From Democratic (Citizenship) Education to Participative Democracy? Youth’s Difficult Way to Active Citizenship
From Democratic (Citizenship) Education to Participative Democracy? Youth’s Difficult Way to Active Citizenship

Summary/Abstract: In this article we make an attempt to join a discussions on the political and social activity of young people in contemporary polyarchies. On the basis of the assumption that the condition for the active fulfilment of civic functions are cognitive skills and the ability to communicate which the individual improves in the education process and through participation in social phenomena, we are trying to find the answer to the following questions: how is participation perceived in today’s polyarchies, what can be the determinants of youth’s political and social involvement, why do European international organisations – the Council of Europe and the European Union – take measures to activate European youth. In the first part of the article, we focus on democratic participation and try to recognise its role in selected models of democracy. Then we analyse selected aspects of youth electoral absenteeism. We cite examples of the activities of the Council of Europe and the European Union in the field of the youth democratic (civic) activation with an indication of the reasons for this activity. Finally, we point to the relationship between the political and social participation of young people and the condition of modern European polyarchies.

• Details
• Contents