Democracy in Ukraine after the Orange Revolution : youth activists' insights on past events, present efficacy, and future prospects

Abstract

This study investigates the democratic developments in Ukraine beginning with the 2004 Orange Revolution. After its break-off from the Soviet empire, Ukraine began democratizing its systems but continues to struggle with remnants of its communist past. The non-violent Orange Revolution was a democratic breakthrough in the recent history of the country, and youth activists were key agents in the revolution. Their perceptions of the revolutionary events, political self-efficacy as one of the identifiers of civil society, and futures of democracy in Ukraine will help to depict the socio-political climate inside the country and in Europe.

The dissertation employs three research methods: content analysis of extensive testimonials written by 19 youth activists (to generate information about youth activists' socio-political experiences during and after the revolution), a survey of 76 youth activists (to collect demographic and political efficacy data), and Ethnographic Futures Research interviews with nine youth leaders (to extrapolate futures of democracy).

Study findings on post-revolutionary developments are composed into 14 semantic themes that summarize youth activists' perceptions. Political self-efficacy results indicate high levels of internal and task-oriented efficacy among youth activists. This study also provides extrapolations of optimistic, pessimistic, and most probable futures of the Ukrainian democracy as projected by youth leaders.