This section provides a detailed explanation of the course of the studies conducted in the present investigation. To this end, fundamental assumptions regarding selected aspects of the research approach are first reflected upon. This concerns assumptions about the significance of impact research in the context of civic education and the handling of the researcher’s role as the ‘researched’ within the study. Subsequently, the two main research foci of the empirical studies are presented. Within these research foci, specific research questions and hypotheses are formulated, which the studies seek to address.