Restricted accessResearch articleFirst published online 2015-6
Changes in late adolescents’ voting intentions during the election campaign: Disentangling the effects of political communication with parents,peers and media
This article investigates the effects of political discussions with parents, political discussions with peers and exposure to political news during an election campaign on the voting intentions and behaviour of first-time voters. Longitudinal data collected in the Czech Republic are employed in the main analysis (N = 223). Results show that young people who frequently discuss politics with their peers are characterized by higher voting intentions and subsequent electoral participation. On the other hand, political discussions with parents and exposure to political news have no such effects. Furthermore, although it does not have an impact on voting intentions, more frequent political discussions with parents predict increased frequency of political discussions with peers. Overall, our results underscore the importance of peers in late adolescents’ political socialization.
AdamsRLaursenB (2001) The organization and dynamics of adolescent conflict with parents and friends. Journal of Marriage and Family63(1): 97–110.
2.
AmnåEEkströmMKerrM. (2009) Political socialization and human agency. The development of civic engagement from adolescence to adulthood. Statsvetenskaplig Tidskrift111(1): 27–40.
3.
ArnettJJ (2006) Socialization in emerging adulthood: From the family to the wider world, from socialization to self-socialization. In: GrusecJEHastingsPD (eds) Handbook of Socialization: Theory and Research. New York; London: Guildford Press, pp. 208–231.
4.
BakkerTPDe VreeseCH (2011) Good news for the future? Young people, internet use, and political participation. Communication Research38(4): 451–470.
5.
BeaumontE (2010) Political agency and empowerment: Pathways for developing a sense of political efficacy in young adults. In: SherrodLRTorney-PurtaJFlanaganCA (eds) Handbook of Research on Civic Engagement in Youth. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, pp. 525–558.
ChaffeeSHMcLeodJMAtkinCK (1971) Parental influences on adolescent media use. American Behavioral Scientist14(3): 323–340.
8.
ChoJShahDVMcLeodJM. (2009) Campaigns, reflection, and deliberation: Advancing an O-S-R-O-R model of communication effects. Communication Theory19(1): 66–88.
9.
EkströmMÖstmanJ (2013) Family talk, peer talk and young people’s civic orientation. European Journal of Communication28(3): 294–308.
10.
EndersCKBandalosDL (2001) The relative performance of full information maximum likelihood estimation for missing data in structural equation models. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal8(3): 430–457.
11.
EvelandWPJrThomsonT (2006) Is it talking, thinking, or both? A lagged dependent variable model of discussion effects on political knowledge. Journal of Communication56(3): 523–542.
12.
EvelandWPJrHayesAFShahDV. (2005) Understanding the relationship between communication and political knowledge: A model comparison approach using panel data. Political Communication22(4): 423–446.
13.
FlanaganCA (2003) Developmental roots of political engagement. Political Science & Politics36(2): 257–261.
14.
FraleyRCDavisKE (1997) Attachment formation and transfer in young adults’ close friendships and romantic relationships. Personal Relationships4(2): 131–144.
15.
GallatinJ (1980) Political thinking in adolescence. In: AdelsonJ (ed.) Handbook of Adolescent Psychology. New York: Wiley, pp. 344–382.
16.
GerberASGreenDP (2000) The effects of canvassing, telephone calls, and direct mail on voter turnout: A field experiment. American Political Science Review94(3): 653–663.
17.
GlasfordDE (2008) Predicting voting behavior of young adults: The importance of information, motivation, and behavioral skills. Journal of Applied Social Psychology38(11): 2648–2672.
18.
GlynnCJHugeMELunneyCA (2009) The influence of perceived social norms on college students’ intention to vote. Political Communication26(1): 48–64.
GreenDPGerberASNickersonDW (2003) Getting out the vote in local elections: Results from six door-to-door canvassing experiments. The Journal of Politics65(4): 1083–1096.
21.
HivelyMHEvelandWPJr (2009) Contextual antecedents and political consequences of adolescent political discussion, discussion elaboration, and network diversity. Political Communication26(1): 30–47.
22.
HunterFT (1985) Adolescents’ perceptions of discussions with parents and friends. Developmental Psychology21(3): 433–440.
23.
JenningsMK (2004) American political participation viewed through the lens of the political socialization project. In: HermannMG (ed.) Advances in Political Psychology. Amsterdam: Elsevier, pp. 1–18.
24.
KerrDSturmanLSchulzW. (2010) ICCS 2009 European Report. Amsterdam: IEA.
25.
KerrMStattinHBieseckerG. (2003) Relationships with parents and peers in adolescence. In: LernerRMEasterbrooksMAMistryJ (eds) Handbook of Psychology. Volume 6: Developmental Psychology. Hoboken: Wiley, pp. 395–419.
26.
KiousisSMcDevittMWuX (2005) The genesis of civic awareness: Agenda setting in political socialization. Journal of Communication55(4): 756–774.
27.
KlineRB (2011) Principles and Practice of Structural Equation Modelling. New York; London: Guildford Press.
28.
KlofstadCA (2007) Talk leads to recruitment: How discussions about politics and current events increase civic participation. Political Research Quarterly60(2): 180–191.
29.
KlofstadCA (2010) The lasting effect of civic talk on civic participation: Evidence from a panel study. Social Forces88(5): 2353–2375.
30.
KobakRRosenthalNLZajacK. (2007) Adolescent attachment hierarchies and the search for an adult pair-bond. New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development117: 57–72.
31.
KrosnickJAAlwinDF (1989) Aging and susceptibility to attitude change. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology57(3): 416–425.
32.
LaFontanaKMCillessenAHN (2002) Children’s perceptions of popular and unpopular peers: A multimethod assessment. Developmental Psychology38(5): 635–647.
33.
LeeNJShahDVMcLeodJM (2013) Processes of political socialization: A communication mediation approach to youth civic engagement. Communication Research40(5): 669–697.
34.
McDevittM (2006) The partisan child: Developmental provocation as a model of political socialization. International Journal of Public Opinion Research18(1): 67–88.
35.
McDevittMChaffeeS (2000) Closing gaps in political communication and knowledge: Effects of a school intervention. Communication Research27(3): 259–292.
36.
McDevittMChaffeeS (2002) From top-down to trickle-up influence: Revisiting assumptions about the family in political socialization. Political Communication19(3): 281–301.
37.
McDevittMKiousisS (2007) The red and blue of adolescence: Origins of the compliant voter and the defiant activist. American Behavioral Scientist50(9): 1214–1230.
38.
McIntoshHHartDYounissJ (2007) The influence of family political discussion on youth civic development: Which parent qualities matter?Political Science & Politics40(3): 495–499.
39.
McLeodJM (2000) Media and civic socialization of youth. Journal of Adolescent Health27(2): 45–51.
40.
McLeodJMShahDV (2009) Communication and political socialization: Challenges and opportunities for research. Political Communication26(1): 1–10.
41.
MooreSRosenthalD (1991) Adolescents’ perceptions of friends’ and parents’ attitudes to sex and sexual risk-taking. Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology1(3): 189–200.
PasekJKenskiKRomerD. (2006) America’s youth and community engagement: How use of mass media is related to civic activity and political awareness in 14- to 22-year-olds. Communication Research33(3): 115–135.
45.
PiagetJ (1965) The Moral Judgment of the Child. New York: Free Press.
46.
PlutzerE (2002) Becoming a habitual voter: Inertia, resources, and growth in young adulthood. American Political Science Review96(1): 41–56.
47.
PutnamRD (2000) Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community. New York: Simon & Schuster.
48.
QuintelierEVissersS (2008) The effect of internet use on political participation: An analysis of survey results for 16-year-olds in Belgium. Social Science Computer Review26(4): 411–427.
49.
RichardsonWK (2003) Connecting political discussion to civic engagement: The role of civic knowledge, efficacy and context for adolescents. PhD Dissertation, University of Maryland, College Park, MD.
50.
SaphirMNChaffeeSH (2002) Adolescents’ contributions to family communication patterns. Human Communication Research28(1): 86–108.
51.
SearsDO (1975) Political socialization. In: GreensteinFIPolsbyNW (eds) Handbook of Political Science, vol. 2. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley, pp. 93–153.
52.
SearsDOLevyS (2003) Childhood and adult political development. In: SearsDOHuddyLJervisR (eds) The Oxford Handbook of Political Psychology. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 60–109.
53.
ShahDVChoJEvelandWPJr. (2005) Information and expression in a digital age: Modeling internet effects on civic participation. Communication Research32(5): 531–565.
54.
ShahDVChoJNahS. (2007) Campaign ads, online messaging, and participation: Extending the communication mediation model. Journal of Communication57(4): 676–703.
55.
SmetanaJG (2011) Adolescents, Families, and Social Development: How Teens Construct Their Worlds. Chichester; Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell.
56.
TeorellJ (2003) Linking social capital to political participation: Voluntary associations and networks of recruitment in Sweden. Scandinavian Political Studies26(1): 49–66.
57.
ValentinoNASearsDO (1998) Event-driven political communication and the preadult socialization of partisanship. Political Behavior20(2): 127–154.
58.
VolleberghWAMIedemaJRaaijmakersQAW (2001) Intergenerational transmission and the formation of cultural orientations in adolescence and young adulthood. Journal of Marriage and Family63(4): 1185–1198.
59.
ZukinCKeeterSAndolinaM. (2006) A New Engagement? Political Participation, Civic Life, and the Changing American Citizen. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press.
