Development Of Political Participation Research Articles

Engaging Adolescents in Politics

Starting from a political socialization perspective, this study examined the development of political participation during adolescence and early adulthood. We explore the effect of parents, peers, school media, and voluntary associations on political participation. Self-reported data were collected from 3,025 Belgian adolescents at three points in time: at age 16, age 18, and age 21. Latent growth curve modeling was conducted to analyze the effect of the five agents of socialization on the initial level and development of political participation. As hypothesized, we find that all political socialization agents influence the initial level and development of political participation over time. Peers and voluntary associations have the largest influence on the initial level of political participation and on its development. Parents and school would appear to be of less importance. While watching more television has a negative effect, more news consumption and internet use leads to more political participation.

Freedom to, Freedom from, Freedom of: Urban Life and Political Participation in Early Modern England

This paper focuses on the English experience of urban and national citizenship in the early modern period, arguing for the centrality of the economic rights and privileges of citizenship to the development of political participation in the early modern period. In doing so it also emphasizes that a degree of freedom from the state was critical to early modern citizenship. It ends by considering citizenship within the context of the English colonial ventures in America.

The Nature of Declining Party Membership in Denmark: Causes and Consequences

Declining party membership in Denmark is analysed in light of the general development of political participation in the 1970s and 1980s. It is demonstrated that the decline in party membership had nothing to do with a general decline in participation. The decline is rather the result of three different processes: (1) the declining number of farmers, (2) the weakening of the organization of the workers, and (3) the political mobilization of the new middle class and women. It is argued, therefore, that the causes of the decline are primarily demographic and socio-economic. It is furthermore argued that the declining membership threatens the traditional mobilizing and socializing functions of the parties and thereby may increase political inequality in the Danish society.

The development of political participation and political action repertoires in West Germany 1974–1986: Max Kaase Sonderforschungsbereich 3, J.W. Goethe-Universitaet Frankfurt und Universitaet Mannheim

The development of political participation and political action repertoires in West Germany 1974–1986: Max Kaase Sonderforschungsbereich 3, J.W. Goethe-Universitaet Frankfurt und Universitaet Mannheim