A Meta-Analysis on the Link Between Young People’s Social Environment, Socioeconomic Status, and Political Violence Outcomes

Abstract

 Young people are particularly likely to engage in political violence, hold positive attitudes towards political violence, and show willingness to engage in political violence. The social environment in which young people are immersed is characterized by factors increasing and protecting against the risk of such outcomes. The present meta-analysis systematically summarizes the body of studies on the link between political violence outcomes and risk and protective variables in the following domains: a) parents and family (familial support, familial conflict, parental control, importance of family, parental violence), b) radical networks and peers (having friends with racist or violent attitudes, membership in political groups that oppose mainstream politics, general membership in a peer group), c) school (school attachment, school achievement), and d) socioeconomic status. A total of 288 effect sizes from 44 reference samples met the selection criteria. Findings were combined using two- and three-level meta-analytic models. Average effect sizes ranged between very small to small (|r| = .03 to |r| = .26), with the largest effect sizes detected for membership in a political group that opposes mainstream politics and having friends with racist or violent attitudes. The results are constrained by the low number of eligible samples and the significant level of heterogeneity for many of the meta-analyses.