Young people and political action: who is taking responsibility for positive social change?

Abstract

A human rights perspective suggests that we are all responsible for ensuring the human rights of others, which in turn ensures that our own human rights are respected and protected. A convenience sample of 108 young people (41 males and 67 females) aged between 16 and 25 completed a questionnaire which asked about (a) levels of involvement in political activity and (b) sense of personal responsibility for ensuring that the human rights of marginalised groups (e.g. ethnic minorities, immigrants, lesbians and gay men) are protected.Findings showed that most respondents supported (in principle) the notion of human rights for all, but tended to engage in low key political activity (e.g. signing petitions; donating money or goods to charity) rather than actively working towards positive social change. Qualitative data collected in the questionnaire suggested three main barriers to respondents viewing themselves as agents of positive social change: (1) "It's not my problem", (2) "It's not my responsibility", and (3) a sense of helplessness. Suggestions for how political action might best be mobilised among young people are also discussed.

Confronting macrosocial worries: Worry about environmental problems and proactive coping among a group of young volunteers

“…Additionally, people in this age group often lack a sense of how they themselves can contribute to these large and abstract questions [4,5]. This rather bleak picture is further supported by research showing that young people in many western countries are not collectively engaged in societal issues [5][6][7], and by studies which indicate that, on a private level, the gap between proenvironmental attitudes and actual pro-environmental behavior is largest among the young [8]. To top it off, recent studies show a decline in general psychological well-being, with increased levels of anxiety and depression, among youths living in different western countries [6,9,10].…”

“…Young people's images of the future on a global scale are fragmentary, mainly consisting of negative descriptions [2][3][4]. Additionally, people in this age group often lack a sense of how they themselves can contribute to these large and abstract questions [4,5]. This rather bleak picture is further supported by research showing that young people in many western countries are not collectively engaged in societal issues [5][6][7], and by studies which indicate that, on a private level, the gap between proenvironmental attitudes and actual pro-environmental behavior is largest among the young [8].…”

Young People's Extra-Curricular Activities: Critical Social Engagement – Or ‘Something for the CV’?

“…Although Ellis (2004) has argued that only a small minority of young people are actively involved with organisations that engage in the promotion of positive social change, national surveys have indicated that levels of volunteering amongst young people and older adults are broadly similar (Institute for Volunteering Research, 2004;Murphy et al, 2005). Indeed, the 2005 Citizenship Survey, conducted by the Home Office, indicated that the 16-19 age group is more likely to engage in informal volunteering than older age groups (Murphy et al, 2005).…”

Youth and new politics: Global changes: Local lives

“…Интернацио-налне разлике у култури младих су на свим нивоима мање изражене од уну-тарнационалних. Друштва су све више подељена изнутра на пост-материјали-стичке и материјалистичке генерације, односно оне које истичу вредности самоодржања и оне које негују вредности самоизражавања (Inglehart, 1997;2004). Млади различито перцепирају политику, идеологију, религију у односу на старије и више су склони либералнијим и демократичнијим ставовима.…”