Transformations of cultural norms and values among youth in Arab Mediterranean countries through a gender perspective

Abstract

This paper examines the changes and continuities in cultural gender norms and values, gender roles, gender relations and the family, as expressed and lived by the younger generations in Arab Mediterranean countries. It aims at highlighting both the tensions and conflicts and the innovative meanings relating to gender that have been emerging; and to compare the experience and points of view of young people in different social positions (due to their gender, social class, place of residence) and in different countries. The analysis of the transformation of cultural norms and values from a gender perspective is connected with broader transformations of conditions of life and biographical transition to adulthood, before and after the popular mobilisations of 2010–2011. The first part of the paper discusses the process of change in life transitions, drawing on the existing literature and secondary data. The second part of the paper is dedicated to the analysis of the empirical findings collected through the ethnographic fieldwork and the survey in Algeria, Morocco, Lebanon, Tunisia and Egypt.