An article published by The Conversation, authored by UCLA Luskin Professor of Social Welfare Laura Wray-Lake, highlights research on the polarization of young people’s beliefs and actions over time due to political divisions evident among adults since 2016. Wray-Lake and her colleagues focused on 1,400 ninth through 12th grade students — hypothesizing that the adolescents would become more divided — and noted that they, “did identify diverging worldviews about racism and inequalities among teenagers and increased discrimination.” The team pointed to research showing that adolescents are influenced in the long term by societal events and political shifts from the Great Depression to changing presidential administrations. “Likewise, the short-term impacts of Trump’s presidency identified by research may portend long-lasting effects for this generation of young people,” Wray-Lake wrote,” adding, “My colleagues and I were tracking adolescents’ beliefs and behaviors over time, which gave us a unique opportunity to document changes after Trump was elected.”
Professor of Social Welfare
Dr. Laura Wray-Lake’s research is primarily focused on youth civic engagement. The starting point for this research is the assumption...
