Democratic participation and voluntary associations. The case of the scout movement in Italy.

Democratic participation and voluntaryassociations. The case of the scout movement in

Italy.

Simone Tosi (Università di Milano Bicocca) [email protected]

Mauro Migliavacca (Università di Genova) [email protected]

Paper for the ESA Research Network 32,Panel on “Civil Society Organizations, Associational

Membership and Political Participation”,Milan, 30 November – 1 December 2012.

1. Some methodological aspects...............................32. The scouting movement and the Italian case................33. Some results from the AGESCI research.....................43.1. Opened or closed association?..........................53.2. AGESCI “culture”.......................................53.3. Other associative participations.......................63.4. Social reproduction....................................6

4. Participation and memberships.............................74.1. Main political dimensions of the scout leaders.........74.2. Political participation and the area of intervention...84.3. Political participation: social position or action involuntary sector?...........................................9

4.3.1. How important is the social position?.........................................................94.3.2. How relevant is being a scout?...................................................................11

1

4.3.2.1.. The type of formal position held (“the service”)11

4.3.2.2......................................The training12

4.3.2.3.................Time spent in scouting activities12

4.3.3. How important is it to be part of the voluntary sector............................135. Conclusions..............................................146. References...............................................15

2

Aim of this paper is to analyze the relationship betweenpolitical participation and some dimensions of voluntaryassociations. The theoretical framework in which this work isinspired bases on the debate on the different ways of politicalparticipation.

The literature highlighted the diversity and the articulation ofthese relationships, pointing out how beyond the specificcontents of the activities, participation in various voluntarynetworks is often characterized as a commitment in the publicsphere: i.e. social production of public goods and civilcommitment/engagement.Many authors agree that anyone who participates in theassociational voluntarism has a greater chance to participate inpolitics. Starting from Tocqueville this thesis finds many hitsin the sociological and political literature (Almond and Verba1963, Putnam 2000). Instead, it is more difficult to understandthe reasons of this relationship. We can identify two differentpoint of view. The first, highlights how the subjectiveexperiences of community members to generate those forms ofloyalty with which people are mobilizing around commonobjectives. This process is "strengthened" by the fact that, bemembers of a voluntary organization helps to create a specific“vision of the world” (Parry et al. 1992; Rosenstone and Hansen2003).

This determines that the people who join voluntary organizationare also more visible, more influential, and they are morefrequently asked to engage in first person (Verba et al. 1995).The associational membership would be in this sense whatgenerates such attitudes and the consequent political practices.Three kinds of positive aspects of volunteering are consideredhaving "positive" consequences on political participation(Quinteler 2008): 1) people are socialized withcollective/political decision-making; 2) they developpolitically relevant attitudes; 3) they acquire politicallyrelevant skills and capabilities. On the above discussedperspective voluntary organization would be "schools ofdemocracy". They teach people how to be civic oriented citizens(Verba et al. 1993, Putnam 2000; Teorell 2003, Flanagan 2004).From a different perspective, other theories have instead shownhow participation in voluntary organizations originates fromprevious structural conditions which are the actual explanans of

3

the high levels of political participation (Van Der Meer and VanIngen 2009). In particular, several authors have tried to relate specificcharacteristics of membership in voluntary organizations withdifferent ways of political participation. In this paper we tryto compare a number of dimensions among the most often discussedby empirical research and theoretical elaborations, trying toassess to what extent each of them is relevant in a specificmembership experience such as the one of the scout leaders ofAGESCI.

After a short description of the data collection and of somemethodological features of our research, we will present themain characteristics of Italian scouting movement, both througha short historical telling and through a presentation of somegeneral features emerged by our research. Then we will go intothe debate on the political meaning of membership in voluntaryorganizations. First of all, we will describe the maindimensions of "politicization" observed on the scout leaders(§4.1). We will then consider the political behaviors andattitudes of scout leaders compared to those observed among themembers of some voluntary sector areas in which Scouting can bereasonably brought (§4.2). Finally, we will discuss a ratherclassic point in the debate on the relationship betweenvoluntary sector and political participation (§4.3). We willlook at whether the political practices of the scouts leadersdepend on their position in the social structure (§ 4.3.1) orresult from their participation in voluntary organizations and,in particular, scouting (§ 4.3.2) or voluntary sector activismin general (§ 4.3.3).

1. Some methodological aspectsThis paper is based on research carried out on a representativesample of AGESCI (Association of Italian Catholic guides andScouts) scout leaders in Lombardia. Lombardia is one of thelargest regions of northern Italy and is one of the mostrepresentative Italian regions. The data were collected througha survey and through some focus groups that had the aim toinvestigate the relationship between associative action andpolitical participation of the subjects. The research took placein the year 2011 and involved a representative sample of 503scout leaders on a population of about 3,000 members.The paper also uses the data collected by another study carriedout in 2009 by the Polislombardia Centre of the Faculty of

4

Sociology of the University of Milano Bicocca. This research hasanalyzed a representative sample of volunteers and voluntaryassociations in Lombardia, with the goal of analyzing themeanings and political valences of commitment in differentassociative networks. The investigation has involved 176 socialassociations in Lombardia which can be divided into five areas:a) civil commitment associations (associations, environmental,feminist, anti-war citizens ' committees, consumer groups); b)cultural associations; c) associations which carry out outreach;d) sport and recreation associations; e) and religiousassociations.

2. The scouting movement and the Italian caseHere are some information useful to define Italian Scouting,drawn from the presentation of the movement (see AGESCI officialwebsite, www.agesci.org).

The Scout Movement is a voluntary educational movement for youngpeople. Scouting is open to all, regardless of race or creed, inaccordance with the purpose, principles and method conceived byits founder Robert Baden-Powell. Its purpose is to contribute tothe development of young people in achieving their fullphysical, intellectual, emotional, social and spiritualpotentials as individuals, as responsible citizens and asmembers of their local, national and global communities.Scouting operates through a network of local groups supported byNational Scout Organizations in 161 countries in the world. TheWorld Organization of the Scout Movement is an independent,worldwide, non-profit and non-partisan organization which servesthe Scout Movement. Its purpose is to promote unity and theunderstanding of Scouting's purpose and principles; whilefacilitating its expansion and development.Scouting movement has spread worldwide shortly after it’sfounding in 1907. During II World War Scouting movement wasdisbanded in many European countries by Nazism and fascism. Tounderline the social education of the scout method, it isimportant to remember that many of the political leaders, invarious countries around the world, they were members of a scoutAssociation.The scout method is aimed at boys and girls aged 7-8 years up to20-21, articulated in three different age groups. The scoutspropose is identical for all boys and girls of the world, butcan be experienced in different cultural and religious contexts.

5

In Italy the scout movement develops, starting in 1910, aroundtwo main associations. A first Association of Catholicinspiration, formed from ASCI (Association of Italian CatholicScouts) and from AGI (Associazione Guide Italiane). Starting in1974, the two associations will join in AGESCI (Association ofItalian Catholic guides and Scouts). The second association,with no religious character, called CNGEI (National Body youngexplorers and Girl Scouts Italians). Both associations adhere toInternational Association World Organization of the ScoutMovement. AGESCI represents in Italy the first scoutingassociation (by number of members). AGESCI represents animportant associative experience that in Italy is characterizedfor being a successful movement for the large number of members,for the widespread diffusion in the territory and for thesoundness proved over time. AGESCI, which counts more than177.000 members, is an educational youth association that aimsto contribute, in his spare time and in extra-curricularactivities, the formation of the person according to theprinciples and method of Scouting, adapted for boys and girls inItalian contemporary society. In his educational activity AGESCI realizes his politicalcommitment, without any bond or party influence, taking intoaccount the work of other educational environments. Itsdissemination, even in Italy, testifies to the civil commitmentat the service of the country. The fundamental principles ofScouting movement are:• see youth people as protagonists of their authentic growthoriented "active citizenship"; • is careful to recognize the values, aspirations, problems andtensions in the world of young people;• has a Christian view of life; • takes into account the totality of the person and thereforethe necessary harmony with oneself and with others; • offers, for boys and girls, the possibility of sharing acommon educational experience; • offers an educational experience that overcomes thedifferences of race, nationality and religion, learning to becitizens of the world and peacemakers;Adult members of the Association are men and women who performtheir “service attendance” as leaders, suggesting the scoutmethod. Every adult involved in the “service”, follows aparticular training course on two levels, one regional and onenational, which at its conclusion entitles to a validrecognition internationally. In the year 2010/2011 adult members

6

(scout leaders) were 32.537. 23.170 worked as educators directlywith boys and girls. The remaining members held differentactivities within national and local structures. AGESCI isorganized into 1.956 groups, divided into 164 areas, distributedthroughout the national territory. Regarding the nationalscenario of AGESCI in particular and of the Italian associationsin generally, The Lombardia case is characterized to berelevant. In Lombardia there are 180 scout groups, divided into13 areas. In 2010 AGESCI had about 15.000 associates inLombardia, about 3.000 were adult members.

3. Some results from the AGESCI research In total the scout leaders interviewed were 58% male and 42%female. The 75% had 25-35 years and 25% more than 35 years.Concerning education, scout leaders have high average levels ofeducation. More than 50% of respondents have a universitydegree. This figure is even underestimated if we consider howmany scout leaders are still University students. This affectsdeployment to professional status. In consequence of this thedata on the professional status is higher than the regionalaverage. Regarding the characteristics of respondents accordingto their history within the AGESCI, we measured the length (inyears) of careers and the degree of stability of the samecareers. The data trend shows that the careers of scout leadersstart rather soon. More than 60% of scout leaders began theirassociative history when they were children; only 5% is enterdirectly in AGESCI as an adult, without previous Scoutingexperience.But the scout leaders how much time used to the AGESCIactivities? More than 27% say that it is working for theassociation, for more than 12 hours a week. Only 30% ofrespondents scout leaders spend less than 6 hours per week tothe association.

3.1. Opened or closed association?One of the points on which it focused the analysis concerns thetype of relationship between AGESCI and the outside world. Thistopic is characterized by being complex, due to the specialfeatures of AGESCI. Starting from the research data, we havetried to analyze this issue according to some specificdimensions. The first dimension concerns the "associativeculture" that characterizes the scout leaders interviewed. Is ita cohesive and specific culture? Is it a culture that defines

7

who participate according to specific characteristics? Is it aculture different from that of other associations? And which iswithin the association, the degree of homogeneity / variabilityof the measured value orientations?The purpose of these questions is to "measure" the existence ofan associative culture with more or less clear boundaries, andto reflect on prevailing trends which may coexist within thesame organization.A second dimension analyses the issue of external relationshipand aims to study the ways in which AGESCI interacts with otherassociative networks. We tried to understand if and how thescout leaders have a disposition to participate in otherassociation experiences. This step will allow viewing thepresence of multiple association memberships, and measure thedegree of connection between AGESCI and other associativecultures. These connections relate not only the organizationalnetworks, but also those forms of "bridging" of communication,that allow cultural heritage of different associations (symbols,cognitive representations, ideologies, etc..) to cross theboundaries of identity of each association, changing thespecific representations and inter-organizational communication.The final dimension refers to the "social reproduction" typicalin AGESCI. We’ll see how and at what level of introversion /extroversion, the work of the scout leader is a "job" that istransmitted through generations. Regarding these dimensions wewill try to compare the results of the AGESCI research with datafrom a study that investigated the members of voluntaryassociations in Lombardia.

3.2. AGESCI “culture”The scout leaders show a value system with strong identifyingtraits that identify a specific set of values. This set ofvalues characterizes the scout leaders compared to othercultural contexts.Data Analysis has put in evidence a first dimension. Thisdimension is related on the position of the scout leadersrespect to the issue of legality. The scout leaders say they arenot willing to consider acceptable complacent attitudes towardscertain types of illegality. The scout leaders say they are notwilling to consider acceptable complacent attitudes towardscertain types of illegality.In particular, the data highlight a strong "intolerance" thanbehaviors such as: obtain state benefits from the governmentwithout having the requirements (96.7%); evade taxes (95.5%),

8

accepting bribes (98.2%). The degree of agreement between thescout leaders to reject the admissibility of this type ofbehavior is not obvious, and is much higher than what would beobserved in a sample of members of associations in Lombardia. Another aspect that highlights the specific identity of thescout leaders is related to sexual morality. The scout leadersAGESCI are less willing to consider divorce and abortion.Instead, members of voluntary associations are generally moretolerant (between the different positions there is a differenceof about 20 percentage points).If we analyze the questions about "the important things inlife," the scout leaders show some interesting trends. The scoutleaders put at the top of their value list, the typical valuesof post-materialistic society (family, friendship, health,culture and social commitment). Instead put in lower positions"things" such as money, trade union activity, political career,etc. What is of great interest here is the high level of interestdeclared by scout leaders on all the issues suggested, higherthan the levels recorded voluntary organizations in Lombardy. Onaverage, even less "popular" values are considered moreimportant. Whatever they are.In general, the presence of factors that define a common "worldview", brings out the strong identity dimension of AGESCI scoutleaders. What appears is a "particular" world, with "particular"representations and "particular" narrative. If we compare theAGESCI scout leaders with the whole Italian population, thespecificity would be even more relevant.But the strong identity that characterizes the heads AGESCIcannot be regarded as absolute. In fact, a more detailedanalysis shows interesting differences within Lombardia betweenarea and area.

3.3. Other associative participationsThe second dimension that we consider refers to the presence ofother associative memberships, from AGESCI leaders. For"multiple memberships" we mean the participation of respondentsin other associations over AGESCI. In relation to this subject, the scout leaders interviewed aredivided into two groups. 43.5%, does not participate in otherassociations over AGESCI while 56.5% said they participate inother associations. In terms of time devoted to otherassociations, 30% of the scout leaders who have "multimembership ", dedicated to these activities more than 3 hours a

9

week. For the other scout leaders with "multi membership" theinvolvement in other associations is not time consuming, (it isnot exceed three hours a week).

3.4. Social reproductionThe last dimension that we consider in relation to the degree"of opening / closing”, focuses on the "family" of the subject,analysing any "hereditary factors" associated with the choice tobe a member of AGESCI. On this topic there is broad agreement inthe literature, in asserting that the patterns of associationsmembership are affected by socialization processes that takeplace first - but certainly not only - in the family sphere. Tounderstand the family imprinting, we used two specificindicators: the degree of "Inheritance"1 and the type of ties2

between the family of the scout leader and AGESCI The analysisshows thatIf we look at the family patterns of origin of the AGESCI scoutleaders, we find that the role of family imprinting is relevant.For 79% of the scout leaders the choice to be in AGESCI does notdepend on having had scout parents. For 21%, have had scoutparents was decisive. the 8% of the sample have, or have had,both parents in AGESCI. About the "inheritance" is important tonote that 42% of respondents currently have a partner that ismember of the AGESCI.

4. Participation and membershipsAs we have seen above, the debate on the different meanings ofmembership in voluntary associations and the relationshipbetween voluntary associations and democracy is very broad.In the following pages we will explore the relationship betweenassociative membership and political participation by analyzingthe practices and attitudes of the scout leaders in Lombardia,

1 With "Inheritance" we mean the condition in which one or both parentsof the scout leader had an AGESCI past. 2 With the tie index we have tried to measure the different degrees towhich the scout leader have family members (parents, brothers,sisters, spouses, boyfriends etc.) who are or have been part of theAGESCI. We counted the families members to each individual and we haveclassified the degree of the relationship as follows: 1) three or moreties = strong tie, 2) two ties = medium tie, 3) one tie = weak tie, 4)zero ties = no ties.

10

comparing them, when possible, with data on the larger world ofvoluntary sector in Lombardia.

As is well known, political participation can be examined fromdifferent perspectives and conceptualized according to a widevariety of meanings. Here we have opted to concentrate on twokinds of political participation.

The first meaning of political participation that we have takeninto account, the one of “direct” political participation,refers to the relationship between people and actors andinstitutions of traditional political sphere. This is a form ofpolitical participation, referring to what is actually done byactors in the political arena. Two dimensions that we haveconsidered: a) participation to political parties, trade unionsand political movements and b) participation as elected membersin local and national representative bodies (local and municipalcouncils, school representatives, etc.).

In addition to this first type of indication, we have consideredanother meaning of political participation: what is generallyreferred to as “latent” political participation. Here we havefocused on three different dimensions a) the feelings aroused bythe word policy, b) the importance given to political and tradeunion action and c) the degree of information on politicalissues.

4.1. Main political dimensions of the scout leadersThe feeling more evoked by the term politics (37.6%) for Scoutsleader is "commitment". It is a much higher value than the onerecorded by the generality of people participating in voluntarysector in Lombardia (21.1%).But it is a political commitment that is only moderatelymediated by more traditional agencies of politicalparticipation. Only 2 scout leaders out of 100 are active in apolitical party, and same number in the trade unions, whileabout 5 out of 100 are engaged in collective and politicalmovements. This kind of political commitment seems rather to befound in circuits of parishes (17%), social voluntaryorganizations (14%) and expressive voluntary organizations, suchas arts groups, cultural groups etc. (12%).

Also participation in elected representative bodies is not verycommon among the scout leaders. With the exception of

11

representation in religious organizations (pastoral councils),which involves about 12% of the respondents, local politicalinstitutions such as city councils, school organizations etc. donot involve more than 3-4 per 100 heads.

Looking at the indicators of direct political participation,scout leaders show a quite lower level than that of activists inLombardia voluntary sector. A scout leader out of 10 is engagedin some sort of activity in political parties, trade unions orpolitical movements, in respect to a figure for members ofvoluntary sector in Lombardia of approximately 3 out of 10. Andto participate as an elected member in representative bodies is20% among scout leaders, compared with 55% of the overall figureof voluntary sector in Lombardia.

Looking at latent political participation, however, we can seehow the point on direct participation in the political spherecannot be simply interpreted as a distance or alienation bypolitics. Scout leaders show high levels of latent politicalparticipation - that is, the set of attitudes with respect tothe political sphere and the sense of involvement of people inthe world of politics - in line with those observed in thelarger population of voluntary sector in Lombardia. Positivefeelings (interest, commitment, passion) aroused by the word"politics" are placed at the top by 62% of the scout leaders; anhigh level of information about the issues around politics (readarticles and assist to broadcasts transmissions about politics,discuss about politics with friends, participate in politicalrallies, meetings or events) is familiar for three quarters ofthe scout leaders. It is, both in the case of the emotionaldimension and in the one of information, a data perfectlyaligned with those of voluntary sector in Lombardia. A littlelower is the number of those who attribute high relevance topolitical and union activities (32% of the scout leaders,compared to 42% in general voluntary sector).

By synthesizing the two ways of political participation - directand latent - in two dichotomous indicators distinguishingbetween high and low participation, the data recorded is asfollows:c

% AGESCI % Voluntary sector in LombardiaHigh level of direct politicalparticipation

26,0 63,3

High level of latent political 82,5 81,3

12

participation

The scout leaders, therefore, are involved in the politicalsphere but do not have high levels of participation in the morecharacteristics traditional institutions of this area.This finding can be interpreted as a result of the high amountof time that the scout leaders dedicate to the differentactivities of their association. As seen above, approx. 70% ofthe scout leaders devoted to the association more than 7 hours aweek, while in broader voluntary sector no more than 30% of theactivists dedicate a similar amount of time.

4.2. Political participation and the area of interventionBefore getting into the specific theme of the paper - that is,the reasons for different types and modes of politicalparticipation observed among scout leaders - it is appropriateto better define the political participation of scout leaderscomparing it with the ways in political participation ofactivists in other associative areas. Many authors havehighlighted the fact that not all types of associations play thesame effects on political participation of the subjects. Forexample, it has been observed as instrumental groups, variously"of interest", bind more strongly with the political sphere,having more directly to do with the direct maintaining orachieving a desired condition. Even those such as Scouts orreligious groups would have strong correlations with directpolitical participation. On the other hand the groups most"expressive" (sport, hobby, etc..) Produce more limited effectson the political participation of the subjects.

The comparison with other sectors of association was held herein relation to associative areas that we considered morehomogeneous in Scouting. In particular, we consider forcomparison four areas: a) cultural associations, b) religiousassociations, c) associations and sports and leisure d) youthassociations.Even focusing on the comparison with similar associative areas,scout leaders confirm the trends observed in the overallcomparison.With regard to the direct participation are not very involved inelective representative institutions and in the traditionalparticipation structures, such as political parties and tradeunions.

AGESCI Lombardia Cultural Sports Religiou Youth

13

andleisure s

Participate in parties,trade unions and politicalmovements

10,3 26,9 18,2 13,5 15,3 24,3

Participate as a electedmember to representativebodies

19,9 55,1 45,5 53,7 62,3 55,1

And the latent political participation aligns the scout leadersto militants in other areas.

AGESCI

Lombardia

Cultural

Sportsand

leisure

Religious Youth

The word “politics” arouses positive feelings

62,4 60,9 55,2 51,4 56,7 70,1

High importance given to political and trade union activity

32,4 41,6 32,9 34,0 38,1 50,5

Frequent information on issues about politics

72,0 72,7 72,0 62,9 65,6 79,4

Synthetically, for the two forms of political participationvalues are the following.

AGESCI Lombardia Cultural

Sportsand

leisure

Religious Youth

High level of latent political participation

82,5 81,3 78,3 74,1 76,7 89,7

High level of direct political participation

26,0 63,3 49,0 56,8 65,1 59,8

4.3. Political participation: social position or action in voluntary sector?But the point of this paper is: why in the same organization -the scout leaders, in this case - someone participates more andsome less?We try to provide some information to answer this question byconsidering some classical themes in the debate on therelationship between voluntary sector organizations andpolitical participation.

The debate on the political meaning on the liaison betweenvoluntary sector and political participation is heavily focusedon an underlying problem. The point, in a nutshell, is: thegreater propensity to participate in politics usually foundamong people active in voluntary organizations depends upon

14

their membership in this kind of organization or by their socialposition, often higher than the average of society? In otherwords, you participate more in politics because has learned todo it in an organization in voluntary sector or because you comefrom the upper social classes, already accustomed to greaterpolitical participation?

4.3.1. How important is the social position?The social position of people is considered an importantpredictor of political participation. According to the theoriesof social centrality to "higher" social positions correspondhigher levels of political participation.

Looking at latent political participation the theory ofcentrality seems to be confirmed. Both the number of people withpositive feelings aroused by the word “politics”, and the oneswho give high relevance to political and union trade activity,and who shows a high level of information on politics diminishprogressively moving from the highest class to the lowest. Andthis trend continues as one of the scout leaders and among themembers of voluntary organizations in Lombardia.

Agesci

Lombardia

A% L% Highclass

Mediumclass

Lowclass

Highclass

Mediumclass

Lowclass

The word “politics” arousespositive feelings

62,4 60,9 68,8 61,3 52,9 70,2 64 48,2

High importance given to politicaland trade union activity

32,4 41,6 33,8 32,1 30,9 45,2 43,4 30,4


72,0 72,7 79,4 71,5 57,4 82,3 75,4 57,1

15

Not the same linear trend is observed looking at directpolitical participation.This downward trend in participation trough the transition fromhigher to lower class is in fact confirmed for people involuntary organizations in Lombardia. Here, going from thehighest class to the lower the proportion of peopleparticipating in political parties and trade unions willprogressively decrease (from 30% to 20%). And a similar trend isobserved for the rate of participation in representative bodies(from 55% to 39%).

But among the scout leaders the trend disappears. The measuredvalues for the direct political participation in the lower classare higher than the levels of the two upper classes, bothlooking at the component defined by the participation inpolitical parties and trade unions and at the one ofparticipation in representative bodies.

Agesci

Lombardia

A% L% Highclass

Medium

class

Lowclass

Highclass

Medium

class

Lowclass

Participate inparties, trade unionsand politicalmovements

10,3

26,9

11,3 9,5 11,9 29,8 29,2 19,6

Participate as aelected member torepresentative bodies

19,9

55,1

18,1 19,7 25 54,8 59,9 39,3

In summary, direct and latent political participation onlypartially confirm the information provided by the theory ofsocial centrality that seems to work for latent participationbut not for the direct one.

Agesci

Lombardia

A% L% Highclass

Mediumclass

Lowclass

Highclass

Mediumclass

Lowclass

High level of latent politicalparticipation

82,5

81,3

86,3 82,5 75 84,7 85,3 71,4

High level of direct politicalparticipation

26,0

63,3

23,8 25,9 32,4 64,5 67,1 50

16

4.3.2. How relevant is being a scout?If the central place in society does not explain the observeddifferences in political participation of scout leaders inLombardia, we try to consider whether the differences found inthe degree of politicization and in the ways of politicalparticipation depend on the membership and ways of participationin the scout movement. We see if the socialization provided byscout organization can explain the observed differences inpolitical participation.

The research on voluntary sector has shown that the differencesin the way of participation in voluntary organizations generatedifferent results in terms of political participation. Accordingto Putnam (2000), for example, only associations that provides ahigh level of activism and practiced in the context of face-to-face relationship generate political participation, while othersscholars argue that the passive participation in associationsproduce political participation (Wollebæk and Saddles 2002a,2002, b, 2003). The members of a group do not participate in allthe same way to their organization. There are different degreesof involvement and of commitment that may explain the differentoutcomes of political participation.

The hypothesis highlighted here is that there are differentkinds of membership scout. Some individuals may be considered"more central" than others. Obviously "centrality" is not a one-dimensional concept. We tried to deal with three differentaspects that may give rise to different centrality-positions inAGESCI: 1) the kind of formal role, that is what scouts call“the service in the group” (city-group leader, head of unit,etc.), 2) the level of training (distinguishing those who havecompleted 'training process provided by the association from whois still in training) and 3) the amount of hours per weekdedicated to the association (distinguishing between those whodedicate more or less than 7 hours per week).

4.3.2.1. The type of formal position held (“the service”)The role played by Scout leaders in the organizational structuredoes not seem to be very useful in explaining the differences inpolitical participation. Who is neither city-group leader orhead of unit is slightly more involved in political parties andtrade unions, but the group leaders are much more involved (in37% of cases) in institutions and political representativeelected bodies than it is who is head of unit and who is neitherthe one nor the other (16% and 19%, respectively). Who is

17

available an used to have a representative role in AGESCItherefore tends to be more available to do so in the politicalsphere. But less than the other is willing to play a role intraditional organizations such as political parties and tradeunions.

The service

A% L% city-groupleader

head ofunit

other

Participate in parties, trade unions andpolitical movements

10,3

26,9

8,1 10,5 10,8

Participate as a elected member torepresentative bodies

19,9

55,1

37,1 16,0 19,2

Who plays a "more central" role in the formal structure ofAGESCI also has slightly higher levels of latent politicalparticipation than the others. But looking at each of the threecomponents considered indicators of this type of participationwe observe that values do not always follow the same kind oftrend. The city-group leaders have a more positive politicalattitude than the other but they tend to a lower level ofpolitical information and attach high importance to politicaland trade union activities less than those without the role ofcity-group leader or head of unit.

The service

A% L% city-groupleader

head ofunit

other


62,4 60,9 66,1 60,9 63,1

High importance given to political andtrade union activity

32,4 41,6 30,6 29,8 36,0


72,0 72,7 71,0 71,0 73,4

4.3.2.2. The trainingThe training level is instead strongly correlated to the degreeof political participation both in the case of the latent and inthe one of the direct political participation. The scout leaderswho have obtained a patent and a nomination to head - that is,having completed the training process expected by AGESCI - showsignificantly higher levels of direct involvement and

18

information-affection towards the political sphere than theothers.

A% L% Nomination to head

Altro

Participate in parties, trade unions and political movements

10,3 26,9 12,4 8,7

Participate as a elected member to representative bodies

19,9 55,1 29,5 12,6


Altro


62,4 60,9 70,0 56,6


32,4 41,6 32,7 32,2


72,0 72,7 77,0 68,2


Altro


82,5 81,3 87,1 79,0


26,0 63,3 36,4 18,2

4.3.2.3. Time spent in scouting activitiesWe also considered the time spent per week as a possibleindicator of centrality. This would be the indicator that showsa more "in fact" central role, indicating a more practical andless formal-positional centrality than those taken from the“service” or the level of training achieved.

However, this type of marker does not seem to discriminate muchin relation to the latent political participation (thedifferences between that who participate devoting less than 7hours per week and who devotes more than 7 hours are verysmall). On the other hand, with respect to direct politicalparticipation can be seen higher values - limited toparticipation in representative bodies - among those who wouldbe considered less central devoting less time to theassociation. But given the specific characteristics of the typeof association which, as we mentioned in the introduction, it isparticularly time-consuming, the relationship does not seemparticularly significant.

19

A% L% up to 7 hours

more than7 hours

Participate in parties, trade unions and political movements

10,3

26,9

10,1 10,7

Participate as a elected member to representative bodies

19,9

55,1

24,6 17,7

A% L% up to 7 hours

more than7 hours


62,4 60,9 64,2 62,8


32,4 41,6 35,2 31,5


72,0 72,7 76,5 71,0

A% L% up to 7 hours

more than 7 hours


82,5 81,3 84,4 83,3


26,0 63,3 29,6 24,6

4.3.3. How important is it to be part of the voluntary sectorThe final assumption that we have faced is that is not so muchthe type of membership in a single organization to produce theavailability to participate in politics, but what "makes adifference" is the involvement in the network of relationshipswithin the voluntary sector and the multiple membership thatconnects organizations through the overlapping memberships ofactors. In this sense, it is assumed that people who participatein more than one organization have higher propensity topolitical participation than those who are single-belonging. Theliterature and research on voluntary associations have shown theimportance of "multi memberships" in promoting the building ofnetworks between people and organizations. It is also throughparticipation in other associations that subjects can revise andrenew the codes and meanings of their membership experience.There is no consensus on the relevance of multiple membershipsin political participation. According to some studies multiplememberships is not relevant (Stolle and Rochon 1998; Bowler et.Al., 2003) while according to other research it is (Teorell2003, Verba and Nie 1972). Our data on scout leaders in Lombardia strongly incline in favorof the hypothesis that being active in more than one associationis related to a greater disposition to political participation.The relationship between multiple membership and political

20

participation emerges with respect to each dimension. Both interms of direct and of latent political participation.

Agesci

Lombardia

A% L% 0 1 > 1 0 1Participate in parties, trade unions and political movements

10,3

26,9

0 10,1

30,6

16,1 36,5

Participate as a elected member torepresentative bodies

19,9

55,1

7,9 26,6

35,5

44,2 64,5

Agesci

Lombardia

A% L% 0 1 > 1 0 1The word “politics” arouses positive feelings

62,4

60,9

53,8 71,9

68,5

55,8 66


32,4

41,6

28,3 30,2

42,7

36,5 46


72,0

72,7

66,3 74,1

80,6

67,5 78,2

The importance of multiple memberships for politicalparticipation is also confirmed by data on activists ofvoluntary organizations in Lombardia.

5. ConclusionsResearch on the scout leaders in Lombardia has allowed obtainstwo main results. The first result is to increase the level ofunderstanding of AGESCI, very important both at regional andnational level, and one of the less studies voluntaryorganizations in Italy.3 The second result is to highlight what are the associativedynamics and subjective practices of AGESCI within the studieson voluntary organizations and political participation.

Starting from the different dimension of the politicalparticipation, in terms of latent political participation ratherthan direct political participation, the analysis on AGESCIscout leaders and the next comparison with the data set aboutvolunteers and voluntary associations in Lombardia, hashighlighted some important issues that have revealed thespecificity of the culture AGESCI compared to otherorganizations that have common elements with AGESCI.3 The only relevant analysis was published by : Ardigò A. Cipolla CMartelli S., Scouts oggi: diecimila rovers-scolte dell'Agescirispondono,, Borla, 1989.

21

The analysis about role of the individual members within theorganizational dynamics, the presence of conditions of "multimemberships" and the role played by the inter-generationaltransmission of values and attitudes in the processes of socialreproduction, are other interesting interpretative keys whichshow once again the specificity of AGESCI.

In general, the analysis has highlighted a profile of politicalparticipation of the leaders AGESCI which is mainlycharacterized by latent political participation. The main reasonfor this result is related to the high commitment (in terms oftime spent on the associative activity) that AGESCI requires toits leaders.

All the dimensions considered: level of training, time spent,formal role played - are slightly related to politicalparticipation. The data for scout leaders in Lombardia stressthe hypothesis according to which multiple memberships arestrongly related to high level of disposition to politicalparticipation. The relationship between multi membership andpolitical participation emerges with respect to all dimensions,both in terms of direct political participation and in that oflatent political participation.

The analysis proposed in this paper is a first attempt atanalysis, which need further investigation and study, but thatfits fully within the theoretical debate and analysis on therelationship between membership of a voluntary organization andpolitical participation.

22

6. References

Almond, G., and S. Verba. 1963. The Civic Culture: Political Attitudes andDemocracy in Five Nations. Princeton, NJ: Princeton UniversityPress.

Bekkers R. (2007), “Intergenerational Transmission ofVolunteering”, Acta Sociologica, June, 50 (2), pp. 99-114.

Bowler, S., Donovan, T. and Hanneman, R., (2003), “Art forDemocracy's Sake? Group Membership and PoliticalEngagement in Europe”, Journal of Politics, 65, pp. 1111-29.

Flanagan, C.A. (2004), “Volunteerism, Leadership, PoliticalSocialization, and Civic Engagement”, in R. M. Lerner andSteinberg Laurence (eds.), Handbook of Adolescent Psychology,pp. 721-45. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.

Micheletti, M., Follesdal, A. and Stolle, D., (2003), Politics,Products, and Markets. Exploring Political Consumerism Past and Present,Rutgers: Transaction Publishers.

Parry, G., Moyser, G. and Day, N. (1992) Political Participation andDemocracy in Britain. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Putnam, R.D. (2000), Bowling Alone. The Collapse and Revival of AmericanDemocracy, New York: Simon & Schuster.

Quintelier E. (2008), “Why is Politically Active: The Athlete,the Scout Member or the Environmental Activist?”, ActaSociologica, December, 51 (4), pp. 355-370.

Rosenstone, S. J. and Hansen, J. M. (2003) Mobilization, Participation,and Democracy in America. New York: Longman.

Stolle, D. and Rochon, T.R., (1998), “Are All AssociationsAlike? Member Diversity, Associational Type, and theCreation of Social Capital”, American Behavioral Scientist, 42,pp. 47-65.

Teorell, J. (2003), “Linking Social Capital to PoliticalParticipation: Voluntary Associations and Networks ofRecruitment in Sweden”, Scandinavian Political Studies, 26, pp.49-66.

Van Der Meer, T.W.G. and Van Ingen, E.J. (2009), Schools ofdemocracy? Disentangling the relationship between civicparticipation and political action in 17 Europeancountries, “European Journal of Political Research”, 48,2, pp. 281-308.

Verba, S. and Nie, N., (1972), Participation in America. Political Democracyand Social Equality, Chicago, IL: Chicago University Press.

23

Verba, S., Schlozman, K.L. and Brady, H.E., (1995), Voice andEquality: Civic Voluntarism in American Politics, Cambridge, MA:Harvard University Press.

Verba, S., Schlozman, K.L., Brady, H. and Nie, N.H. (1993),“Race Ethnicity and Political Resources: Participation inthe United States”, British Journal of Political Science, 23, pp.453-97.

Wollebæk, D. and Selle, P., (2002a), “Passive Support: NoSupport at All?”, Nonprofit Management and Leadership, 13, pp.87-203.

Wollebæk, D. and Selle, P., (2002b), “Does Participation inVoluntary Associations Contribute to Social Capital? TheImpact of Intensity, Scope, and Type”, Nonprofit and VoluntarySector Quarterly, 31, pp. 32-61.

Wollebæk, D. and Selle, P., (2003), “The Importance of PassiveMembership for Social Capital Formation”, in M. Hoogheand D. Stolle (eds.), Generating Social Capital. Civil Society andInstitutions in Comparative Perspective, pp. 67-88, New York:Palgrave.

Zukin, C, Keeter, S., Andolina, M., Jenkins, K. and DelliCarpir, M.X., (2006), A New Engagement? Political Participation, CivicLife, and the Changing American Citizen, New York: OxfordUniversity Press.

24

Democratic participation and voluntary associations. The case of the scout movement in Italy.

Documents

Transcript of Democratic participation and voluntary associations. The case of the scout movement in Italy.