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Youth and Generation
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Youth and Generation
Rethinking change and inequality in the lives of young people



December 2014 | 216 pages | SAGE Publications Ltd

"Woodman and Wyn have produced a text that offers conceptual clarity and real depth on debates in youth studies.  The authors skilfully guide us through the main sociological theories on young people and furnish us with sophisticated critiques from which to rethink youth and generation in the contemporary moment."
- Professor Anoop Nayak, Newcastle University


The promise of youth studies is not in simply showing that class, gender and race continue to influence life chances, but to show how they shape young lives today. Dan Woodman and Johanna Wyn argue that understanding new forms of inequality in a context of increasing social change is a central challenge for youth researchers.

Youth and Generation sets an agenda for youth studies building on the concepts of ‘social generation’ and ‘individualisation’ to suggest a framework for thinking about change and inequality in young lives in the emerging Asian Century.
 
Chapter 1: Continuity and Change
Individualisation

 
Generation

 
New Life Patterns

 
Structure of the Book

 
 
Chapter 2: Global Change and Inequality
Education, Urbanisation and Employment

 
Inequality

 
Australia in a Changing World

 
The Failure of the Neoliberal Promise

 
Theory in Youth Studies

 
 
Chapter 3: Individualisation
Understanding Changing Patterns

 
Bringing Zombie Categories Back to Life

 
The Creation of the Choice Biography

 
Holding Lives Together

 
Researching the Making of Inequality in New Times

 
 
Chapter 4: Generations
The Emergence and Marginalisation of the Sociology of Generations

 
What is a Generation?

 
Intergenerational Relationships

 
When does a Generation Emerge?

 
 
Chapter 5: Transitions
Youth Transitions and Development

 
Transition Regimes and the Making of a Generations

 
Research and Reflexivity

 
 
Chapter 6: Cultures
Concepts of Subculture

 
Post-subcultures

 
Continuity and Change in Cultures Research

 
Generational Change, Cultures and Divisions

 
Blurring Boundaries

 
 
Chapter 7: Time
Social Change and Synchronisation

 
Sociality and the Digital Revolution

 
Time, Youth Cultures and Inequality

 
The Present, Past and Future

 
 
Chapter 8: Place
The Invisibility of Place

 
Theorising Young People and Place

 
Mobilities, Cultures and Place

 
Making Place Visible

 
Place and Global Generations

 
Young People Making a Place for Themselves

 
 
Chapter 9: Conclusion
Generations, Transitions, Cultures

 
Time, Place and the Future

 

Woodman and Wyn have produced a text that offers conceptual clarity and real depth on debates in youth studies.  The authors skilfully guide us through the main sociological theories on young people and furnish us with sophisticated critiques from which to rethink youth and generation in the contemporary moment.

Professor Anoop Nayak
Newcastle University

The authors build upon an impressive publication record on youth and generation to offer here a clear argument for the re-positioning of youth studies in the future. Well written, persuasive and thought provoking.

Dr. John Goodwin
Leicester University

I feel that this book raises some important questions regarding the issue of generation as it applies to young people. The context chapter is useful in setting out the changes that young people have experienced over recent decades.

Dr Bernadine Brady
School of Political Science and Sociology, NUI, Galway
January 7, 2016

A very good book for those interested in Youth Studies. It gives a good overview of the main sociological theories in this study field. In the process it addresses key theoretical concepts with clarity.

Dr Jan Grobbelaar
Post-graduate faculty - Practical Theology, South African Theological Seminary
January 14, 2016

I think it is a good book but perhaps it is would work better on post-graduate level. Having said that, I recommended it to my students as supplemental reading as it offers very good overview of the existing research in the field.

Dr Jacek Kornak
Dept of Psychology,Sociology & Soc Wrk, University Campus Suffolk
November 9, 2015

A book offering excellent additional reading for those studying community and youth culture.

Mrs Breda Friel
Dept of Sociology & Appl'd Soc Studies, Ulster University
May 31, 2015

A fantastic book for anyone who is interested in contemporary youth studies. The book is full of challenging ideas and theoretically driven concepts

Ms Irena Loveikaite
Department of Applied Arts, Waterford Institute of Technology
April 16, 2015

An excellent addition to the literature that addresses what is in contemporary terms an under-researched and under-theorised arena. A must for all those studying youth. This will be a core text on the youth studies module on our new Sociology degree.

Mr Graham Bright
Faculty of Education & Theology, York St John University
April 2, 2015

This is an excellent of information for lecturing on Problem with Youth

Ms Bev Orton
Criminology & Sociological Studies, Hull University
March 10, 2015

Sample Materials & Chapters

Youth and Generation: Continuity and Change


For instructors

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