Is young Finns’ societal passivity an illusion?

Authors

• Tommi Eränpalo Helsingin yliopisto

Abstract

The article deals with young people's social awareness and activity in the light of the results of the CIVED (1999) and the ICCS (2009) studies. It examines Finnish young peoples' knowledge and attitudes compared to those of the Swedish, British, American and Australian adolescents. In addition it elaborates on the results of the qualitative studies on adolescents’ social attitudes and knowledge that have been carried out in Finland. The article shows that the results of the 1999 and 2009 international comparative research can be interpreted differently than before. When these results are set against the national qualitative surveys, young peoples' purported social passivity appears more uncertain. This perspective will set different challenges to the doctrine of today’s didactics for civics and social studies.