Description
A basic precondition for a strong and sustainable democracy is that all citizens have equal opportunities and inclinations to participate in political life. A long dominant understanding is that the context in which children and adolescents grow up shape citizens’ political behaviors. However, the current literature is in large measure at a stand-still regarding what mechanisms and processes during adolescence that may contribute to the development of adult political engagement.
This research project stands to make significant scholarly contributions by examining how one’s adult political engagement is shaped by political socialization experiences gained in various everyday life contexts during adolescence.
We will fulfill this aim by following up one of the world's largest longitudinal studies on young people’s political socialization—the Swedish Political Socialization panel—with a new wave of the survey. Contributions from this project will help policy makers when considering appropriate policy measures to promote critical forms of political engagement such as voting, protest, political discussion, political efficacy, and political knowledge. Such knowledge is vital in a time of rising inequality between social groups.
Financiers
