Civic participation and youth voice
Young People and Politics: information literacy and political participation in Scotland
Scottish Youth Parliament / Young Scot · 2026
About this report
This report explores how young people in Scotland aged 11–25 access political information, form political views, and participate in democracy. It finds that while most young people recognise politics affects their lives, fewer than half feel they can make a difference in local or national decisions, and over three-quarters rely on social media as their primary news source. Young people called for clearer, unbiased political education in schools, better tools to identify misinformation, and more meaningful involvement in decision-making. Gendered differences were notable, with boys and young men feeling more confident about politics while girls and young women were more likely to find it hard to distinguish true from fake information online.
Research details
- Methodology
- SurveyFocus groupMixed methodsOther
- Sample size
- 426
- Sample
- Young people aged 11–25 across Scotland; three-fifths identified as female, one third as male; participants drawn from all 32 Scottish local authorities.
- Place
- Scotland
- Youth involvement
- Co-produced