Young People And Citizenship
A recent MORI study for the Nestlé Social Research Programme found that fewer than half of young people aged 11-21 say that they would be 'very likely' to vote in the next election if they were old enough to vote (43%).
Between a quarter and a half have taken part in activities relating to helping in the community, but in only two activities related to 'making one's voice heard', have more than a quarter participated - signing a petition (35%), and trying to influence how things are done in their school or college (38%). Seven per cent have taken part in demonstrations against the Iraq war, and 23% have boycotted a product they disapproved of. Nine per cent have written to a newspaper or taken part in a phone-in programme on a topical issue.
However, a quarter have taken part in none of the civic or political activities listed, and nearly a quarter either would be 'very unlikely' to vote in the next election (13%), or 'don't know' (11%).
Technical details
The data were collected for the Nestlé Social Research Programme between 9 March and 6 May 2005 by MORI, with a national sample drawn from England Scotland & Wales of 897 young people between the ages of 11 and 21. Details of sampling and method are in Appendix 1 of the report.
