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Recommendations: Integrated Transition Policies

In our conceptual framework we questioned whether a trajectory leads to social integration or is in fact misleading and demonstrated that this can only be answered with regard to the individual contexts in which transitions occur. These contexts consist of both systemic and subjective dimensions. If policies genuinely aim to prevent social exclusion in young people’s transitions to work they need to take account of the interplay between both dimensions. It was also highlighted that such an approach needs to take account of young people’s agency in terms of their active participation in shaping their transitions. This means also to provide them with learning possibilities that not only concentrate on work-related skills and qualifications but to the development of broader competencies. In this concluding chapter we want to develop recommendations for a new policy agenda for young adults’ transitions to work resulting from our comparative analysis of misleading trajectories: Integrated Transition Policies.

To have or not to have a baby? To become or not to become a parent? This is the question. The reproductive behaviour of European Youth.

Nella societa post-fordista della conoscenza il corso di vita e i correlati assunti di normalita sono soggetti a cambiamenti sociali, le cui caratteristiche peculiari sono la flessibilizzazione e l’individualizzazione (Giddens, 1990; Beck, 1992; Bauman, 2000; 2001; 2002). Gli eventi marcatori classici il lavoro e la famiglia sono sempre piu sfumati (Bohnisch, 2003), mentre cresce l’incertezza e l’insicurezza. Rispetto alla decisione di procreare, i giovani adulti devono affrontare il compito critico di costruire una famiglia, sebbene ne la pratica ne il concetto di famiglia siano piu cosi scontati nel corso di vita degli uomini e le donne contemporanei e confrontarsi, non solo con i loro ruoli e impegni futuri di genitori, ma anche con molti altri problemi e compiti che fanno parte del moderno percorso verso la vita adulta. L’obiettivo della presente ricerca e quello di studiare in prospettiva comparata il comportamento riproduttivo dei giovani europei, mettendo in luce l’interrelazione esistente tra contesto istituzionale e progettualita esistenziale.

Comparative Analysis of Misleading Trajectories

The preceding chapter described the structural diversity of transition systems from a macro-perspective. This chapter consists of the reports from three cross-country working groups which had the objective to identify general aspects of misleading trajectories. Each report synthesises descriptions of national or regional transition systems with analysis of commonalities and differences in terms of the risks young people face in their transitions to work. The data for comparative analysis: institutional structure of transition systems, their ideological foundations and political developments, and the biographic perspectives different trajectories imply for the young people involved, was drawn from the national reports. Both group discussions and group reports were initiated by the written feedback produced by group members regarding the main differences from their individuals perspective (see also Chapter 1.3). However, the group reports differ in the perspectives in which comparative analysis evolves. The first group report comprises Italy, Great Britain and West Germany and takes an inductive approach. The second report refers to Denmark, Spain and East Germany and deductively applies the concept of the segmented society to these contexts. The third report describes an intermediate approach. Sensitising concepts derived from the relation between the modernisation of transitions and the disadvantage policies addressing the most vulnerable groups are introduced with regard to Ireland, the Netherlands, Portugal and the situation of migrant youth in Germany. Each of these reports has been produced jointly by the team members involved and therefore does not only function as one section of the overall book structure but may be considered as an individual piece of work in its own right.