A generation between political disillusion and social engagement. How do young people engage in European societies?

Young people’s voting turnout, political interest, party membership and trust in politicians have decreased in many European countries for the last decades (European Commission, 2009; Stolle & Hooghe, 2005).
Many social scientists suggest that this reduced interest and engagement is especially due to the increasing gap between the political system on the one hand and young people’s social situation on the other. They argue that conventional political forms of participation are less adapted to the diversity of youth lifestyles and forms of (self)-expression and that political decision making in times of economic crisis and rapid social change is not concerned with the problems of young people, their transition into labour market and their integration into society (Willems, Heinen & Meyers, 2012).
The mobilization of an increasing number of young people for alternative forms of social and political engagement proves that the young generation is still engaged in democratic and civic behaviour. Young people believe in democratic values and they show high engagement in social, cultural and civil activities. They engage in political issues, but they do it different to the older generations (Norris, 2003; Sloam, 2011)
The new forms of young people’s participation reflect their lifestyles and are adapted to their individual needs and interests. Their activities are more punctual, delimited, action-orientated, not hierarchical, and issue-based. Young people prefer forms of participation like the internet, petitions, demonstrations and consumer activism. Thus, they show rather a changed citizenship than a general political apathy (Dalton, 2008).
Our contribution examines this broader concept of participation and takes the large variety of youth specific forms of participation into account.
The presented findings are principally based on analysis of the European Social Values Studyurvey (EVSS). The main purpose is to elaborate on the factors that influence young people’s activities in the wide range of political engagement: What are the structural and individual conditions for young people’s engagement in the different fields? We focus on three levels: (1) the macro-level (e.g. democratic culture of the country), (2) the meso-level (e.g. leisure activities, membership in associations), and (3) the micro-level (e.g. age, gender, migration background, education).