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The “social science” basis for this article is a study on the political leanings of teens. I’m not a sociologist, but I find it difficult to believe that anyth

The “social science” basis for this article is a study on the political leanings of teens. I’m not a sociologist, but I find it difficult to believe that anything useful could come from such a study. Teens, regardless of their intelligence and sophistication, don’t have sufficient life experience to express a reliable political ideology. Teens imitate the politics of their friends, parents and other people they look up to. And, their brains are still growing and maturing. It’s a very formative time of life.

gotoeleven 4y ago
The "social science" basis of the first paragraph of the article is indeed based on that study on teens but there are more paragraphs. Articles usually have more than one of these.
kodyo 4y ago
That's a fine justification for ignoring something if you don't want to think about the implications too much.
xhkkffbf 4y ago
Also their economic status is determined largely by their parents who may or may not have similar political leanings.
Snacktivist 4y ago
> Teens imitate the politics of their friends, parents and other people they look up to. Great point and something to really keep in mind with this stuff. But when it comes to usefulness of the study, I disagree. It indicates something is off but like you point out, the problem isn't likely with the teenagers. Something else going on around them is worth digging into and figuring out why there is an imbalance.
hellisothers 4y ago
I think that is correct about teens but the article seems to be using them as a (sensitive) barometer of their family/friends for the reasons you say, it references “family education etc. I think this article was referenced in a roll up here for further reading: https://www.slowboring.com/p/why-are-young-liberals-so-depressed https://www.slowboring.com/p/why-are-young-liberals-so-depre...

gotoeleven 4y ago

The "social science" basis of the first paragraph of the article is indeed based on that study on teens but there are more paragraphs. Articles usually have more than one of these.

kodyo 4y ago

That's a fine justification for ignoring something if you don't want to think about the implications too much.

xhkkffbf 4y ago

Also their economic status is determined largely by their parents who may or may not have similar political leanings.

Snacktivist 4y ago

> Teens imitate the politics of their friends, parents and other people they look up to. Great point and something to really keep in mind with this stuff. But when it comes to usefulness of the study, I disagree. It indicates something is off but like you point out, the problem isn't likely with the teenagers. Something else going on around them is worth digging into and figuring out why there is an imbalance.

hellisothers 4y ago

I think that is correct about teens but the article seems to be using them as a (sensitive) barometer of their family/friends for the reasons you say, it references “family education etc. I think this article was referenced in a roll up here for further reading: https://www.slowboring.com/p/why-are-young-liberals-so-depressed https://www.slowboring.com/p/why-are-young-liberals-so-depre...