Politics - Youth and Social Change

Lecture 7

What is political participation?

It encompasses both individual and collective shared values and actions (online and offline) in public and in private, which deliberately seek to maintain or bring about change to political, societal, or environmental contexts within a community, locally, nationally, or globally.

What are two characteristics of political participation?

1. Period sensitive: depends on the time in history because definitions evolve to reflect prevailing social, economic, technological and political contexts.

2. Beholder sensitive: different scholarly disciplinary traditions tend to conceptualize political participation in different ways and furthermore, these definition do not necessarily correspond to the definitions made by participants themselves.

Why has political participation changed throught time?

The repertoire of political participation has expanded as societies have become more educated and less deferential towards the political elite and in turn become more disillusioined about elected representatives and less trusting in them.

What framing of political participation does political science give?

The emphasis is generally laid on quantitative work involving empirical studies that measure and count political participation. For example, voting and membership of political parties.

What framing of political participation does political sociology give?

The importance tends to be placed on qualitative work with more interpretative ambitions (who, why, how).

What are actions that people can do in conventional politics?

• Voting in election.

• Being a member of a political party.

• Taking part in other activities linked to the electoral process and political parties.

  • Working for a party/candidate, belonging to a trade union, etc.

What are actions that people can do in unconventional politics?

• Signing petitions.

• Going on a protest march.

• Being involved in a new social movement.

• Engaging in a boycott.

What is unconventional politics?

Acts or actions carried out by citizens in order to counter and influence traditional forms of political, etc.

What are elite-directed activities?

• Encompass voting.

• Being member of a party.

• Standing for office, etc.

What are elite-directing/challenging activities?

• Taking part in political discussions

• Participating in new social movements

• Standing for office.

What is politics?

All voluntary activities by individual citizens intended to influence either directly or indirectly political choices at various levels of the political system.

What are the three types of power?

1. Positional power.

2. Relational power.

3. Power based on expertise.

What is positional power?

Power wielded by virtue of the authority of one’s position.

What is relational power?

It derives from charisma, interpersonal trust and solidarity.

What is power based on expertise?

It derives from value within an organization based on a specialized insight.

Why aren’t young people invovled in state-based/electoral politics? → Political alientation theory.

• Perception about being excluded from politics.

• Lack of interest and understanding of it.

• Do not feel listened to.

• Politicians are viewed as untrustworthy, self-interested, ineffective, among others.

• They find the business of politics uninviting annd irrelevant.

• Elitist nature of the political system alienates them.

What is austerity politics?

Using taxpayers’ money to bail out banks while creating negative social change.

Why do young people get involved in relational politics?

• Most people are seeking to participate politically → effect change, and influence the course of their own destiny.

• The course they choose is down to the structures that are made available to them.

• Thay are also shaped by ‘beliefs and sentiments’ => do people believe they can succeed?

What is DIO politics?

Do-it-ourselves political participation:

• Young people take initiative to participate with other like-minded citizens.

• Part of a shared experience in politics operating outside of political institutions.

• Collective and connective action.

• They find a specific issue particularly silent and important to them → leads to political participation and engagement.

What is '“slacktivism”?

Term to describe feel-good online activism that has zero political or social impact.

What is the effect of “slacktivism”?

It gives those who participate an illusion of having meaningul impact on the world without demanding anything more than joining a FB group for example.