Assessing the Role of Television, the Family, and the School in the Development of Political Trust in Adolescence

Objective. A comprehensive study on the development of political trust is absent. Studies on the socialization effect of the media generally neglect the influence of the media system. This study aims to fill this gap. Methods. Using a within-country comparison of two media systems, I estimate the in...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Social science quarterly 2017-09, Vol.98 (3), p.818-835
Main Author: Marien, Sofie
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescents
Broadcasting
Classrooms
Consumption
Families & family life
Family roles
Family school relationship
Hierarchical models
Mass media effects
News
Political Communication & Democratic Attitudes
Political science
Politics
Socialization
Socialization agents
Socioeconomic status
Teaching
Television
Trust
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Summary:Objective. A comprehensive study on the development of political trust is absent. Studies on the socialization effect of the media generally neglect the influence of the media system. This study aims to fill this gap. Methods. Using a within-country comparison of two media systems, I estimate the influence of different socialization agents on the development of political trust through hierarchical models of repeated measurements on a representative panel of Belgian adolescents (BPPS 2006–2011, n = 3,025). Results. News consumption and a public service broadcasting preference foster political trust within diverse media systems. The socioeconomic status and level of political discussion in the family, an open classroom climate, and classroom instruction about politics also promote political trust. Conclusions. Television, the family, and the school are all equally important agents in the development of political trust. It is critical to take the nature of the media system into account when studying how the media affect political trust.
ISSN:0038-4941
1540-6237
DOI:10.1111/ssqu.12433