Civic Engagement and Psychosocial Well-Being in College Students

By definition, democracies depend on citizens' involvement in their governance. Laws and institutions are necessary but insufficient for sustaining such systems; democracies also depend on certain psychological dispositions in the people, with an ethic of civic participation, trust in others, and tolerance of dissenting views topping the list (Sullivan and Transue 1999). The late adolescent/young adult years are a formative period for developing such dispositions, but experiences are critical. In the past few decades, colleges and universities have made engagement in community service and public affairs a more common part of the under­graduate student's experience. In this article, the authors explore whether students' psycho­social well-being is likely to benefit from such engagement.