Online only: Which Czech young adults prefer online civic participation?

This study examined whether people who prefer online over offline civic participation differ from those who participate in both environments, who prefer offline participation, or do not participate. Using a cross-sectional sample of young adults (age 18-28) recruited in the Czech Republic (N = 720), we compared these four groups (defined by their types of civic participation) regarding their socio-demographic profiles, trust (social, individual, and in the media), relationship to politics (political interest, exposure to politics in the media, and internal political efficacy), and political ideology (left-right orientation, concern with environmental issues, and support for immigrants’ rights). Results showed that people who prefer online participation adhere to conservative political ideologies than people with other types of participation. Their relationship to politics is as positive as in the case of people active in both environments. No substantial differences in trust and socio-demographics were found

What’s the matter with civil society? The declining effect of civic involvement on civic identity among Czech adolescents

This study shows that the beneficial impact of adolescents’ involvement in civil society on their civic identity cannot be taken for granted. Employing the case of the Czech Republic, it is shown that this effect has vanished since early postcommunism to the present day. Survey data from two different generations of Czech middle adolescents were analyzed: the postcommunist generation (collected in 1995; n = 1,127) and the current generation (collected in 2010; n = 976). While participants’ associational involvement and volunteering predicted their stronger civic identity (i.e., psychological connection and sense of responsibility to fellow citizens) in 1995, no such effect was observed in 2010. Simultaneously, both associational involvement and volunteering were determined by the economic situation of adolescents’ family in 2010, but not in 1995. The most likely reason for the vanishing impact of civic involvement is the advancing professionalization of civil society

Role of school climate and personality in the development of Czech adolescents’ political self-efficacy

This study examined the effects of school climate (open classroom and positive student relationships) and personality dispositions (shyness and need for cognition) on adolescents' political self-efficacy. Data were collected in 2014 from 1,954 Czech ninth- and tenth-graders (mean age = 15.60). A multilevel analysis showed that school-level political self-efficacy predicted self-efficacy for local politics. However, schools and classrooms were rather homogeneous in terms of students’ mean political self-efficacy and students' self-reported acquisition of civic skills at school. Hence, school characteristics had only limited associations with adolescents' political self-efficacy. At the same time, students' political efficacy had a considerable association with lower shyness and higher need for cognition. These results suggest that the development of political efficacy at school goes beyond simple general influences of school environment and individual differences between students must be considered

Predicting Online and Offline Civic Participation among Young Czech Roma: The Roles of Resources, Community Perceptions and Social Norms

Roma in the Czech Republic represent a large ethnic minority that faces intolerance and social exclusion. This study aims to describe factors that boost civic participation among Roma adolescents and emerging adults. Specifically, it asks whether different factors apply to Roma and members of the majority, and whether different factors boost offline and online participation. Survey data were analysed from Roma (n = 157) and majority (n = 573) participants between the ages of 15 and 28. Hierarchical regression models suggested that certain factors (a sense of collective influence and peer participatory norm) predict all forms of civic participation, regardless of ethnicity. For Roma youth, in contrast with the majority, offline participation was associated with a perceived lack of opportunities and unmet needs in their communities, which suggests that their offline civic participation might be a reaction to perceived communal problems. Finally, a lack of education was identified as a major explanation for lower rates of online participation among Roma

When Age Matters: Patterns of Participative and Communicative Practices in the Czech Republic

After a long history, research on the relation between participative and communicative practices was revived in the late 1990s because of the proliferation of new media. New studies have taken into account both online and offline participation and the ability of new media to provide citizens with easier access to information and a broader repertoire of actions. In this article, which is based on a representative survey of the adult Czech population and a survey of Czech adolescents, we address participative and communicative practices as intertwined sets that are typically preferred by certain groups of citizens. As media-related and political practices usually vary due to generational and historical experience, the aim is to discover whether people with similar generational backgrounds and with similar repertoires of action manifest similar sets of commu- nication practices, i.e. similar media ensembles. Hence, we build this study on the assumption that the politi- cal- and media-related agencies are structured by historical experience as well as by biographical experience linked with life-cycle phases. Using cluster analysis, we focus on the various participative and communicative practices employed by three distinct adult generational groups and by contemporary adolescents, all of whom experienced the process of socialization in their own specific historical contexts

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

Aplikace techniky repertoárové mřížky na zkoumání utváření dojmů o politicích

Tato explorativní studie shrnuje předběžná zjištění, týkající se zkoumání základních dimenzí, kterými lze popsat některé možné způsoby uvažování, využívané jedincem při formování jeho dojmů o politicích. Jakožto výzkumná metoda je v ní použita jedna z modifikací techniky repertoárové mřížky (REP-test). Dosažené výsledky mj. hovoří o významu dimenze populismu a politicko-ideologických dimenzí pro celkový dojem o politikovi, o vztahu mezi vnímáním politikovy upřímnosti a populismu a o vazbě mezi vnímáním politikovy viditelnosti a vůdcovských schopností. Součástí diskuze je rovněž reflexe zkušeností autorů s aplikací techniky repertoárové mřížky na oblast zkoumání dojmů o politicích, přičemž se tato technika v zásadě ukazuje jako přínosná a využitelná v dané oblasti.The explorative study sums up the preliminary findings concerning the research in basic dimensions by means of which it is possible to describe some ways of thinking used by individuals in politicians impression formation. As a research method, one modification of repertory grid technique was used. The findings show the importance of populism dimension and political-ideological dimensions for the complex politician impression. The reflection of autors experience with application of repertory grid technique in the field of politician impression formation research is a part of discussion

Youth in the Kaleidoskope: Civic Participation Types in Estonia and the Czech Republic

This paper presents an exploratory typological analysis of young people (aged 15–30) as political and civic actors in Estonia and the Czech Republic. We compare youth civic engagement patterns in these two East European countries, sharing similar socio-historical contexts, and analyse the sociodemographic and attitudinal profiles of the resulting participation types. The study draws on Estonian and Czech data sets collected from November to December 2016 within the Horizon 2020 project CATCH-EyoU – Constructing AcTive CitizensHip with European Youth: Policies, Practices, Challenges and Solutions. Two independent methods (latent class analysis and cluster analysis) demonstrated shared patterns in the political and civic activities employed by the Estonian and Czech participants, suggesting the existence of four clearly distinguishable types of young citizens. A more detailed analysis revealed that the socio-demographic and attitudinal profiles of active young people, and therefore, the factors of political socialization, differed quite substantially in the two countrie

Activating effects of elections: changes in young voters’ political engagement over the course of an election year

Although the effects of elections and measures of direct democracy on policy outcomes have been well researched, their indirect “educative value” has received less attention, particularly in relation to political engagement of young people. This study examined the activating effect of the national elections in Germany (2009), Czech Republic (2010), and Sweden (2014) on young voters’ political engagement. Young voters (Germany: N  = 388; Czech Republic: N  = 196, and Sweden: N  = 246) were surveyed several months before (T1), shortly after (T2), and several months after (T3) the respective national elections. For all three countries, the results revealed significant increases in political engagement during the election period, followed by significant declines after the election. The post-election declines were smaller compared to the election increases, suggesting a persistence of elections’ activating effects. With the exception of German young adults who were less engaged or first-time voters and showed higher increases in engagement during the election period, there were few interindividual differences. The findings suggest that major political events such as national elections can have activating effects on youth’s political engagement. They support the idea of the socializing value of election participation and of late adolescence and young adulthood as a window of opportunity for reaching young voters during politicized times

Exposure to online Sexual Materials and Crosscountry Differences in Europe

This study examined individual-level factors and country-level factors which predict exposure to online sexual materials (EOSM) among European children. The sample consisted of children aged 11-15 years (N=12,472) who were surveyed within the project EU Kids Online II. A cross-cultural comparison has shown that the country-level factors accounted for 11 % of the variation in EOSM within the European sample. However, neither broadband penetration, nor religious faith were significant as studied country-level factors, while all individual-level predictors such as advanced age, being male, increased amount of time spent online, emotional problems, sensation seeking, and excessive internet use predicted EOSM. On the other hand, gender had a different effect on EOSM at the cross-country level. The countries with higher rates of exposure indicated lower gender differences in EOSM. The implications of the findings are discussed