The main forms of non-participation in political communication of Russian students

Abstract

The paper analyzes the phenomenon of student non-participation, conceptualizing it as a complex, multidimensional strategy, and not just an indicator of apathy or alienation. The relevance of the study is related to the fact that the unprecedented availability of political communication channels has not led to a proportional increase in sustainable youth participation, which requires a revision of traditional approaches to the study of political behavior. The results of a comprehensive study conducted using online questionnaires (a sample of 709 respondents), expert interviews (22 experts from various fields) and focus groups (8, 73 participants in total) are presented. As a result of the analysis, it was possible to identify and operationalize three dominant forms of non-participation: situational non-participation (avoidance) as the most common rational adaptation to information overload; passive non-participation (avoidance), rooted in weak political socialization and a sense of the irrelevance of politics; and active non-participation (absenteeism) as a consciously latent form of protest. Based on the results obtained, a transition from universal approaches to targeted proposals aimed at involving young people in the participation strategy is proposed. The recommendations include the creation of flexible participation formats for situational non-participants; to overcome passive non-participation, profound changes in the channels of political socialization in the university environment; for dialogue with active non-participants, the willingness of political institutions to transform and the creation of channels for constructive criticism.