International Business Case Study: China and Caterpillar

Running Head: POLITICAL ENGAGEMENT

Politics Doesn’t Affect Me…Does It?: The Affects of Counter-Attitudinal Advocacy on
Students’ Political and Civic Engagement Attitudes

Elizabeth L. Chupp

Illinois State University

December 10, 2008

Com 424: Seminar in Persuasion

Final Paper

Abstract
The youth of our nation have been experiencing a decline in their levels of political and civic engagement over the past several years. Several scholars argue that it is the responsibility of higher education to increase the political engagement levels of our country’s youth. Further, the basic communication course provides the optimal environment in which to incorporate political engagement skills since they compliment the existing communication pedagogy. Many students enter college with negative attitudes towards political engagement, and this study seeks to explore whether educators can change students’ existing attitudes through the use of counter-attitudinal advocacy mechanisms in the classroom. This study uses a pre-test, post-test design to measure students’ attitudes towards political and civic engagement at the beginning and the end of the semester in the basic communication course to determine if counter-attitudinal advocacy mechanisms are influential in changing students’ attitudes. Results of the study along with directions for future research are also discussed. If CAA proves successful in altering students’ attitudes towards political and civic engagement, this research will provide educators with a concrete mechanism to implement in their classrooms.

Politics Doesn’t Affect Me…Does It?: The Affects of Counter-Attitudinal Advocacy on
Students’ Political and Civic Engagement Attitudes The democracy we enjoy in the United States is one of the core elements that makes our country great; however, it is also a privilege, and a democracy cannot function without the participation

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