Papers by Katharina Eckstein
Frontiers in political science, Apr 17, 2024
Although the effects of elections and measures of direct democracy on policy outcomes have been w... more 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.
The spread of political alienation from parents to adolescent children
Journal of Family Psychology
Meeting in school: Cultural diversity approaches of teachers and intergroup contact among ethnic minority and majority adolescents
Child Development
Journal of Youth and Adolescence
This study examines the conditions that make adolescents open to their parents’ attempts at polit... more This study examines the conditions that make adolescents open to their parents’ attempts at political socialization. Based on a reformulation of the perceptual accuracy argument, that parents’ messages are filtered through correct perceptions of these messages by adolescents, the study suggests that adolescents who accurately recognize their parents’ high political sophistication are particularly likely to attend to and be open to their parents’ political communication. This proposition was tested using cluster analysis of a sample of 505 Swedish upper-secondary students and their parents (51% girls; Mage = 16.56, SD = 0.67). The analysis yielded two clusters where adolescents correctly identified (26%) and failed to correctly identify (22%) their parents’ high political sophistication, and three clusters where both parents and adolescents reported low or medium parental political sophistication (10%, 11%, and 32%). In confirmation of the hypothesis, members of the cluster group of ...
Classroom climate effects on adolescents’ orientations toward political behaviors: a multilevel approach
Political Engagement of the Young in Europe
Profiles of citizenship orientations among Italian youth
New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development, 2021
Although classrooms have been described as an important socialization agent for the development o... more Although classrooms have been described as an important socialization agent for the development of intergroup attitudes, the role of classroom climate has rarely been investigated. This 5-wave study of Swedish adolescents (N = 892, 51.1% girls, nested in 35 classrooms) examined the role of cooperative classroom climate for the development of youth attitudes toward immigrants. The results of multilevel analyses showed that adolescents who perceived classroom climate to be more cooperative had lower levels of anti-immigrant attitudes compared to youth who perceived the classroom climate as less cooperative. Similarly, classrooms with a more cooperative climate were more positive toward immigrants than classrooms with a less cooperative climate. In addition, cooperative classroom climate did not moderate the effects of classroom ethnic diversity on youth attitudes. These findings suggest that cooperative classroom climate reduces the risk of prejudice development. K E Y W O R D S anti-immigrant prejudice, classroom ethnic diversity, cooperation, cooperative classroom climate, peers This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License, which permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non-commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made.
Politische Entwicklung im Jugend- und jungen Erwachsenenalter
Handbuch Entwicklungs- und Erziehungspsychologie, 2016
Was motiviert junge Menschen, sich politisch zu engagieren? Warum trauen sich einige, ihre eigene... more Was motiviert junge Menschen, sich politisch zu engagieren? Warum trauen sich einige, ihre eigenen Ansichten offen zu ausern, wahrend andere den politischen Diskurs meiden? Und wie entwickeln sich Einstellungen anderen Gruppen und dem Staat gegenuber? In Annaherung an diese Fragen ist es das Ziel des folgenden Kapitels, einen Uberblick uber die Bedeutung des Jugend- und jungen Erwachsenenalters im politischen Entwicklungsprozess zu geben. Neben der Betrachtung von Erfahrungen in verschiedenen sozialen Kontexten, wie beispielsweise der Familie oder der Schule, werden auch praktische Ansatze vorgestellt, die das Ziel haben, jungen Menschen politische Themen und Prozesse naherzubringen.
The impact of migration on child and adolescent development: Diversity in migration pathways and experiences
New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development, 2021
Youth Organisations as a Developmental Context: A Developmental Psychological Perspective
Youth Active Citizenship in Europe, 2020
This chapter aims to shed light on the role of youth organisations from a developmental psycholog... more This chapter aims to shed light on the role of youth organisations from a developmental psychological perspective. We take as a starting point the fact that during adolescence, active exploration and examination of different topics and contexts, including civic and political ones, increases. By offering the opportunity for exploration, meeting (new) peers and exchange, youth organisations can occupy an important context in adolescence. Through a case study of young people in Germany, we examine the extent to which youth organisations can provide adequate and stimulating experiences to meet developmental tasks in adolescence. Since youth organisations are often embedded in an umbrella organisation, a special focus was on the latter’s role. The findings are discussed in terms of their theoretical as well as practical implications.
This dataset contains the underlying data of the following article published in the journal Youth... more This dataset contains the underlying data of the following article published in the journal Youth & Society: Tzankova, I., Prati, G., Eckstein, K., Noack, P., Amnå, E., Motti-Stefanidi, F., Macek, P., & Cicognani, E. (in press). Adolescents' patterns of citizenship orientations and correlated contextual variables: Results from a two-wave study in five European countries. Youth & Society. The dataset consists of longitudinal quantitative data collected in Italy, Sweden, Germany, Greece and the Czech Republic within Work Package 7 of the research project CATCH EyoU (Constructing AcTive CitizensHip with European YOUth: Policies, Practices, Challenges and Solutions). The sample consists of 1914 adolescents between 14 and 19 years old. They participated in the study on a voluntary basis and filled paper and online questionnaires, after receiving an invitation from the researchers and a presentations of the aims of the study. The data was used in the analysis of patterns of citizenshi...
National and European Identity Formation: A Longitudinal Cross-National Comparison Study
Identity, 2021
ABSTRACT This study examined social identity development on the national and European domain usin... more ABSTRACT This study examined social identity development on the national and European domain using the three-dimensional identity status model. We took a person-centered approach to identify identity statuses and to study stability and change of identity statuses across one year within two longitudinal samples of young people aged 15 to 26 (MT1 = 19.81, SDT1 = 3.22) from Germany (n = 1028) and Czech Republic (n = 1342). Latent profile analyses of questionnaire-based data showed evidence for four identity statuses for the national and European domain (i.e., diffusion, moratorium, closure, and achievement). The statuses differed substantially in terms of civic engagement, nationalism, and views toward the EU. Stability of identity statuses was moderate to high across domains and countries with little evidence for systematic transitions over time. Overall, identity patterns were very similar across domains and countries. However, congruence between the national and the European identity domain was substantially lower in Czech Republic than in Germany, suggesting that both identities are more aligned in the latter country.
Catch-Eyou: Processes In Youth'S Construction Of Active Eu Citizenship: Cross-National Wave 1 Questionnaires: Italy, Sweden, Germany, Greece, Portugal, Czech Republic, Uk, And Estonia: Extract: Identification With Europe And Home Country
It is a well-established fact that forming a mature and coherent political identity is one develo... more It is a well-established fact that forming a mature and coherent political identity is one developmental task in adolescence and young adulthood. However, given different degrees of commitment on the regional, national, and European level, the question remains whether young people's identification varies among those spheres? Drawing on data from the European Catch-EyoU-project, it was the goal of this study to examine whether young people can be classified according to their identification toward their home country and Europe and how these types are associated with age, gender, country as well as political interest, tolerance, and political participation. The study is based on adolescents and young adults from the Czech Republic, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Estonia, Italy, Portugal, and Sweden (<em>N </em>= 9,339; <em>M</em>age=19.62; 59.1% female). Cluster analysis revealed five types of young people's identification with country and Europe which...
Being both – A European and a national citizen?
Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 2021
Although schools have been described as an important socialization context for the development of... more Although schools have been described as an important socialization context for the development of intergroup attitudes, longitudinal multilevel studies are still rare within this field. This 3-wave study (with annual assessments) of German adolescents (N = 1292; Mage = 13.86; 51.8% female) examined the role of school experiences (perceived multicultural education, supportive peer relations in class, democratic classroom climate) in the development of youth’s negative attitudes toward immigrants. Longitudinal multilevel analyses revealed that a democratic classroom climate predicted youth’s attitudes at the individual level. At the classroom level class-average perceptions of a democratic classroom climate, supportive peer relations in class, and multicultural education (the latter solely among male, higher track students) were associated with less negative attitudes toward immigrants. In addition, age moderated the effect of school experiences on attitudes, showing that perceptions ...
Adolescents’ Patterns of Citizenship Orientations and Correlated Contextual Variables: Results From a Two-Wave Study in Five European Countries
Youth & Society, 2020
Studies on youth participation tend to characterize youth as either active and trustful or as pas... more Studies on youth participation tend to characterize youth as either active and trustful or as passive and alienated. This cross-national and longitudinal study examines patterns of citizenship orientations characterized by both manifest and latent involvement differentiated by one’s position toward institutional politics (trustful or distrustful) among 1,914 adolescents from five European countries (53.5% female; Mage = 16.27). Demographic and proximal contextual correlates associated with different orientations at a 1-year interval were also assessed. Latent profile analysis identified four groups of citizenship orientations among adolescents: engaged trustful, engaged distrustful, unengaged trustful, and unengaged distrustful. Differences of membership likelihood were found for background characteristics (gender and family income), school characteristics (track, democratic climate, student participation, and its perceived quality), family, and peer norms of participation.
Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 2017
Within the process of political socialization, the family is of particular importance. Apart from... more Within the process of political socialization, the family is of particular importance. Apart from parents, however, little is known about the role of other close family members. The present study examined if siblings affect each other's intergroup attitudes (i.e., intolerance towards immigrants, social dominance orientation). Drawing on a sample of 362 sibling dyads (older siblings: M age = 17.77, 53.6% female; younger siblings: M age = 13.61, 61.3% female), the results showed that older siblings' intergroup attitudes predicted younger siblings' attitudes, but this effect was moderated by gender. Specifically, older siblings' intolerance and social dominance orientation were only found to affect their younger sisters, yet not their younger brothers. Although younger siblings' intergroup attitudes had no main effect on older siblings, a significant moderation by age indicated that younger siblings affected older siblings' social dominance orientation with increasing age. These moderation effects of age and gender were not mediated by the quality of family relationships. The findings also remained the same when parental intergroup attitudes were taken into account. While siblings were generally identified as an important agent of political socialization in youth, the results also highlight the necessity to further examine the mechanism that either facilitate or hinder sibling effects.
International Journal of Psychology, 2016
W hile research suggests that schools can foster active citizenship among youth, studies have not... more W hile research suggests that schools can foster active citizenship among youth, studies have not tested whether ethnic minority youth may benefit differently from school experiences than ethnic majority youth. In this study of 219 students (138 German majority and 81 Turkish-origin minority; M age = 18.26; 55% females), we examined the association between different experiences at school and 4 indicators of youth active citizenship, controlling for various socio-demographic characteristics. Although value of social studies was associated with three out of four active citizenship indicators among both ethnic groups, the effects of the other school-related variables on active citizenship were moderated by ethnicity. Specifically, indicators of classroom climate, such as open classroom climate and classroom community, were only associated with greater active citizenship among Turkish-minority youth, while participatory factors, such as engagement in school decisions, were only associated with active citizenship among native German youth.
Cultural Pluralism Climate Scale
PsycTESTS Dataset, 2016