Evidence suggesting that the growth of civic roots in adolescence may
be crucial to the long-term development of citizenship has
stimulated research into factors that might influence civic
development during this time. One interesting finding to emerge from
that exploration is the apparent importance of
discussion to the development of civic
competence. Adolescents who discuss politics and current events with
their parents, peers, or teachers tend to score higher than other
youth on measures of civic behaviors, attitudes, and skills. They
develop higher levels of political knowledge, show greater intention
to vote in the future, and do better on a range of civic outcomes
from petitioning and boycotting to raising money for charities and
participating in community meetings (Torney-Purta et al. 2001; Andolina et al. 2003).