Scholar

Niklas Bolin

H-index: 12
Political science 62%
Education 14%

Reposted by: Niklas Bolin

youthpolrep.bsky.social
@epsjournal.bsky.social has just published the articles of a special issue on "Political parties and youth’s political (under) representation", with an introduction by Daniel Stockemer (@uottawa.ca )

link.springer.com/article/10.1...

🧵
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1057/s41304-025-00521-z🧵
niklasbolin.bsky.social
If parties treat youth wings mainly as support teams, they risk attracting only careerists and losing politically driven young people.

Therefore parties need to open up to youth influence, even on issues beyond “youth politics” and provide meaningful opportunities for members to shape party policy.
niklasbolin.bsky.social
The study draws on a nationwide web survey of almost 3,000 Swedish youth wing members . The findings reveal that career-oriented members are more likely to view the youth wing as a supportive ally. Politically driven members emphasize influencing the party line.
niklasbolin.bsky.social
🚨New article out 🚨

Party youth wings are often described as partners that trade votes for influence with their senior parties. But how do their own members see it?

In this article I examine whether they think their organizations' mission is to influence the senior party or to support it.
Influence or support? Member perspectives on youth wings in political parties - European Political Science
Political parties maintain connections with various sub-organisations to engage different segments of society. Common among these are party youth wings. These relationships are often described as mutual, where votes are exchanged for policies. However, little research delves into how members of these sub-organisations perceive their roles in relation to the senior party. Based on a web survey of approximately 3000 respondents, this study investigates the views of youth wing members within Swedish political parties. Specifically, it explores whether members believe their youth wing’s primary role should be to influence or support the senior party. Drawing on theories of political engagement incentives, it examines the connection between members’ political and career motivations and their perceptions of these roles. Results suggest that those with career-oriented incentives tend to view the youth wing as supportive, while politically motivated members prioritise influencing the senior party. This research contributes to our understanding of the complex dynamics within political parties and their affiliated organisations, shedding light on how individual motivations shape organisational roles.
link.springer.com
niklasbolin.bsky.social
New publication

Huge congrats to Valdemar Holt on his first peer-reviewed publication – as first author! Co-authored with me and Ingela Wadbring.

We analyze Jimmie Åkesson’s speeches in the Swedish parliament (2010–2024) and track how the Sweden Democrats’ populist rhetoric has changed over time.
Resilient populism? The Sweden Democrats’ discourse in parliament, 2010–2024 | Emerald Insight
1
www.emerald.com
ammassarisofia.bsky.social
Thrilled that my article on women's activism in PRR parties has been published open access today in @cpsjournal.bsky.social 💫

journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

This is my favourite article from my PhD thesis. I love the topic, its findings, and the literature it draws on.

A quick 🧵:
niklasbolin.bsky.social
How do mock elections shape students’ political engagement and democratic understanding? Our new research project explores how mock elections are organized in Swedish schools and what role they play in civic education.
Mock Elections and the Democratic Mission of Schools
This project examines how mock elections are organized and integrated into upper secondary education and their significance for students’ democratic learning and civic engagement.
www.miun.se
niklasbolin.bsky.social
Congratulations Sofia! Looking forward to read it.

by Duncan McDonnellReposted by: Niklas Bolin

duncanmcdonnell.com
Nice piece about our recent YOUMEM project article in the European Journal of Political Research about ideological congruence in party youth wings in today's The Australian newspaper.

www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/progr...
niklasbolin.bsky.social
🚨New publication🚨

New article from the YOUMEM project examines ideological congruence in youth wings, introducing a typology of radicals, moderates and aligned members. We find that radicals are more common on the centre-left, tend to have longer membership, but are less politically ambitious.

by Duncan McDonnellReposted by: Niklas Bolin

duncanmcdonnell.com
Almost 500 downloads for our new article "Inside party youth wings: The YOUMEM project" over the past couple of weeks.

If you're interested in party organisations and/or young people in politics, this is for you:

journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....
Sage Journals: Discover world-class research
Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.
journals.sagepub.com

by Paul TaggartReposted by: Niklas Bolin

paultaggart.bsky.social
Teaching on populism, or just thinking about it? Cristobal Rovira Kaltwasser and I have published a symposium in @pspolisci.bsky.social on 'Populism and Democracy' which is now available (open access).

References

Fields & subjects

Updated 1m