Developing the Leadership Potential of African Youth Through Online Communities

2022 ◽  
pp. 408-424
Author(s):  
Lanoi Maloiy ◽  
Jocelyn Cranefield
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Young People ◽  
Civic Engagement ◽  
Online Communities ◽  
Youth Civic Engagement ◽  
Leadership Potential ◽  
Facilitating Factors ◽  
Study Methodology ◽  
African Youth ◽  
Two Barriers

This chapter draws on the results of an explorative, qualitative study that investigated how online communities can facilitate civic engagement amongst Millennials. Based on the study's findings, the chapter explores how the use of online communities can assist and empower youth, particularly African young people, to overcome barriers, empower and foster civic engagement. This chapter begins with a review of key literature, and then a summary of the study methodology, followed by a discussion of the study findings and their potential for African youth. Results of the study indicated that five facilitating factors and two barriers were influential towards youth civic engagement in an online context. Adult perceptions of youth and the low credibility of online communities were found to act as significant barriers to online youth participation. Given these key findings from the study, the authors show how to employ online communities to engage African youth civic participation and decision making.

Developing the Leadership Potential of African Youth Through Online Communities

2021 ◽  
pp. 184-205
Author(s):  
Lanoi Maloiy ◽  
Jocelyn Cranefield
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Young People ◽  
Civic Engagement ◽  
Online Communities ◽  
Youth Civic Engagement ◽  
Leadership Potential ◽  
Facilitating Factors ◽  
Study Methodology ◽  
African Youth ◽  
Two Barriers

This chapter draws on the results of an explorative, qualitative study that investigated how online communities can facilitate civic engagement amongst Millennials. Based on the study's findings, the chapter explores how the use of online communities can assist and empower youth, particularly African young people, to overcome barriers, empower and foster civic engagement. This chapter begins with a review of key literature, and then a summary of the study methodology, followed by a discussion of the study findings and their potential for African youth. Results of the study indicated that five facilitating factors and two barriers were influential towards youth civic engagement in an online context. Adult perceptions of youth and the low credibility of online communities were found to act as significant barriers to online youth participation. Given these key findings from the study, the authors show how to employ online communities to engage African youth civic participation and decision making.

scholarly journals Social values and civic behaviour among youth in Ireland: The influence of social contexts

2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-64
Author(s):  
Charlotte Silke ◽  
Bernadine Brady ◽  
Pat Dolan ◽  
Ciara Boylan
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Civic Engagement ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Contexts ◽  
Western World ◽  
Social Environments ◽  
Youth Civic Engagement ◽  
Civic Attitudes ◽  
Civic Values ◽  
The Social

As youth civic engagement is widely considered important for social cohesion and democracy, concerns have been expressed regarding a perceived decline in civic and political engagement among young people throughout the western world. While research has shown that the social environment is influential in terms of the development of civic values, knowledge and behaviours among youth, limited research has been conducted on these issues in an Irish context. Drawing on survey research conducted with 167 young people aged 12–15 years in Irish secondary schools, this paper examines young people's civic attitudes and behaviours and how they are linked to their social contexts. Findings indicate that youth report high levels of social responsibility values but low engagement in both online and offline civic engagement. Furthermore, while parent, peer, school and/or community contexts were found to have a significant influence on youths' social responsibility values and offline civic behaviours, youth's online civic behaviours were not connected to these social environments. This study provides insights into the socialisation of civic values and behaviours among young people in Ireland and highlights the importance of investigating the link between the social context and different forms of youth civic involvement.

CHARACTERISTICS OF YOUTH CIVIC ENGAGEMENT IN LIEPAJA CITY

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 191-201
Author(s):  
Pāvels Jurs ◽  
Alīda Samuseviča
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Civic Engagement ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Civic Participation ◽  
Personal Responsibility ◽  
Social Activity ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
Theoretical Research ◽  
Youth Civic Engagement ◽  
Civic Consciousness

Youth civic engagement is an essential precondition for the preservation of democratic values and the existence of civil society. The implementation of the competence approach in the education process in Latvia provides as one of the key priorities of pedagogical work – encourage students' civic engagement and personal responsibility,  developing students' thinking and self-initiative, the skills to be accountable to the citizens of society with the development national, historical and civic consciousness and understanding of social processes, as well as to promote their social activity and persistent habits in dealing with their peers to share solving multi-level problems related to the future of the local community and sustainable development. The aim of the research is: on the bases of theoretical research of civic problems and the analysis of the results of the carried out survey (quantitative data processing), to identify expressions of civic engagement of young people (from 9 to 12 grade students) in Liepaja (Latvia) focusing on  different categories: (I) self-esteem of civic participation; (II) the willingness of young people to take responsibility; (III) self-realization of youth civic participation (IV) level of awareness among young people; (V) interaction of families and students in the context of the formation of a responsible position. The survey results reflect: relatively high self-esteem of civic engagement of students; low political engagement and political system scores; the untapped potential of young people in the context of civic engagement at school and city level. 

Rethinking Youth Political Socialization

2010 ◽  
Vol 43 (4) ◽  
pp. 1499-1527 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hava R. Gordon ◽  
Jessica K. Taft
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Young People ◽  
Civic Engagement ◽  
Political Socialization ◽  
Political Engagement ◽  
Qualitative Studies ◽  
Youth Civic Engagement ◽  
Roles And Responsibilities

This article draws from the experiences and narratives of teenage activists throughout the Americas in order to add a needed dimension, that of peer political socialization, to the larger political and civic socialization literature. The authors argue that although the existing literature emphasizes the roles and responsibilities of adults in shaping young people’s civic capacities, the roles that young people play in socializing each other for political engagement is underexplored. Based on two qualitative studies of teenage activists throughout North and Latin America, the authors argue that teenage activists, who are largely left out of this literature, represent a different process by which youth engage in politics. We use teenagers’ narratives about their own youth-led political socialization to extend the existing theorizing on youth civic engagement, rethink some of its core tenets, and elucidate the roles that young people themselves play in the processes of political socialization.

Citizens in the Present

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria de los Angeles Torres ◽  
Irene Rizzini ◽  
Norma Del Rio
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Civic Engagement ◽  
Mexico City ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Personal Narratives ◽  
Youth Civic Engagement ◽  
Public Issues ◽  
Personal Experiences ◽  
People’S Attitudes

Although media coverage often portrays young people in urban areas as politically apathetic or disruptive, this book provides an antidote to such views through narratives of dedicated youth civic engagement and leadership in Chicago, Mexico City, and Rio de Janeiro. This innovative comparative study provides nuanced accounts of the personal experiences of young people who care deeply about their communities and are actively engaged in a variety of public issues. Drawing from extensive interviews and personal narratives from the youth activists themselves, this book provides a vibrant portrait of a new, politically involved generation. The book examines youth civic engagement in Chicago, with particular emphasis on young people's attitudes regarding democracy. It considers the context of young people's civic engagement in Brazil, and the demographics of youth activists in Rio, the activities and organizations they are involved in, and their motivations for engagement. It also examines new paradigms of civic participation among Mexico City's youth.

"Feel That You Are Doing Something": Participatory Culture Civics

2014 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Neta Kligler-Vilenchik ◽  
Sangita Shresthova
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Collective Action ◽  
Civic Engagement ◽  
Online Communities ◽  
Harry Potter ◽  
Participatory Culture ◽  
Peer Networks ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Invisible Children

Young people’s civic engagement through online communities and peer networks has received increased at- tention in recent years. This paper examines groups rooted within participatory cultures, which mobilize their participants toward explicit civic goals. We draw on our research of Invisible Children and the Harry Potter Alliance—two media-centric, youth-oriented, participatory organizations—to identify their distinctive prac- tices. Building on our analysis, we propose that both organizations engage in “Participatory Culture Civics” (PCC) as they support organized collective action towards civic goals, while building on the affordances of participatory culture. We describe three innovative PCC practices employed by these groups: Build Communities, Tell Stories, and Produce Media. The organizations’ ability to combine civic goals with the pleasures of participatory culture allows them to successfully engage young people. However, both organizations struggle to balance between the creative and community-based tenets of participatory culture, and the focused, product-driven goals of a civic engagement organization.

scholarly journals An institutional trust as a factor of youth civic engagement at local government

2021 ◽  
Vol 94 ◽  
pp. 03014
Author(s):  
Elena Nikitina ◽  
Nikitina Vasileva ◽  
Tatiana Zerchaninova
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Young People ◽  
Civic Engagement ◽  
Political Institutions ◽  
Municipal Government ◽  
Integral Characteristic ◽  
Sociological Study ◽  
Youth Civic Engagement ◽  
Legitimate State ◽  
High Level

Trust in political institutions is the most important component of a legitimate state. Based on the authors' empirical research on the participation of Russian youth in local self-government, the article analyzes the trust in the municipal government in comparison with the level of civic engagement. The theoretical basis of the article is the institutional theory. According to it trust can be considered as an integral characteristic of the functioning of a political institution. To study the practice of youth participation in local self-government, the authors conducted an empirical sociological study in October-November 2020. The data collection method is a questionnaire survey of young Russian people aged 14-30 years (n = 2000 people). The article argues that young people are characterized by a high level of declared civic engagement. However, the level of youth trust in local government remains low. The trust is associated with awareness of the activities at level: the lower the level of awareness of young people about the work of local authorities, the lower the level of trust in them.

The role of social media in youth civic engagement practices in the Eastern Cape

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 25-42
Author(s):  
Stenford Matenda ◽  
Gedala Mulliah Naidoo ◽  
Hemduth Rugbeer
Keyword(s):  
Social Networks ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Young People ◽  
Civic Engagement ◽  
Civic Participation ◽  
Eastern Cape ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Youth Civic Engagement ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Public Sphere

The increasing appropriation of social media by young people has impelled many scholars to study how social networks affect their civic participation. Understanding this has become more urgent since there are concerns over the growing indifference to civic participation among young people. The paper was conceptualised using the public sphere theory. A mixed research design was used and 331 questionnaires were distributed to gather quantitative data while six focus group discussions were conducted to gather qualitative data. The findings showed that there is a shifting notion of communities and that young people are using social media to interact and solve issues that affect them in their ‗communities‘. Young people also use social media to get news, to discuss community development issues and to help others within their social networks to address challenges they face individually or collectively. The study concludes that social networks are important tools for promoting civic engagement.

Civically Engaged Youth

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria de los Angeles Torres ◽  
Irene Rizzini ◽  
Norma Del Río
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Civic Engagement ◽  
Mexico City ◽  
Public Discourse ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Urban Spaces ◽  
Global Cities ◽  
Youth Civic Engagement ◽  
The Public ◽  
Private Lives

This book explores youth civic engagement in three global cities in the Americas: Chicago, Mexico City, and Rio de Janeiro. Drawing on interviews conducted by the authors in each of the three cities, the book examines the trajectories of youth activists: what influenced them to step out of their private lives and engage in public battles, how they engage to effectively influence institutions in urban spaces that affect their lives, and what kinds of activities they pursued. It also asks whether young people are given rights in the present, or whether they are only conceived as future citizens. This chapter discusses the changing place of youth in public discourse, along with changes in the nature of the public spaces in which young people engage. It also explains the book's definitions of youth and civic engagement, along with its methodology, and gives an overview of the three global cities.

scholarly journals Meaningful Youth Participation as a way to achieving success

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 200-222
Author(s):  
Miranda Van Reeuwijk
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Young People ◽  
Reproductive Health ◽  
Civic Engagement ◽  
Operational Research ◽  
Sexual And Reproductive Health ◽  
Youth Participation ◽  
Social Environments ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Meaningful Involvement

Youth participation is a key component in many youth sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) programs. We analyze the results of Operational Research on Meaningful Youth Participation in a youth SRHR program in Ethiopia, Indonesia, Kenya, and Pakistan. Meaningful youth participation was found to have positive effects on empowerment and civic engagement of young people; on adult staff and organizations’ capacity to institutionalize meaningful involvement of young people, and provide youth-sensitive SRHR interventions; and achieve program objectives. Conditions enabling meaningful and structural youth participation are needed for positive effects, including mandates and policies on structural and fair youth representation at all decision making levels; opportunities for young people to have decision-making responsibilities, and to share power with adults; building young people’s capacities and understanding; welcoming and safe social environments where both young people and adults feel valued, respected, encouraged and supported.

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