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              University of Denver and University of Houston Graduate Schools of Social Work
              2017
      Submitted by 
PCamper
 on 
Mon, 11/30/2020 - 13:53Drs. Nicole Nicotera, Amanda Moore McBride, Suzanne Pritzker, and Yolanda (Yoli) Anyon are leading the study, “Civic Engagement Through the Voices of Latino/a Youth: Exploring Definitions, Supports, and Barriers.” This study seeks to better understand how Latino/a youth conceptualize civic engagement, what supports and encourages them to be involved, what obstacles keep them from being involved, and how they think young people in general could be supported to engage civically.

This study, situated in Houston and Denver, uses participatory research methods to understand Latino/a youth voice on definitions, barriers, and supports of civic engagement. Leveraging partnerships with community organizations focused on positive youth development and civic engagement, the study will recruit 16 youth as co-researchers who will help design and facilitate focus groups with their peers. Methods include focus groups and active youth co-researcher involvement in study design, as well as co-facilitating focus groups, data analysis, and data interpretation.

Preliminary analyses indicate that Latino/a youth define civic engagement in two fundamental ways. First, as individual involvement such as helping others, participating in things that one thinks matter, speaking or standing up, and being aware or informed. The second is collective action to solve a problem such as marches, protests, and community service projects. The findings also suggest that a range of factors shape how Latino/a youth act civically, and that many of these systems act as both facilitators and barriers to civic engagement. Those factors include:

Individual (e.g., lived experiences, personal assets/liabilities, feelings, emotions, and personal motivations)
	Family (e.g., family member encouragement and parental concerns related to involvement in civic engagement activities)
	Peers (e.g., friends with shared ideas or commitment and concerns about the perceptions of unengaged peers)
	Schools (e.g., access to information about civic engagement at school and pressures to achieve academically)
	Neighborhood (e.g., opportunities for civic engagement and community adults’ disregard for youth’s contributions)
	Social-cultural context (e.g., positive and negative influences from the media and dominant cultural norms)
	Economic context (e.g., constraints and facilitators tied to financial resources, employment, and transportation)
	Political context (e.g., encouraging and discouraging experiences with policies, political figures, and the political environment)Taken together, these preliminary findings suggest that Latino/a youth civic engagement are influenced by complex ecology of dynamic and interrelated factors that operate at multiple levels.

**Additional Resources:**

Faculty and Staff Grants From September 2017
	2017 National Service and Civic Engagement Competition Research Grant Announcement and Executive Summaries
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