American teenagers' political views and civic behavior during contentious elections are the focus of a new study starting this summer by Michael McDevitt, associate professor at the University of Colorado at Boulder's School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
"The 'Colors of Socialization' study will explore how high schools, media and families contribute to the formation of political identity among teenagers in the post-9/11 era of partisan hostility and ideological rancor," said McDevitt, who was in Germany last month to accept the International Communication Association's 2006 Outstanding Applied Public Policy Award.
The $85,000 study will include telephone interviews this fall with a total of 1,000 high school seniors in 10 states - five "red" and five "blue" - with very competitive mid-term elections for governor or U.S. Senate, McDevitt said. The study's red states are Colorado, Iowa, Ohio, Florida and Arkansas. The blue states to be studied are California, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Washington.
"Teenagers in these states are more likely to get caught up in the drama and excitement of the electoral races," McDevitt said. Follow-up interviews will be conducted after the elections.
McDevitt explained that the study will trace influences that lead teens to electoral participation, unconventional activism and illegal or subterranean activism. "We aim to examine whether these various identities are accompanied by a willingness to listen to opponents, seek consensus in dialogue and other habits associated with deliberative democracy."
McDevitt hopes the study can provide insight on how high schools, parents and news media can promote participation, as well as civility, in political life. "The metaphor of the United States divided into red and blue states conjures a troubling question about how adolescents acquire political identities," he said. "For young people who adopt partisan loyalties and become activists, we want to find out if civic engagement comes at the expense of tolerance and respect for political opponents."
Little is known about the process by which young people acquire a civic identity. McDevitt said many adolescents are deeply distrustful of government, news media and corporations, and most do not simply internalize the partisan loyalties of parents.
Recent research has confirmed that while many young adults do not vote, they are volunteering in record numbers, according to McDevitt. Meanwhile, youth activism often bypasses the two-party system and conventional forms of electoral participation, he said.
McDevitt said prior research on civic education shows that high schools don't have much impact on whether teens become Democrats or Republicans, liberal, conservative or independent. He anticipates his study will reveal the indirect influences of high school instruction on teen political development.
"My prior research has shown that when teenagers are encouraged to express opinions in class during election campaigns, they spontaneously initiate political conversations outside of school with parents and friends," McDevitt said. "They also pay more attention to news about candidates and campaign issues."
When teens' discussions occur primarily with parents, the teens tend to develop a Republican or Democrat loyalty while expressing support for the two-party system, McDevitt said. "When teens talk about politics mostly with friends and peers, they're more likely to identify with unconventional activism such as dropping political banners from buildings and confronting police in protests," he said.
The Colors study also will explore how the effects of political discussion and news media attention might vary depending on political geography. "Peer-oriented discussion in red states might promote radical conservative activism, such as demonstrations at family planning clinics," McDevitt said. "Political conversations in blue regions might engender confrontational activism such as trespassing on private property to halt the clear-cutting of forests."
Funding for the study is being provided by the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement at the University of Maryland.