Strategies of action among young people on the edge of Danish society
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.22439/dansoc.v30i1.6025Keywords:
Marginalized youth, at risk youth, youth research, coping strategies, risk factorAbstract
The increase in marginalised young people in Denmark points to a need not
only for political initiatives, but also for more knowledge. Most of the knowledge that we have about this group of young people is characterised by its focus on risk factors and its focus on measures to prevent or alleviate marginalisation. This means that we have information about marginalised youth in relation to substance abuse, to homelessness, mental health issues, etc. while we
lack knowledge of how young people create coherence and meaning in their
lives despite or with these factors. Youth research offers an interdisciplinary,
theoretical and methodological approach to young peoples’ lives, focusing
on their perspectives. In this article, we present an analysis of marginalised
youth and their everyday life at the margins of Danish society. We employ the
concept of ‘action strategies’ to enable analyses examining the individual’s
patterns of action, while situating these in their life situations. In the analysis, we find three strategies: mistrust strategy, isolation strategy and value
strategy. Using insights from youth research, we are able to develop a more
detailed, nuanced picture of young people at the margins of Danish society.
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