Deliberation, Cognitive Complexity, and Political Engagement: A Longitudinal Study of the Impact of Deliberative Training During Emerging Adulthood

Young adults who had participated in a college program in which they learned to deliberate were compared with a matched sample from the same college who did not participate. Interview and survey responses to questions about citizenship and communication about politics were analyzed. Ten years after...

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Main Authors: Christy Buchanan, Jill McMillan, Katy Harriger, Stephanie Gusler
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: University of Westminster Press 2022-06-01
Series:Journal of Deliberative Democracy
Subjects:
Online Access:https://delibdemjournal.org/article/id/959/
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author Christy Buchanan
Jill McMillan
Katy Harriger
Stephanie Gusler
author_facet Christy Buchanan
Jill McMillan
Katy Harriger
Stephanie Gusler
author_sort Christy Buchanan
collection DOAJ
description Young adults who had participated in a college program in which they learned to deliberate were compared with a matched sample from the same college who did not participate. Interview and survey responses to questions about citizenship and communication about politics were analyzed. Ten years after their graduation, the students who learned to deliberate during college had more complex conceptions of citizenship and its responsibilities compared to their 2005 classmates in the matched cohort. They also expressed more willingness to engage in political talk across differences. The study suggests that when emerging adults have extended experience deliberating about potentially divisive policy issues, they develop cognitive and communicative skills that equip them to navigate the diverse socio-political world that they now inhabit. Thus, we argue that education for democracy in the 21st century should include instruction in deliberative practice.
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spelling doaj-art-95035e88bfcf42b3b2357d28761fcdda2025-08-20T02:51:00ZengUniversity of Westminster PressJournal of Deliberative Democracy2634-04882022-06-0118110.16997/jdd.959Deliberation, Cognitive Complexity, and Political Engagement: A Longitudinal Study of the Impact of Deliberative Training During Emerging AdulthoodChristy Buchanan0Jill McMillan1Katy Harriger2Stephanie Gusler3Wake Forest UniversityWake Forest UniversityWake Forest UniversityThe University of KansasYoung adults who had participated in a college program in which they learned to deliberate were compared with a matched sample from the same college who did not participate. Interview and survey responses to questions about citizenship and communication about politics were analyzed. Ten years after their graduation, the students who learned to deliberate during college had more complex conceptions of citizenship and its responsibilities compared to their 2005 classmates in the matched cohort. They also expressed more willingness to engage in political talk across differences. The study suggests that when emerging adults have extended experience deliberating about potentially divisive policy issues, they develop cognitive and communicative skills that equip them to navigate the diverse socio-political world that they now inhabit. Thus, we argue that education for democracy in the 21st century should include instruction in deliberative practice.https://delibdemjournal.org/article/id/959/emerging adulthoodcitizenshipintegrative complexitydeliberative dialogue
spellingShingle Christy Buchanan
Jill McMillan
Katy Harriger
Stephanie Gusler
Deliberation, Cognitive Complexity, and Political Engagement: A Longitudinal Study of the Impact of Deliberative Training During Emerging Adulthood
Journal of Deliberative Democracy
emerging adulthood
citizenship
integrative complexity
deliberative dialogue
title Deliberation, Cognitive Complexity, and Political Engagement: A Longitudinal Study of the Impact of Deliberative Training During Emerging Adulthood
title_full Deliberation, Cognitive Complexity, and Political Engagement: A Longitudinal Study of the Impact of Deliberative Training During Emerging Adulthood
title_fullStr Deliberation, Cognitive Complexity, and Political Engagement: A Longitudinal Study of the Impact of Deliberative Training During Emerging Adulthood
title_full_unstemmed Deliberation, Cognitive Complexity, and Political Engagement: A Longitudinal Study of the Impact of Deliberative Training During Emerging Adulthood
title_short Deliberation, Cognitive Complexity, and Political Engagement: A Longitudinal Study of the Impact of Deliberative Training During Emerging Adulthood
title_sort deliberation cognitive complexity and political engagement a longitudinal study of the impact of deliberative training during emerging adulthood
topic emerging adulthood
citizenship
integrative complexity
deliberative dialogue
url https://delibdemjournal.org/article/id/959/
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