Children as Citizens in Training: Political Socialization for a Strong Democracy

Abstract

The author analyzed the content of three popular prime-time televi sion programs and the California state school system's social science curriculum to determine their possible effect on the development of political efficacy in children. The findings were checked by conduct ing focus groups with children. This exploratory research suggests that participation in a youth service organization is a more potent agent for the transference of knowledge, values, and skills relating to political efficacy and civic voluntarism than either television or formal education.