Abstract
Radicalization and anti-democratic trends, even at the very local level, have Europe-wide implications, threatening the stability of the European Union and its fundamental values. Hence, the protection, promotion and anchoring of democratic values can only be tackled in a joint effort. This is especially young people who are socially excluded and disadvantaged show a higher risk of violent and political radicalization in all countries. In the context of political education approaches, it is essential to think of educational programs that could increase commitment, resonance, and participation among this particular social group of young people in the context of a civil society. Taking the project 'European Learning Environment Formats for Citizenship and Democracy' (ELEF) as an example, this chapter aims at presenting an education theoretical classification as well as an approach suggesting how to react to societal challenges with the help of educational formats.
TopIntroduction: The Link Between Political Structure And Political Culture
As the collapse of the Weimar Republic amply demonstrates, democracies are fairly fragile entities. It is now generally accepted that a democratically constituted body politic cannot in itself sustain the conditions for its own existence. This addresses not only minimum democratic standards at the structural level – such as the rule of law and a constitutional state, the separation of powers, a pluralist party system, regular, fair and free elections, and the subsequent possibility for governments to be voted out of office (Schmidt 1995; Vorländer 2014) – but also and especially the people living in a democracy. In short: no democracy without democrats!
At the latest since the groundbreaking study The Civic Culture. Political Attitudes and Democracy in Five Nations appeared in 1963, this connection between the so-called 'political structure' on the one hand and the so-called 'civic culture' on the other is conceptually, analytically and empirically underpinned. The central assumption of its two authors, Gabriel Almond and Sidney Verba, is that the (in)stability of a political system depends not only on the above-mentioned minimum standards, but also on the “specifically political orientations” (p. 12) of its citizens (that is civic culture). Or put more precisely: The degree of (in)congruence that exists between the political structure of a country and its civic culture (p. 30). Civic culture is therefore consequently understood by the two authors as the “connecting link” between the micro- and the macro-level (ibid.).
Based on their central hypothesis, Almond/Verba then introduce and further elaborate on what they call “psychological orientations” (p. 13). Bearing in mind the four “social objects” (ibid.) to which these orientations can be related, it is possible to create the following matrix (see Table 1):
Table 1. Dimensions of political orientations and the social objects to which they refer
Subsequent aggregation of the individual orientations identified by survey research shows different distribution patterns of political orientation within a society, from which Almond/Verba then derive three prototypical relationship structures between the citizens of a country and their political system. This enables statements to be made about the (in)stability of a political system (see Table 2; for the prototypes of civic culture, their subtypes and mixed forms see Almond/Verba 1963: 16-30).
Table 2. Congruence/incongruence between political culture and structure
Key Terms in this Chapter
DLE (democratic learning environment): Political education format with the aim to promote democratic values and citizenship by strengthening empowerment and self-efficacy experiences.
Resonance: Reciprocal process of establishing a positive, supportive and caring relationship between individuals, society and/or their social environment.
Non-traditional learning environment: Place of extracurricular learning.
DBR (Design-Based Research): Type of research methodology to develop didactical formats as an iterative process (design, implementation, evaluation, re-design) between researchers and practitioners.
Political culture: Cognitive, affective and evaluative orientations of people toward specific social objects (e.g. the political system, political input).
Empowerment: All strategies and measures to enable people to competently and actively participate in society.
Political education: All formal and non-formal teaching and learning processes with the aim to develop civic competences.