Politische Grundbildung – Theoretische und empirische Annäherungen

Abstract

The article focuses the question whether workforce literacy strategies in research and policies may tend to exclude relevant fields of literacy, which have emancipatory chances for participants, but which regularly fail in including low qualified or literate adults, namely the area of basic civic education. The relevance of basic civic education will be discussed using contemporary theories, which point at a crisis of democracy and explain this by the spread of income and capital and its legitimation. Further detail is provided by using Rosanvallons criticism on the term 'equality of chances'. The everyday unfairness, covered by the narrative of equal chances, leads to peoples' disengagement with reciprocal relations and solidarity within a society. This theoretical approach will be underpinned with empirical data from the PIAAC dataset which relate literacy on the one hand with variables on political efficacy, social trust and volunteering on the other hand. Results will be compared with volunteer and youth surveys. Furthermore, the connection of a nouveau droite and peoples' low feelings of political efficacy will be reflected in order to fight back the stereotype, marginalized groups would automatically become voters of right-wing populists. (English) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]