POSTGEN PROJECT - Nicola Maggini

Generational gap and post-ideological politics in Italy. A generation-aware analysis of ideological destructuring and political change in the Italian case

POSTGEN - Generational gap and post-ideological politics in Italy. A generation-aware analysis of ideological destructuring and political change in the Italian case

LOCAL COORDINATOR: NICOLA MAGGINI

Project Summary

The POSTGEN project aims to offer an in-depth analysis of the mechanisms and dynamics of a possible de-ideologization of the political space in Italy. It adopts an intergenerational perspective with a focus on younger generations to investigate the meanings associated with different political issues, the presence (or absence) of an overarching ideological structure, the temporal dynamics of political attitude formation, the role of political parties, traditional media, and social media influencers, and the impact on electoral behaviour.

Project Duration and Funding

POSTGEN is a three-year project (June 1, 2022 – May 31, 2025), funded by the Italian Ministry of University and Research under the PRIN 2020 scheme (Progetto di Rilevante Interesse Nazionale).

Research Team

The project is developed by a consortium of four universities: LUISS Guido Carli, University of Bologna, University of Milan, and University of Pavia. 

Principal Investigator: Lorenzo De Sio (LUISS Guido Carli). Local Unit Coordinators: Cristiano Vezzoni (University of Milan), Dario Tuorto (University of Bologna), Guido Legnante (University of Pavia). 

POSTGEN project member affiliated with the Department of Political and Social Sciences, University of Bologna:Nicola Maggini.

Context and Project Structure

The political landscape of the past decade—marked by events such as Brexit, the election of Donald Trump, the rise of “challenger” parties in Europe, and the formation of Italy’s first “populist” government in 2018—has challenged established theories of electoral behaviour. POSTGEN contributes to this debate with the aim of addressing gaps left by previous comparative studies (such as the Issue Competition Comparative Project), which pointed to the emergence of a post-ideological context without fully exploring its mechanisms or the role of generational dynamics.

The POSTGEN project develops its research across three key components, each addressing a different aspect of political transformation in the Italian context:

  1. Media
    This component studies the communication landscape by examining the content of traditional media and social media, with particular attention to influencers and ordinary users who drive public debate. Using both qualitative and algorithm-based quantitative methods, the analysis measures the impact of specific actors in drawing attention to key issues and in shaping the ideological structure of the discussion.
  2. Citizens
    This component examines political attitudes through a combination of large-scale surveys, qualitative interviews, and high school-based research. POSTGEN explores the ideological consistency of young people’s opinions, comparing them with those of middle-aged and older generations, and analyses first-time voting experiences and how new generations engage with political issues.
  3. Parties
    This component analyses parties’ electoral strategies, focusing on their social media communication, to understand the role of political campaigns with respect to ideological de-structuring.

Main Objectives

POSTGEN is structured around three main objectives:

  1. To examine how public debate influences political attitudes across generations, analysing the connection between political discussion, ideological de-structuring, and political change. The aim is to explore the agenda-setting role of media, parties and leaders, influencers, and social media users, and to assess the extent to which these actors influence citizens’ attention to specific political issues and the ideological framing of such issues.
  2. To investigate the (lack of) ideological structuring of political attitudes across generations, using survey research, interviews, and experimental activities in high schools. The goal is to understand how different generations organize their opinions on economic, cultural, and social issues, and whether they do so following an ideological pattern.
  3. To evaluate the impact of de-ideologization on electoral behaviour, particularly by exploring whether younger generations are more inclined to vote for post-ideological political platforms and whether the ideological structure or fragmentation of attitudes significantly affects voting behaviour.

Methodology

The project adopts a multi-method and longitudinal approach, combining social media analysis, large-scale survey research, qualitative interviews with young adults, and research activities in secondary schools. This structure enables the collection of comprehensive data and the integration of findings across components for a deeper understanding of political dynamics.

For more information, visit the POSTGEN project website: https://www.postgen.org/

Publications

  1. De Sio, L., Legnante, G., Tuorto, D., Vezzoni, C., Angelucci, D., Boldrini, M., Bordignon, M., Curini, L., De Angelis, A., Di Cocco, J., Leofreddi, A., Maggini, N., Mannoni, E., Marolla, F., Pagano, G., Pennucci, N., Piacentini, A., & Piacentini, F. (2024). Generational gap and post-ideological politics in Italy (POSTGEN). A generation-aware analysis of ideological destructuring and political change in the Italian case. Italian Political Science, 18(2), 163–176. https://doi.org/10.69101/IPS.2023.18.2.5
  2. Maggini, N. (2022). New challenges for representative democracy: the changing political space in Western Europe. Italian Journal of Electoral Studies (IJES), 85(2), 41–58. https://doi.org/10.36253/qoe-12629