Politics In/Action: A Communication Analysis of Factors which Cultivate Civic Engagement Among Youth

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to explore the factors which promote and/or dissuade America’s youth (thirteen to nineteen) from becoming civically engaged. This is particularly important because currently these young people are one of the fastest growing demographics in America. Like generations before it, this demographic stands to inherit the social and political tasks of the current day as well as those that will unfold over their lifetime. But, because research suggests a large proportion of this group are apathetic to this process we need to know what can be done to cultivate civic mindedness among this demographic so that stakeholders can effectively appeal to this demographic’s sense of civic duty. There are many ways to figure out the communication processes which promote engagement among youth. Yet, probably the best way to accomplish this task is to actually talk with young people about their own experiences and ask them to identify factors, which have promoted and/or dissuaded them from becoming civically engaged. Therefore, this thesis does exactly that. It asks the questions and explores the answers that the youth themselves give regarding their own experiences with civic engagement and the factors that promoted or dissuaded them from becoming engaged. It is also important to note that civic engagement is defined in many ways, but rather than having a priori definition, this study allows the definition to emerge from the data. Finally, the following is a review of the literature pertaining to the factors which tend to promote civic engagement among youth as well as what is absent in promoting or fostering civic mindedness among this demographic.