The Youth Activism Project (YAP) focuses on youth engagement in online activism, particularly more ephemeral forms of activism (often referred to as flash activism).
Current online resources include:
- a video series, "Informing Activists," co-produced with the blog Mobilizing Ideas, that features short videos by major social movement scholars on issues that young activists may want to consider in organizing and participating in social movements: https://mobilizingideas.wordpress.com/2015/11/13/informing-activists/
- a review of research on the consequences of online social movement activity, which has been compiled into a searchable database and is located at http://yapdatabase-yppnetwork.net/
- a bibliography of important early work on online activism (it hasn't been updated in the last year or two, though): http://jearl.faculty.arizona.edu/node/24
Current research projects that are in-progress include:
- a comparison of youth-directed versus adult-directed websites for activism;
- a review of findings from political communication that could be incorporated into research on youth social movement engagement;
- an interview-based study with youth who never, sometimes, and frequently engage in flash activism to understand how youth make decisions about participating in flash activism, particular in contrast to other options (such as disengagement or more sustained activism);
- an edited volume based on research presented at a convening composed of activists and scholars that will chart an agenda for studying the consequences of flash activism for youth;
- an evaluation of the effectiveness of online boycotts, including evaluating whether youth market-orientations by companies influence effectiveness;
- and an interview-based study of how targets perceive online protest tactics.