Political scientists concentrate on the concept of political activity as social cooperation motivated to meet two goals: biological survival and accumulation of extrinsic rewards such as power, wealth, or territory. Self-determination research in the field of human motivation reveals a different motivator in the form of innate psychological needs. This literature review and theoretical analysis offers an alternative cause for political activity in light of recent empirical work completed by psychologists in the study of Self-Determination Theory. The findings suggest that humans act politically to secure satisfaction of their psychological needs of autonomy, relatedness, and competence. / Master of Arts

Democracy cannot exist without active and responsive citizens. However, the character of political participation of the young generation has changed. Given the decreasing willingness of young people to participate in conventional politics, a highly relevant issue is to examine the sources and motivations of their political commitment and relations to politics. Therefore, the dissertation traces the political trajectories of young Czech and German activists and focuses on the contextual and sociopsychological factors that shape them. The aim of the text is to answer the main research question: 'How and why do Czech and German university students get involved in political and civic organisations?' Firstly, the thesis examines the role of primary and secondary political socialisation in different societal contexts. It provides an understanding of the key mechanisms and narratives of family political socialisation. Attention is also paid to the influence of civic education, peers and teachers at secondary and grammar schools, as well as to the impact of the university environment on political activism. Secondly, the thesis explores the range of motivations for organisational membership and recruitment procedures, as well as the variable ways of how youth relate to politics. The dissertation also...