Young citizen formation in the context of a hybrid democratic regime

Abstract

This paper aims to analyze the effect of the type of contemporary democratic construction in Brazil, of a hybrid nature, in the transmission of values, norms and beliefs that form the political personality of young porto-alegrenses trough the process of political socialization. Hybrid refers to a situation where the polyarchic procedures are consolidated, indicating a juridical legitimacy, that coexists, at the same time, with a social legitimacy deficit. In this context, we examine specifically how young people (from 15 to 20 years old) internalize beliefs and values related to politics and its institutions. The assumption is that the civic education of the youth does not produce the developing of attitudes and behaviors that value democratic principles, generating a political culture of distrust, cynicism and passivity. Methodologically, we use data of qualitative and quantitative nature to reach the goal of this research.