Ethnic Majority and Minority Youths’ Ascription of Responsibility for Solving Current Social Issues: Links to Civic Participation

The study examined current social issues that adolescents and young adults from majority and minority groups consider to be pressing issues in society, such as the environment, racism, and unemployment. Fourteen focus groups were conducted with majority (Czech) and minority (Roma and Ukrainian) participants (15-26 years of age). The issues were discussed with an emphasis on where the participants believed the responsibility lay for finding a solution. Responses could be classified into three categories: ascribing responsibility only to the self, only to others (e.g., to the government), or to both. We used the data from the follow-up survey study to test whether internal ascription of responsibility would align with young people’s attitudes toward civic participation. The results suggest that for majority (Czech) and Ukrainian youth, willingness to participate is predicted not only by social norms that encourage civic engagement and collective efficacy beliefs but also by one’s ascription of responsibility to the self. We discuss various explanations for why this finding did not hold true for Roma respondents.