Like parents, like citizens: Mexican children's political socialization

• Autor: Juan Enrique Huerta-Wong
• Páginas: 279-301

279

controVersias y concurrencias latinoamericanas

issn 2219-1631 Vol.6 no. 9 abril 2014

coedición: Journal of latin american communication research

ISSN: 2237-1265

LIKE PARENTS, LIKE CITIZENS:

MEXICAN CHILDREN’S POLITICAL SOCIALIZATION

Juan Enrique Huerta-Wong

Graduate School, UPAEP

jehuerta848@gmail.com

ABSTRACT

This paper addresses how future citizens are being socialized in Mexico, and more

specically, what is the role of family communication and viewing news in shaping

civic awareness and political participation. The analyzed data comes from a survey

to Mexican children enrolled in the 6th year of elementary school in three cities of

the North East of Mexico (n = 1544). The analytical strategy consisted in developing

a full structural equation model to test both the validity of the constructs proposed,

and the hypothetical relationships among those constructs. Results reinforced the

central role of parents in shaping future citizens, by having an eect on children’s

attitudes to political participation. Otherwise, TV news viewing was found as having

an eect on children’s civic awareness, but just a weak eect on children’s attitudes to

political participation. The paper concludes with a nal elaboration regarding theo-

retical and public policy implications from those ndings; more specically, it oers

guidelines for educational interventions that take advantage from the relevance of

parents on shaping Mexican future citizens.

Keywords: Political socialization, political communication, civic development, pu-

blic opinion, structural equation models.

280

Juan enrique huerta-WonG

•

Like parents, like citizens: Mexican children’s po-litical socialization

Mexican democracy is not running smoothly. After 10 years of completely gover-

nment-independent federal elections, national surveys have shown that a large pro-

portion of Mexicans are disappointed with democracy, and some of them disagree

with democracy as a good political system (Lagos, 2008). The paradox of the masses

claiming that the current political regime is frustrating has resulted in a revival for ci-

tizenship studies (Feinberg, Waisman & Zamosc, 2006; Tulchin & Ruthenburg, 2007a).

Authors interested in Latin America (Oxhorn, 2006; Oxhorn, 2007; Tulchin & Ruthen-

burg, 2007b) have proposed going beyond the analysis of political institutions to

concentrate on the analysis of the role of citizens and citizenship in Latin American

democracies. It results that is crucial to understand how political attitudes are being

shaped, and especially what kind of citizens are growing up. These questions relate

to the eld of Mexican children’s political socialization.

In this context, several Mexican authors (Fernández, 2005; Ibarra, 2003; Tapia,

2003), have focused recently on political socialization processes, a formerly neglec-

ted research area not only in Mexico, but throughout Latin America. These studies

propose going beyond political outcomes, and instead interrogating the processes

through Mexican children are being politically socialized. Their ndings have iden-

tied consistently children as critical observers from politicians and politics. Those

studies have also suggested that the inuence of media on children depend on the

extent at which Mexican children discuss political issues with their parents, and even

the extend at which children talk with their parents in general. Parents’ points of view

constitute the biggest inuence to shape children attitudes to public issues.

The focus of this paper is to address the general question of how Mexican children

are being politically socialized, and what is the role of television, parental disposition

to political participation, and frequency of family political discussions in building

citizenship, as reported in other countries, for example, the United States (Kiousis,

McDevitt & Wu, 2005; Wagle, 2006). To examine these assertions, a hypothetical struc-

tural model is presented in the following pages, relying on data from a survey on 6th

year children in Monterrey, Mexico. I theorize a causal model, and then investigate

the role of both interpersonal and media communication in the non-formal civic edu-

cation of future Mexican citizens.