Political engagement and well-being : theoretical and methodological suggestions

Several studies show that the turnout decline occurring in various countries in latest years is largely linked with a generational factor, as younger generations abstain from voting more often than their peers in the past (Dalton, 2007; Miller & Shanks, 1996). Even though some authors consider such phenomenon counterbalanced by other civic behaviors (Zukin, Keeter, Andolina, Jenkins, & Delli Carpini, 2006), there is general agreement about disengagement from politics by young people. As civil society and social capital are considered as precious resources for the capability of democracy to keep healthy in the future (Putnam, 1993), to prevent such disengagement is a key goal. Gardner, Csikszentmihalyi, & Damon (2001) define “good work” as an activity which is: -excellent in quality, referring to the standards applying to the field; -engaging for the practitioner, namely personally meaningful; -ethically carried out, hence socially valuable. A field allowing to develop this kind of good work is more likely to attract young apprentices. Referring to their definition, we suggest to apply such categories to political activities, to outline the characteristics of those cases which represent good politics, be them in a party or a movement. We suggest that such a practice is able to give optimal experience to the individual (Csikszentmihalyi, 1975/2000), therefore fostering her eudaimonic wellbeing (Ryan & Deci, 2001). This is in our view one of the main intrinsic rewards which strenghten the commitment to the activity itself. It would also result in nurturing trust in political actions in a broader sense, hence preventing Political Cynicism (Bobbio & Manganelli, 2010; Pattyn, Van Hiel, & Dhont, 2009). From the theoretical background, data and methodological implications for measurement tools will be discussed.