Israel Engagement in Practice: An Empirical Look at the Impact of The Year of Service Emissaries

Abstract

ABSTRACTThe current field of Israel engagement has been significantly challenged by young North American Jews’ reported alienation from contemporary Israel. Literature in the last decade has addressed this challenge in depth, offering a wide variety of theoretical analyses and recommendations for program development. The present study is the first to thoroughly focus on one of these programs, the young emissaries (shinshinim) program, a joint initiative between the Jewish Agency for Israel and a growing number of Jewish communities around the world. Data were collected in the Greater Toronto Area, out of which the local Jewish Federation operates the largest shinshinim program worldwide. Levels of emotional, behavioral, and cognitive engagement with Israel were assessed in 47 local institutions’ representatives, 84 host families, and 197 high school students in relation to their interaction with shinshinim. Changes in attitudes toward Israel, Jewish tradition, and peoplehood, following their Year of Service, were also assessed in 36 shinshinim. All data were collected using questionnaires developed especially for the purposes of this study. Results show that the shinshinim program has a significant and positive impact on host families’ level of Israel engagement and that the Year of Service has a significant and positive impact on the shinshinim inclination to adopt Jewish traditions and to affiliate themselves with a Jewish Peoplehood. Results also show that the program is positively associated with Israel engagement among students and Jewish institutions’ representatives. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.