Michael X. Delli Carpini’s Definitions of Key Terms
Filed at 1:06 pm on December 5, 2006 in Civic Engagement • 1 comments
One of the difficulties in discussing the impact of digital media on civic and political engagement is a lack of clarity on what we mean by these terms. So let me suggest some simple (simplistic?) definitions…
Here they are:
- Civil Society: Societal institutions that are not part of the official state/governmental apparatus and that structure private (e.g., family) and public (e.g., religion) life.
- Polity: Institutions of the state/government that authoritatively allocate public goods, services and values.
- Social Capital: Connections among individuals - social networks and the norms of reciprocity and trustworthiness that arise from them.
- Civic Awareness: Cognitive (e.g., knowledge), attitudinal (e.g., interest) and affective (e.g., concern) involvement in civil society.
- Civic Participation: Individual and collective actions designed to address public issues through the institutions of civil society.
- Civic Engagement: The combination of Civic Awareness and Civic Participation.
- Political Awareness: Cognitive, attitudinal and affective involvement in the polity.
- Political Participation: Individual and collective actions designed to address public issues through the institutions of the polity.
- Political Engagement: The combination of Political Awareness and Political Participation.
- Democratic Awareness: Cognitive, attitudinal and affective involvement in BOTH civil society and the polity.
- Democratic Participation: Individual and collective actions designed to address public issues through the institutions of BOTH civil society and the polity.
- Democratic Engagement: The combination of Democratic Awareness and Democratic Participation.
Using these terms, some questions that emerge are:
- Where does cyberspace fit in this schema? Is it part of civil society? The polity? Both? Is it its own civil society or polity with its own rules?
- How do various virtual activities contribute to or detract from the various forms of involvement, participation, engagement and social capital described above?
- Do virtual activities like playing on-line games that “model” engagement lead to “the real thing” (even if the real thing still happens on-line)? Move people away from it? Substitute for it?
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Comments (1)
1: Anne Albert at 7:10 pm on Thursday, January 18, 2007
I am not an academic, and just wanted to say that Michael Delli Carpini’s suggested definitions are helpful to me. I make an effort to keep informed and to be an activist citizen, but sometimes feel left out and inadequate because I’m not a walking encyclopedia when it comes to matters of politics and public policy. It’s nice to have this glossary as a reference point for the terminology I often encounter.
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