Axel Pohl

Activating the Disadvantaged. Variations in Addressing Youth Transitions across Europe.

The term activation refers to a shift in social policies, through which individuals are given more responsibility for their own social inclusion. This article provides a comparative analysis of the different ways in which EU member states interpret and implement the concept of activation by addressing the transitions of disadvantaged young people from school to work. It draws on the findings of an EU‐funded ‘Thematic Study on Policy Measures for Disadvantaged Youth’, which was carried out in 13 EU member states and accession countries. The methodology of the study consisted of literature reviews, secondary analysis of harmonized European and national surveys and statistics and focus group discussions with national and European experts. The analysis does not only distinguish between different models of activation but also discusses the different objectives and outcomes of these models. Differences are discussed against the background of a model of transition regimes, which provides insights into the relationship between path dependency and policy change. Through the analysis it is also possible to specify whether activation implies adaptation to mechanisms of selection in education, training and the labour market, or whether it increases young people’s potential to take action in shaping their own biographies (i.e. through participation and lifelong learning).

Informal Networks in Youth Transitions in West Germany: Biographical Resource or Reproduction of Social Inequality?

This article deals with informal networks and their role in young peoples strategies of coping with the uncertainties of transitions to work. The underlying hypothesis is that informal networks have a high potential in this regard that, however, is strongly differentiated according to class and education. Drawing on West German data from the framework of a European research project, the transitions of young people with ‘choice biographies’ are compared with those of young people with low resources and at risk of disengaging with the transition system. The question extends to asking whether or not policy interventions for so-called ‘disadvantaged youth’ can compensate for these disadvantages by building and reinforcing network structures that bridge the gap between peer relationships and the more formal world of education, training and the labour market.

Support and Success in Youth Transitions: A Comparative Analysis on the Relation Between Subjective and Systemic Factors

Based on a series of EU-funded research projects, this chapter investigates constellations of interaction between young people’s subjective orientations and coping strategies with regard to transitions to work and family on the one hand and respective socio-economic and institutional frameworks on the other. First, it is argued that there are variations in the extent to which different notions of successful transitions can be actively negotiated between institutional and individual actors; the crucial concept here is biographical agency. The findings suggest that research which up to now has concentrated on input and output of young people’s agency needs to put more stress on analysing the complex interpretation and negotiation processes that underlie individual decision-making. Thereby it may contribute not only to a better understanding of young people’s agency but also to the analysis of social change and – through a reflection of what makes successful transitions – its implications for the status of adulthood. Second, these interrelations between structure and agency are interrelated with the modalities and conditions of support for young people in their transitions. These vary according to different constellations of socio-economic, institutional and cultural factors, so-called transition regimes, with particular meanings of work, family, youth, disadvantage or support which represent different regulatory frameworks of youth transitions. The combination of a biographical and a comparative perspective has a potential of contributing to theorising the relation between structure and agency in youth transitions.