Youth, EU Literacy and Democratization: Evaluating the Portuguese Z Generation Literacy on the European Union

This paper is a part of a research project aiming to evaluate the Portuguese Z Generation’s literacy levels in the European Union, as well as its perceptions concerning the impact of the EU on Portuguese democracy. The Portuguese Z Generation's literacy levels about the European Union and its perceptions about the EU’s role in advancing Portuguese democracy have not been sufficiently explored by specialized literature. The relevance of younger generations, particularly Portuguese college undergraduate and graduate students, in the establishment of a relationship between democratization and Europeanization is particularly underexplored. Existing literature on the historical and political association between Europeanization and democratization in Portugal adopts almost exclusively a top-down approach privileging the role of national elites and formal institutions in promoting such an articulation. There is a need for more studies adopting a bottom-up approach to address the relationship between EU literacy, Europeanization, and democratization in Portugal. The research project builds on the theoretical framework of sociological institutionalism associated with a mixed-methods methodological approach, which will include surveys, semi-structured interviews, and focus group research with Portuguese college undergraduate and graduate students.