Life at age 17: initial findings from the Growing Up in Scotland study (Sweep 11)

6 Political attitudes and civic participation

This chapter covers participation in, attitudes to and engagement with politics and political issues for both young people and their parents.

6.1 Registering to vote

When asked if they were registered to vote, 79.1% of young people were registered, 9.8% were not but were planning on registering, and 11.1% were not and were not planning on registering.

Base: All young people (2339)

Young people in the most deprived areas were less likely than those in the least deprived areas to be registered to vote. For example, only 65.1% of young people in SIMD 1 were registered compared with 91.4% of those in SIMD 5.

6.2 Participation in the Scottish Parliament election, May 2021

6.2.1 Whether voted or not

Young people were asked about their participation in the Scottish Parliament election in May 2021. Just over half (58.1%) of young people said they voted in the 2021 election, 14.0% thought about voting and 25.8% did not think about voting.

Young women were more likely than young men to have voted (63.1% compared with 53.0%). Those in the three most deprived SIMD quintiles were less likely to have voted in the election (45.9%, 50.6% and 54.8% respectively) than those in the two least deprived SIMD quintiles (62.8% and 74.2% respectively).

6.2.2 Reasons for not voting

Young people who had not voted were asked the reason why, as shown in Figure 6-B.

Base: All who did not vote in the 2021 Scottish Parliament election (854)

Young women were more likely than young men to say they ‘didn’t know about the election’ (26.2% compared with 17.2%), whereas young men were more likely than young women to say they were ‘not interested in politics’ (44.7% compared with 35.5%) or they ‘don’t think it matters who is elected’ (10.9% compared with 6.1%).

6.2.3 Political subjects at school

When asked if they had been in a class in the last year where current political issues were discussed, half of young people said they had (48.4%).

Young women were slightly more likely than young men to have been in a class where politics was discussed (51.8% compared with 45.0%), and those in the least deprived areas were more likely than those in the most deprived areas to have been (54.1% in SIMD 5 compared with 41.4% in SIMD 1).

Relatedly, just under half of young people (43.7%) said they had chosen a subject in school which was mainly about politics or society. Young women were more likely than young men to have chosen a political subject (48.3% compared with 38.9%).

6.3 Sources of political information

Young people were asked if they used any of the sources listed in Figure 6‑C to follow the news about government and politics in Scotland. The most popular source of information used was social media (61.7%), followed by TV programmes (43.8%) and online news websites (36.7%).

Base: All young people (2356)

Young women were more likely than young men to use social media (66.8% compared with 56.5%) and party websites (7.6% compared with 5.2%) to follow government and political news. Young men were more likely than young women to use YouTube (24.4% compared with 11.5%) or to say they have not followed the news about politics in Scotland in the last year (25.5% compared with 19.3%). Young disabled people were less likely than young non-disabled people to use social media to follow political news (53.9% and 65.6% respectively).

Young people in the most deprived areas were more likely as those in the least deprived areas to say they had not followed news about politics in Scotland in the last year, with 29.3% in SIMD 1 saying this compared with only 13.7% in SIMD 5.

Young people in less deprived areas were more likely than those in more deprived areas to say they used the following sources:

• Social media (70.2% in SIMD 5 compared with 54.4% in SIMD 1)
• TV programmes (53.0% in SIMD 5 compared with 33.2% in SIMD 1)
• Online news websites (45.6% in SIMD 5 compared with 26.4% in SIMD 1)
• Radio programmes (21.7% in SIMD 5 compared with 9.5% in SIMD 1)
• Publicity materials from political parties (14.6% in SIMD 5 compared with 6.2% in SIMD 1)
• Print newspapers (14.9% in SIMD 5 compared with 5.7% in SIMD 1).

6.4 Talking about politics

When young people were asked who, if anyone, they had talked to about government and politics in the last 12 months, 58.6% said their parents/carers, 49.4% said their friends, 34.0% said people in their class/colleagues at work, 28.5% said other family members and 22.6% said they had not spoken to anyone about government and politics in the last 12 months (Figure 6‑D Who young person had talked to about government and politics in the last 12 months Figure 6‑D).

Base: All young people (2356)

Young women were more likely than young men to talk about government and politics with their parents (62.4% compared with 54.6%) and with people in their class (38.7% compared with 29.3%).

Young disabled people were more likely than young non-disabled people to say they had not spoken with anyone (30.8% compared with 18.0%), whereas young non-disabled people were more likely than young disabled people to have spoken with their parents/carers (63.6% compared with 54.0%) and friends (53.5% compared with 45.8%).

Those in the most deprived areas were more likely than those in the least deprived areas to say they had not spoken to anyone about government and politics in the last 12 months (38.7% of SIMD 1 compared with 12.2% of SIMD 5). Conversely, those in the least deprived areas were more likely to have talked to people in each of the groups about politics. For example, 73.6% of those in SIMD 5 had talked to their parents about politics whereas only 40.2% in SIMD 1 had.

6.5 Political engagement

6.5.1 Perception of the impact of politics

Young people were asked how much of a difference they think it makes to their own life who wins in the elections to the Scottish Parliament; 38.1% thought it made either ‘a great deal’ or ‘quite a lot’ of difference, 31.2% thought it made some difference and 30.7% thought it made ‘not very much’ difference or ‘none at all’. Young women were more likely than young men to think elections made a ‘a great deal’ or ‘quite a lot’ of difference to their lives (44.5% compared with 31.5%).

Base: All young people (2348); young men (1153); young women (1193)

Those in the most deprived areas were more likely than those in the least deprived areas to think elections made ‘not very much’ of a difference to their lives or ‘none at all’ (40.9% in SIMD 1; 21.2% in SIMD 5).

When asked how much they agreed with the statement ‘Sometimes politics and government seem so complicated that a person like me cannot really make sense of it all’, 53.4% of young people either ‘strongly agreed’ or ‘agreed’. Young women were more likely than young men to ‘agree’ or ‘strongly agree’ (60.6% compared with 46.0%).

Those in the most deprived areas were more likely than those in the least deprived areas to ‘agree’ or ‘strongly agree’ (59.4% in SIMD 1 compared with 48.2% in SIMD 5).

Base: All young people (2355); SIMD quintile 1 - 20% most deprived (422); 2 (400); 3 (386); 4 (558); SIMD quintile 5 - 20% least deprived (589)

6.5.2 Expressing political opinions

Young people were asked if they had done any of the things listed in Figure 6‑G, as a way of registering what they personally thought about an issue in the last 12 months. Half of young people (48.9%) had not done any of the things listed, 26.8% said they had done none of the things listed but had done something else.

Base: All young people (2356)

Young men were more likely than young women to say they had not done any of the things listed (54.2% compared with 44.0%), whereas young women were more likely than young men to have bought or refused to buy products (16.6% compared with 9.7%), attended a protest (13.3% compared with 6.7%) and given money to a campaign (11.7% compared with 6.8%).

Young disabled people were more likely than young non-disabled people to have bought or refused to buy products for political or ethical reasons (19.2% compared with 12.6%) or attended a protest (15.6% compared with 9.7%). Young non-disabled people were more likely than young disabled people to have done none of these things (49.4% compared with 41.4%).

Young people in the most deprived areas were more likely than those in the least deprived areas to say they had not done any of the things listed to register their thoughts about an issue (54.3% in SIMD 1 compared with 39.4% in SIMD 5), and those in less deprived areas were more likely than those in more deprived areas to have bought/refused to buy products (18.5% in SIMD 5 compared with 6.2% in SIMD), attended a protest (14.8% in SIMD 5 compared with 7.6% in SIMD 1) and contacted an MP/MSP (7.2% in SIMD 5 compared with 3.7% in SIMD 1).

6.6 Attitudes to climate change

Young people and parents were asked whether they agreed with the statement ‘Before long, climate change will have a serious impact on me and my family’. For young people, 69.4% ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ with the statement and 9.2% ‘disagreed’ or ‘strongly disagreed’. Young women were more likely than young men to ‘agree’ or ‘strongly agree’ (77.4% compared with 61.2%).

As shown in Figure 6‑G, young people in less deprived areas were more likely than those in more deprived areas to ‘agree’ or ‘strongly agree’ (78.4% in SIMD 5 compared with 65.1% in SIMD 1).

Base: All young people (2350); SIMD quintile 1 - 20% most deprived (420); 2 (398); 3 (386); 4 (557); SIMD quintile 5 - 20% least deprived (589)