This book explores young people’s civic experiences in contemporary American society, and how they navigate the political world in an era defined by digital media. Drawing on the experiences of young people before they have reached voting age, the book provides vital perspectives on citizenship and civic engagement of a part of the population that is often overlooked. The author engages with the tensions young people encounter in their everyday personal and civic lives, particularly in their understanding and experience of civic identity in ways that are shaped by society’s (mis)perceptions of youth. The book introduces a new framework of civic identity that has been directly informed by the lived civic experiences of young people themselves. The findings will be of great interest to researchers and students working in political science, sociology, youth studies, education studies, and media studies, as well as policy-makers, practitioners, and parents of young people.

meaning of citizenship
experiences of citizenship
youth civic engagement
civic identity framework
political participation
social interaction theory
civic education
civic identity
civic technology
racial identity
US politics
political identity
youth voice and politics
Never Again movement
youth activism
youth political blogs
young people’s civic experiences
citizenship
sociology of citizenship

• Front Matter
• Introduction: The Need to Investigate the Civic Experiences of American Young People
• Where Technology, Youth, and Civics Meet: A Springboard for Understanding Civic Identity
• Presentations of the Adolescent Self in Contemporary Society
• Civic Identity
• Engaging in the Political World
• Conclusion: Youth Voice in Contemporary Society
• Back Matter

Centre for Higher Education Research and Scholarship, Imperial College London, London, UK
Julianne K. Viola

Book Title
Young People’s Civic Identity in the Digital Age

Authors
Julianne K. Viola

Series Title
Palgrave Studies in Young People and Politics

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-37405-1

Hardcover ISBN
978-3-030-37404-4
Published: 11 March 2020

Softcover ISBN
978-3-030-37407-5
Published: 11 March 2021

eBook ISBN
978-3-030-37405-1
Published: 10 March 2020

Series ISSN
2946-501X

Series E-ISSN
2946-5028

Edition Number
1

Number of Pages
XIX, 225

Number of Illustrations
3 illustrations in colour

Topics
Citizenship, Political Communication, Sociology of Citizenship, Youth Culture, Educational Policy and Politics, US Politics