conflict at the heart of democratic citizenship, we must actively pursue justice while also treating those who embrace injustice as our equals. Sustaining Democracy navigates this conflict. It begins by exploring partisanship and polarization, the two mechanisms by which citizens come to regard their opponents as unsuited for democracy. It then proposes strategies by which citizens can mitigate these forces without dampening their political commitments. As it turns out, the same forces that lead us to scorn our opponents can also undermine and fracture our political alliances. If we are concerned to further justice, we need to uphold civil relations with our opponents, even when we despise their political views. If we want to preserve our political friendships, we must sustain democracy with our foes.

YOUTH PARTICIPATION IN VOLUNTEERS’ WORK

2018 ◽  
pp. 12
Author(s):  
Jekaterina Moisejeva
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Formal Education ◽  
Active Participation ◽  
Youth Participation ◽  
Previous Experience ◽  
Youth Policy ◽  
Policy Strategy ◽  
Low Motivation

Nowadays the problem of youth participation is one of the most important issues among politicians, scientists, teachers, youth specialists and employees. In the last 10 years, the number of young people in Latvia has decreased by 35 % or 180 thousand. The reasons are: passivity, low motivation and lack of interest among young people; insufficient awareness among young people of opportunities to participate and actively engage in various non-formal education activities; the lack of entrepreneurship and communication skills; the youth policy strategy in Rezekne has not been developed and approved. These challenges slower youth engaging in active participation. Based on previous experience, the author believes that the problem of youth participation in NGO can be solved by purposefully working and improving the factors of youth participation such as learning and improving English as well as involvement in youth projects.

scholarly journals Information literacy as a tool to support political participation

2016 ◽  
Vol 40 (123) ◽  
pp. 14-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lauren N Smith
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Political Participation ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
Political Engagement ◽  
Information Provision ◽  
Political Knowledge ◽  
School Libraries ◽  
Political Events ◽  
Potential Tool

Recent political events have raised the profile of information literacy as a potential tool for supporting informed political participation. This article emphasises the importance of supporting political engagement through information provision and information literacy development, drawing on findings from two research projects to discuss what information needs young people have in relation to political engagement and identify some examples of work taking place in Scottish school libraries to help young people develop political knowledge and feel able to participate meaningfully in democratic processes. Some of the main barriers to libraries engaging with this work are also discussed.

scholarly journals Intra-generational inequalities in young people’s political participation in Europe: The impact of social class on youth political engagement

Politics ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 026339572110317
Author(s):  
Maria Grasso ◽  
Marco Giugni
Keyword(s):  
Social Class ◽  
Young People ◽  
Political Participation ◽  
Generational Differences ◽  
Political Engagement ◽  
Class Background ◽  
National Perspective ◽  
Europe Today ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Cross National

The declining political engagement of youth is a concern in many European democracies. However, young people are also spearheading protest movements cross-nationally. While there has been research on political inequalities between generations or inter-generational differences, research looking at differences within youth itself, or inequalities between young people from different social backgrounds, particularly from a cross-national perspective, is rare. In this article, we aim to fill this gap in the literature. Using survey data from 2018 on young people aged 18–34 years, we analyse how social class background differentiates groups of young people in their political engagement and activism across nine European countries. We look at social differentiation by social class background for both political participation in a wide variety of political activities including conventional, unconventional, community and online forms of political participation, and at attitudes linked to broader political engagement, to paint a detailed picture of extant inequalities amongst young people from a cross-national perspective. The results clearly show that major class inequalities exist in political participation and broader political engagement among young people across Europe today.

Youth policy in the Baltic Sea Region – a case study of Lithuanian, Latvian, Estonian, and Polish youth participation in the BSSSC Working Group on Youth Policy

2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 101-119
Author(s):  
Marta Szulc
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Baltic Sea ◽  
Working Group ◽  
Youth Participation ◽  
The Baltic Sea ◽  
Youth Policy ◽  
Baltic Sea Region ◽  
The Baltic ◽  
Youth Activity

Youth policy, understood as youth activity and policy for youth,has been developing in the Baltic Sea region for many years. It takes placeon many levels of Baltic cooperation; therefore, this article uses the theory ofmulti-level governance for the analysis. There are some differences in youthpolicy between the communities of the Baltic Sea Region countries. This articleaims to analyse the participation of young people from the regions ofLithuania, Latvia, Poland, and Estonia in the BSR youth policy, based on theexample of the Youth Working Group of the “Baltic Sea States SubregionalCo-operation”. The main part of the article is an analysis of interviews withyouth coordinators of “Baltic Sea States Subregional Co-operation” from selectedcountries. During the study, 5 interviews were conducted, and, thanksto these interviews, the author has made interesting observations on the differencesin involvement of young people from Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, andPoland. They indicated, inter alia, disproportional access to participation in thework of the Youth Working Group “Baltic Sea States Subregional Co-operation”between Estonia and Poland, and Lithuania and Latvia. The results clearlyshow that young people from Polish regions have the greatest opportunitiesto shape youth policy in the Baltic Sea Region.

Youth, politics, and participation in a changing world

2017 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 507-513 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lesley Pruitt
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Political Participation ◽  
Review Essay ◽  
Political Change ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Political Leaders ◽  
Digital Society ◽  
Youth Politics ◽  
Key Questions ◽  
People Today

What options do young people have for enacting social and political change? Can traditional politics redeem itself in the eyes of youth? Can political leaders hear young people? Do they listen? What alternative avenues for politics might young people pursue or propose? What are their respective prospects and challenges? These are some key questions that arise when reading Young Citizens and Political Participation in a Digital Society, by Philippa Collin, Running from Office, by Jennifer Lawless and Richard Fox, and Youth and Generation by Dan Woodman and Johanna Wyn. In this review essay, these books are critically analysed alongside existing relevant literature to explore the ways young people today engage with politics and political participation, including how this reflects commonalities but also differences with previous social generations. Such work lends itself to an argument for reflecting on the state of democracy and young people’s actual and perceived roles as citizens.

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