Being positive, being hopeful, being happy: Young adults reflecting on their future in times of austerity

Minna Nikunen,Päivi Korvajärvi

doi:10.1177/1367549420935901

Minna Nikunen, Päivi Korvajärvi

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1177/1367549420935901

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Abstract

The aim of this article is to analyse the ways in which young adults reflect on their futures. We are particularly interested in how they expect to organize their lives in conditions that seem to offer pessimistic rather than hopeful prospects. How does this happen under social conditions where the major public and individual concerns are with how young adults organize their material lives and how they earn sufficient livelihoods to become good citizens? What are the grounds for their future visions? In our analysis we use 40 interviews with young Finnish adults aged between 18 and 30. The respondents are students, as well as employed and unemployed young adults. Our findings show that the young adults’ anticipated future experiences – contrary to common expectations – are positive. These conclusions are often drawn from social comparisons, especially with imagined peers. Those who saw their own and their peers’ future as depending more on luck focused on societal insecurity. One group that had positive expectations emphasized happiness. Instead of seeking material success, many of the young adults reported that their goal was to be happy in their future lives. Happiness appears to involve both living according to, and coping with, the demands of the economy and employment.

Highlights

The future of young adults in the current economy seems unavoidably insecure
In the last part of the analysis, we focused on the most affective future visions connected to talk about happiness
To sum up the empirical analysis, the interviews with young adults emphasize a couple of issues

Summary

Introduction

The future of young adults in the current economy seems unavoidably insecure. In particular, the chances of finding a permanent job contract are not encouraging. Since the economic crisis of 2008, unemployment figures have been alarmingly high throughout Europe, especially for young people. The unemployment rate among people aged 15–24 increased from 15.6 percent in 2007 to 20.9 percent in 2016. In 2016, as many as 44.1 percent of employed women aged 20–24 were on fixed-term contracts, with 36.3 percent of men in the same position. In the 25–29 age-group, more women (33.0%) were on fixed-term contracts than men (20.1%) (Naiset ja miehet Suomessa, 2018). This situation has been largely static since 2007 (Naiset ja miehet Suomessa, 2007, 2012). In 2013 as many as 35 percent of waged employees in Finland aged 15–64 years felt at risk of losing their job (Pyöriä and Ojala, 2017: 52)

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Conclusion