An Investigation into Political Engagement on College Campuses Open Access

Abstract

In recent history, as college campuses have become more diverse, they have also been sites of numerous political demonstrations. Literature suggests that students are more politically active than non-students of the same age because they are in spaces where they are able to connect with like-minded people, but further individual attributes can affect their political behavior. This study utilizes a mixed-methods approach through quantitative data, from the Multi-Institutional Study of Leadership (N = 47,893), and qualitative data (21 in-depth interviews) to understand how identity intersects with political behavior on college campuses both on the individual and group levels. I focus on the identity statuses of race, gender, sexual orientation, and political ideology and investigate student involvement in identity-based student organizations to understand how students engage in both political action and political discussion. I find that a student’s social network is the best indicator of their political behavior, but overall a student’s need to feel understood as a knowledgeable individual heavily influences how they choose to interact with others in regard to politics.

Table of Contents

Introduction                                                                                                                           1

Literature Review                                                                                                                  2

Methods                                                                                                                                 9

i.                   Quantitative Methodology                                                                          9

ii.                 Qualitative Methodology                                                                               14

Results                                                                                                                                   19

i.                   Quantitative Data                                                                                           19

ii.                 Qualitative Data                                                                                                   26

Discussion                                                                                                                              41

Works Cited                                                                                                                          46

Appendix I                                                                                                                             49

Appendix II                                                                                                                           54

Appendix III                                                                                                                          56

About this Honors Thesis

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School	Emory College
Department	Sociology
Degree	B.A.
Submission	Honors Thesis
Language	English
Research Field	Sociology, General
Keyword	political engagement college campuses marginalized identity political discussion social identity theory college students social networks political action
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Browne, Irene, Emory University
Committee Members	Nalkur, Sonal, Emory University Gillespie, Andra, Emory University

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