Social networks and other digital channels as civic participation means: a qualitative study of madrilean youth

Abstract

In recent years, an increasing interest for civic education has been observed in many countries around the world. At the same time, the 21st century has witnessed the emergence of a new form of technologically mediated citizenship that finds in social networks and other digital spaces a channel of expression that is especially accessible to young generations, who have grown up in a hybrid context and in a school concerned with digital literacy. This paper analyzes the role of cyberspace in civic participation of young people in the Community of Madrid. It is used a qualitative methodology through focus groups, which were applied in four different schools in different geographical areas with unequal socioeconomic status. 43 students of secondary education, compulsory and non-compulsory, formed the sample. Findings from the focus groups indicate that participants have a feeling of lack of consideration and attention to the possibilities of civic participation of young people; the globalizing and homogenizing nature of the internet; a remarkable critical awareness in adolescents of the risks of the digital environment, linked to the concept of digital citizenship; the perception of complementarity between physical and virtual spaces; the positive appreciation of the instantaneousness of cyberspace, in comparison to other media; the risk that a more reproductive than creative digital civic participation replaces the physical presence in public spaces, with lethargic effects on the civic conscience of young people; the scarce relevance of official technological channels; and the growing contact with other contexts, that favours an intercultural globalization.