Call for Papers: Divergent perspectives of political engagement in Europe. What does the European Social Survey tell us about generational differences in political participation?

The extreme social upheaval witnessed during the early decades of the 21st century has impacted on the lives of citizens in significant ways. Therefore both political attitudes and the level of engagement in politics have changed substantially. The global economic crisis has had a direct impact on young citizens: they are most likely to face unemployment, unstable career prospects, and thus feel alienated and disenfranchised from society. Although politicians and academics have called attention to the fact that young people are increasingly disengaged from conventional politics, young peoples’ perspectives and generational differences are rarely taken into account simultaneously. Is there a generational cleavage concerning the perspectives on engagement?

A multitude of factors, like education, social status, economic circumstances, shape engagement. There are also many opportunities for political and social actors to encourage and support citizens in developing patterns of civic and political participation. Political evaluations and evidence-based policy recommendations can help political and social actors to realize this goal. This issue takes up different perspectives of adults and young people on engagement that include aspects of psychology, political sciences, sociology, as well as social policy and education.

Building on the European Social Survey, the issue invites papers dealing with the various aspects of political participation and engagement from the perspectives of adults and young people. Papers which utilize additional European datasets such as the European Values Study or the International Social Survey Programme as well as original data are also welcome. We especially welcome papers that touch upon the topic from the perspective of Eastern Europe.

We invite scholars to submit an abstract of no more than 800 words including a short bio and the description of the main question(s) and finding(s) of the paper along with the methodology applied, by 30 July, 2016 through our online submission system. The deadline for submitting the final papers is 31 October, 2016.