Digital Media and Political Inequality among Youth

1. Digital Media and Political Inequality among Youth Joseph Kahne Mills College February 25, 2009

2. For more information Joseph Kahne jkahne@mills.edu www.civicsurvey.org

3. Focus of the Presentation Participation is lower than desired and unequal. Schools can promote civic and political participation, but do so inequitably Can digital media promote participation equitably?

4. Good News!Youth Voting - Up • The youth vote has risen steadily from 37% in 1996 to 52% in 2008 • Youth participation up in primaries • youth turnout tripled in Iowa, Georgia, Missouri, and Oklahoma • youth turnout quadrupled in Tennessee

5. We Know Youth Care about Others • “I try to help when I see people in need” 86% Agree – 5% Disagree • 84% reported volunteering in high school!

6. Room for Improvement:The Youth Vote • In most primaries more than 80% of those 18-29 did not vote • In the presidential election 48% of those 18-29 did not vote

7. Youth Participation • 55% of youth (18-29) were judged to be disengaged in 2008 • 9% of youth could list two ways a democratic society benefits from civic participation (From NAEP)

8. Civic Knowledge Many students lack basic civic knowledge • 50% could not identify the correct function of the Supreme Court • 33% could not identify either of California’s U.S. Senators from among a list of options

9. Adult Civic Knowledge: Room for Improvement • 38% of adults could name the three branches of government • 59% could name the three Stooges

10. Civic & Political Inequality “Citizens with low or moderate incomes speak with a whisper that is lost on the ears of inattentive government, while the advantaged roar with the clarity and consistency that policymakers readily head” (APSA)

11. Influence Is Unequal The policy preferences of those in the bottom third of the income distribution had no apparent statistical effect on their senators’ roll call votes. -- Larry Bartels

12. Unequal Voice High vs. Low Income Citizens • 4x as likely to do campaign work • 3x as likely to do informal community work • 2x as likely to contact elected officials • 9x as likely to contribute to campaigns

13. Youth Participation is Unequal The Youth Voting Gap 25% of 18-29 yr olds with at least some college voted in primaries (1 in 4) 7% of 18-29 yr olds with no college experience voted in primaries (1 in 14)

14. Youth Participation Gap Of young adults under 30 : 41% with some college experience were not very engaged. 81% with no college experience were not very engaged. (Civic Health Index)

15. Can Education Help?

16. The Basic Question • Do civic learning opportunities promote commitments to civic participation and actual participation? • Controlling for • Prior commitments • Demographics • Other school qualities • Parental participation

17. Promising Educational Practices Instruction in Gov’t, History, Econ Discussions of Current Events Service Learning Extracurricular Activities Student Voice in Schools and Classrooms Simulations

18. Chicago Study Methodology and Sample (With Sue Sporte) • Included students who took our survey in 2003 and 2005 • Total of 52 schools - 4,057 students • Assessed the relationship of civic learning opportunities to civic commitments with a series of 3-level HLM models.

19. Experiencing Civic Community Promotes Civic Commitments 0.35 0.25 Civic Commitment Effect Sizes 0.14 *** 0.15 0.13 *** 0.05 * 0.05 Neighborhood Social Capital School Sense of Belonging Parent/Student Talk -0.05 Civic Community Variables

20. Classroom-Based Civic Learning Opportunities MATTER 0.39 *** 0.34 *** 0.35 0.25 0.2 *** 0.15 Civic Commitments Effect Sizes 0.05 Service Learning Classroom Civic Learning Opportunities Civic Commitments In 2003 -0.05 Civic Learning Variables

21. Schools Could Alter Inequality 80 70 68 60 50 39 Percentile Ranking, Civic Commitments 40 30 20 16 10 0 "Average" Classroom Civic Opportunities "Low" Classroom Civic Opportunities "High" Classroom Civic Opportunities Varying levels of Civic Learning Opportunities. Always one SD below average on Parent and Neighborhood Civic Context

22. The California Survey of Civic Education(With Ellen Middaugh) A Diverse Group of California High Schools • Demographic range of race, ethnicity, achievement level, socioeconomic status, and geography (rural, urban, suburban) • 2005: 2,366 students surveyed in spring of their senior year • 2006: 2,151 students surveyed (898 seniors,1,253 juniors) • 2007: Post surveys given to 514 students from junior sample -- now seniors

23. Statistically significant School Practices & Outcomes

24. These Commitments Relate to Future Behavior • Commitments to Participatory Citizenship, Political Interest, and Intention to Vote predict: • electoral activity, • staying informed about politics and current events • civic activity

25. Education can Promote Civic and Political Engagement Does education promote more equitable civic and political engagement?

26. Unequal Civic Learning Opportunities • 32% of youth going to 4 yr. colleges said they had “a lot” of opportunities to do service learning in high school • 16% of youth going to 2 yr. voc. education said they had “A lot” of opportunities to do service learning in high school

27. Unequal Civic Learning Opportunities Compared with white students African-American students report: • Fewer civically oriented government courses • Fewer discussions of social problems and current events • A less open classroom climate

28. Unequal Civic Learning Opportunities Compared with white students, Latino students report: • Fewer opportunities for service learning • A less open classroom climate • Fewer experiences with role plays and simulations

29. Unequal Civic Learning Opportunities Compared with students taking AP American Government, students in College Prep Gov’t classes report fewer of all civic learning opportunities • 80% of AP sample took part in simulations • 51% of CP students took part in simulation

30. Unequal Civic Learning Opportunities Our analysis of the IEA National Database • Compared to 9th graders in classes of average SES, 9th graders in classes of high SES were: • 2x more likely to discuss how laws are made • 1.9x more likely to report participating in service activities • 1.6x as likely to take part in a debate or panel discussion

31. Education can Promote Engagement But desirable learning opportunities are inequitably distributed and likely exacerbate inequality.

32. Can Digital Media Promote Civic and Political Equality? Digital Consumption of Civic Information Digital Participation in Civic Life Digital Play Related to Civic Content Digital Civic Education

33. Frequency of Digital Consumption of Civic Information Youth getting campaign news from the internet more than doubled btw 2004 and 2008 – to 46% 37% of 18-24 year olds also got campaign news from social networking sites 41% of 18-29 year olds have gone online to watch interviews, commercials, debates, speeches. (Kohut, et al., 2008)

34. Consumption Matters Informs Leads to interest and discussion Can lead the production of information Fosters engagement

35. Frequency of Digital Participation? 64% of teens engage in online content creation 28% have there own online journal or blog (Lenhart, et al., 2007).

36. Participation Matters Develops skills Norms of participation

37. Frequency of Digital Game Play? We asked 1,102 young people if they had played a video game 39 said “No”

38. Video Game Based Civic Gaming opportunities May Promote Civic Outcomes School-Based Instruction in civically relevant disciplines Discuss current events and social issues Service Learning Extracurricular activities Student governance Simulations of civic processes Games w/civic content Open discussions current events w/in games Helping and leading w/in game community Extra-game activities Player governance Simulations of civic processes

39. Civilization

40. Frequency of Digital Civic Education? Teachers are engaging in digital civic education.

41. Digital Civic Education Matters. It promotes Non-school exposure to online communities with diverse civic and political priorities Non-school online leadership opportunities Commitments to civic participation

42. Digital consumption of civic information is unequal Those with at least one year of college are twice as likely to use the internet to get civic information weekly (Civic Health Index).

43. Some forms of Digital Participation are relatively equal Social Networking: 57% with college experience vs 52% without college experience used Facebook or MySpace to address social issues.

44. Civic Gaming Experiences appear to be equal Teens have equal exposure to civic gaming experiences irrespective of income level, race, and age. Girls have fewer of these experiences than boys.

45. Digital Civic Education is Equitably Distributed. No differences in frequency of these experiences by race, gender, SES, or academic achievement.

46. Digital Media may facilitate Recruitment. Ease of recruitment shapes college/non-college gap.

47. Summary DM provides many opportunities to foster engagement. Digital civic participation, civic gaming, and civic education appear equitably distributed. Digital Media may provide a means of recruiting groups that are currently less engaged.

48. Implications Your Thoughts, Questions, …