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Tag: Political science

  • Influence of digitalization on political participation among young adults in contemporary Europe.

    Influence of digitalization on political participation among young adults in contemporary Europe.

    How does digitalization reshape the nature and depth of youth political participation across contemporary Europe? Wara (2026) conducts a systematic qualitative meta-synthesis grounded in mobilization theory to evaluate how digital communication platforms, e-governance, and e-democracy tools have redefined civic activism among young adults. Synthesizing evidence from 30 peer-reviewed articles published between 2014 and 2025 indexed in Web of Science and related repositories, the study investigates how technological shifts lower participation barriers while simultaneously introducing new structural tensions to democratic engagement.

    The findings demonstrate that digitalization has decentralized civic life by opening accessible, non-hierarchical arenas for political expression and collective action beyond traditional party and state apparatuses. Digital platforms enable rapid, horizontal organizing and transnational mobilization, as demonstrated by youth-driven movements such as Fridays for Future. However, this transformative potential is constrained by severe counterweights. Persistent digital divides, unequal access to digital infrastructure, and disparities in technological literacy continue to hinder equitable participation across different regions of Europe. Furthermore, the ecosystem of digital politics is complicated by cybersecurity vulnerabilities, pervasive online misinformation, and the risk of slacktivism, which can reduce active political commitment to superficial digital gestures and fuel ideological polarization.

    The study concludes that realizing the participatory benefits of digital politics requires structural intervention rather than passive reliance on technological diffusion. Sustainable digital democracy demands coordinated, cross-sectoral collaboration among governments, civil society, and educational institutions. These stakeholders must work in concert to advance digital equity, embed comprehensive critical media literacy into youth education, and construct inclusive, accountable digital governance architectures capable of mitigating polarization while safeguarding democratic participation in the digital era.

    Learn more about this article here:

    Wara, Y. A. (2026). Influence of digitalization on political participation among young adults in contemporary Europe. Open Research Europe, 5, 360. https://doi.org/10.12688/openreseurope.21521.2

  • Political Participation of Marginalized Young People: Examining Funding Programs from a European and National Perspective

    Political Participation of Marginalized Young People: Examining Funding Programs from a European and National Perspective

    How can public funding schemes bridge the gap between high-level policy agendas and grassroots practice to mobilize marginalized youth? Wielath et al. (2025) investigate the role of funding programs as meso-level infrastructures that mediate between macro-level political strategies and micro-level local implementation, assessing how these mechanisms can be designed to empower young people who are rarely engaged in political processes.

    Drawing on desk research and two expert focus groups conducted at both national and European levels, the study examines youth-focused funding architectures across four analytical dimensions: conceptual frameworks, cross-sectoral positioning, the inherent logic of administrative structures, and responsiveness to the lived realities of youth and community practitioners. The authors demonstrate that funding programs cannot be evaluated at the program level in isolation. Instead, they act as critical levers and mediators connecting systemic political goals with the everyday practices of youth workers and marginalized participants.

    The analysis reveals that successfully engaging underrepresented youth requires moving past deficit-oriented narratives that treat marginalized groups as passive recipients. Programmatic success relies on embedding robust bottom-up feedback loops, easing administrative rigidity to accommodate non-traditional civic actors, and investing in durable local infrastructures rather than short-term project cycles. The authors conclude that youth participation policies must transition toward long-term, context-sensitive, and coordinated funding frameworks that directly align structural resources with the practical needs of young citizens on the ground.

    Learn more about this article here:

    Wielath, S., Pelzer, M., Hofmann-van De Poll, F., & Rottach, A. (2025). Political Participation of Marginalized Young People: Examining Funding Programs from a European and National Perspective. Youth, 5(4), 108. https://doi.org/10.3390/youth5040108

  • Civic Interest from the Margin: Discrimination and Youth Political Engagement

    Civic Interest from the Margin: Discrimination and Youth Political Engagement

    How do experiences of discrimination and social participation interact to foster political interest among immigrant-origin youth? Agyeman-Osei (2025) examines the cognitive mechanisms underpinning youth political socialization, addressing conflicting empirical literature on whether adolescents with an immigrant background exhibit higher or lower levels of political interest than their native-born peers.

    Political interest serves as a primary cognitive driver of active political participation and long-term democratic integration, taking root early in adolescence and developing alongside key sociodemographic markers such as socioeconomic status and immigrant heritage. However, existing research reveals contradictory patterns, with some studies identifying suppressed political interest among immigrant youth while others observe heightened political interest. The author investigates whether these conflicting outcomes can be explained by personal experiences of discrimination and their potential moderating effect on social participation—a well-established correlate of civic and political interest.

    Drawing on empirical data from the Children of Immigrants Longitudinal Survey in Four European Countries (CILS4EU), the study captures a wide range of discrimination experiences reported by young people across national contexts. Utilizing linear regression models, the author evaluates the direct and interactive effects of discrimination and social participation on adolescents’ political interest. The empirical findings reveal that both discrimination experiences and active social participation exert statistically positive effects on youth political interest. Crucially, the analysis identifies no significant moderation effect between the two variables, demonstrating that discrimination and social participation operate as independent, additive pathways to political awakening rather than mutually amplifying dynamics. The study concludes that adversity and marginalization do not inherently induce political apathy; rather, confronting discrimination can stimulate critical political interest among immigrant youth, underscoring the need for institutions to provide supportive civic avenues that translate this interest into sustained democratic participation.

    Learn more about this article here:

    Agyeman-Osei, K. M. (2025). CIVIC INTEREST FROM THE MARGINS: DISCRIMINATION AND YOUTH POLITICAL ENGAGEMENT. https://doi.org/10.5281/ZENODO.19368161