Youth Culture Research Articles

FEATURES OF IMPROVING THE LEGAL CULTURE OF YOUTH IN ENSURING SOCIAL STABILITY

This article highlights methodological and practical sociological-legal issues in analyzing the legal culture of youth in the active stage of socialization—those entering adult life. It demonstrates that the state of youth’s legal culture depends on the totality of their living environment and that the most influential factor affecting legal culture is the social, socio-cultural, and socio-political environment that primarily shapes their legal consciousness and legal thinking. It is also analyzed how raising the legal culture of youth has a significant impact on the socio-economic situation of the country. Keywords: Cicero, legal culture, socially useful behavior, legal nihilism, legal infantilism, social start, social risk, youth maximalism, deviant behavior, deviant subculture.

Engineering nationalism: Popular TV, ideological work, and the cultural politics of state propaganda in China

This study examines China’s revitalized state propaganda through the lens of new mainstream TV genres in the streaming era. Streaming platforms enable the TV industry to recalibrate commercial and ideological priorities, influencing the content, style, and aesthetics of revolutionary narrative dramas through digital marketing and audience engagement. Analyzing the production and reception of The Awakening Age , I argue that its widespread acclaim demonstrates the success of streaming propaganda. These productions modernize portrayals of party history and national identity while leveraging marketing strategies tailored to youth culture, consumption habits, and viewing patterns.

A Newly Emerging Non-Verbal Language: The Interaction Relationship Between Social Causes and Popular Trends in Youth Music

For young people in contemporary Chinese society, music has become a new social symbol. They express their emotions and achieve emotional resonance through the Internet, social media, and live music events. The emergence of different popular music genres is not only due to the musical characteristics of the music itself but also serves as a common language to meet the emotional, cultural identity, and social needs of young people. This article attempts to explore the social reasons behind the popularity of emerging music types (such as hip-hop, electronic music, and "new national style" fusion music) and the relationship chain driven by digital platforms by analyzing their popular trends. This provides a new perspective for understanding the interaction between music and social issues and for better understanding contemporary youth culture. At the same time, it critically examines the possibility that algorithm-driven dissemination models may lead to cultural narrowing. It also calls for a balance between pursuing traffic and ensuring cultural diversity in the current context for platforms. Through research, it is found that the algorithmic recommendations and short-video dissemination mechanisms of digital platforms have significantly promoted the popularity of music genres, and young people build cultural identity and relieve social pressure through music consumption.

Cultural Influences on Consumerism and Lifestyle Choices: An Analysis of College Students in Makawanpur, Nepal

Cultural influences affect consumerism and lifestyle choices by shaping individual values, priorities, and social expectations. Traditions, norms, and media play a role in guiding preferences for products, fashion, and activities, creating unique consumer trends that reflect cultural identity and societal values. The main objective of this study is to examine the influence of cultural factors on consumer habits and lifestyle choices among youth students at Makawanpur Multiple College, specifically investigating how local and global cultural dynamics shape their consumption patterns and choices in Hetauda Sub-metropolitan City. The research adopts a descriptive research design. Primary data were collected directly from undergraduate and postgraduate students in the Management and Humanities faculties through structured interviews. Additionally, secondary data were obtained from previous studies, books, articles, bulletins, and journals. The study highlights key points of social behaviors among youth, focusing on friendship, consumer habits, and leisure activities, all influenced by gender and financial status. While wealthier students engage more in social activities, economic disparities limit others. Gender roles remain entrenched, with male students taking financial responsibility in social settings. Social media dominates youth culture, while literary reading declines, revealing evolving cultural patterns. This study emphasizes the implications of cultural influences in shaping consumer habits and lifestyle choices among youth, particularly in Hetauda. It highlights the impact of economic status, gender roles, and social media on social behaviors, revealing evolving cultural trends.

A Glimpse into the Modern Era: Exploring the Impact of Global Fashion Trends on Noveleta Senior High School Students

This study explores the impact of global fashion trends on Noveleta Senior High School students, focusing on various aspects such as sources of fashion inspiration, self-expression, identity, and the balance between style and practicality. It also investigates how fashion influences their social interactions and perceptions among peers. A mixed-methods approach was employed, combining both quantitative and qualitative methods to provide a comprehensive view of the phenomenon. The quantitative phase utilized a Sequential Explanatory Design, distributing close-ended questionnaires to 100 students through digital platforms like Google Forms. This phase aimed to gather measurable data on students’ fashion preferences, behaviors, and attitudes. The qualitative phase followed, using a phenomenological research method involving in-depth interviews with ten senior high school students from various grade levels. These interviews offered rich, narrative insights into the personal experiences and meanings students attach to fashion trends. Data from the quantitative phase were analyzed using descriptive statistics and a paired t-test to identify significant differences and relationships. For qualitative data, thematic analysis was conducted to extract common themes and patterns from student responses. The findings reveal that global fashion trends play a significant role in shaping students’ lifestyle choices, brand preferences, and social dynamics. The results aim to inform educators, parents, and policymakers about the growing influence of fashion on youth culture, while also offering a better understanding of how students perceive and respond to global trends in their daily lives.

<i>Slam </i>e educação: Gênero, raça e decolonialidade nas performances poéticas de estudantes brasileiros e franceses

This paper presents post-doctoral research that delved into the study of literacies, specifically literary, critical, and literacies of re-existence. The main objective is to present the Brazilian educational project of Coletivo da Guilhermina, which organises and holds the São Paulo Inter-school Slam every year, and the French Association Le Panorama, which for the last seven years has also organised and held Le Grand Slam du 77, in the French commune of Champagne-Sur-Seine, 67 km from Paris. Slams are understood here as social and cultural literacy events and practices that involve reading and writing poetry in performance. In the case of school slams, this investigation focuses on how student-slammers from São Paulo/Brazil and Paris/France use poetic language to echo youth culture, performing poems that denounce the gender and racial violence to which they are historically subjected. In methodological terms, this article aims to analyse, from a qualitative-interpretative perspective, poetic texts staged at the São Paulo/Brazilian and Paris/French school slams in 2022 and 2024, respectively. The results point to a literary and libertarian education capable of revealing young poets who write, read and perform poetry as a political act of denunciation of racism and decolonial resistance.

What do readers like? Youth culture in reader development

Este artigo explora como o gosto e a cultura juvenil Influenciam a formação de leitores no ambiente escolar. A discussão central do texto gira em torno do impacto do gosto dos estudantes na seleção de livros que pode potencializar o desenvolvimento de uma cultura leitora, ao aproximar os jovens da literatura através de temas que dialoguem diretamente com seus Interesses. A pesquisa utiliza uma plataforma de leitura digital que, ao oferecer sugestões de livros baseadas nas preferências dos estudantes, revela Informações sobre a Integração da cultura juvenil às práticas pedagógicas. A análise dos temas mais escolhidos e dos livros mais lidos mostra uma preferência por conteúdos relacionados à cultura pop, redes sociais e entretenimento digital, destacando a necessidade de flexibilizar os critérios de seleção de obras na formação leitora na escola.

Paul Ugor (Ed.). Youth and Popular Culture in Africa: Media, Music, and Politics. Rochester: University of Rochester Press. 2021. 405 pp.

Paul Ugor (Ed.). Youth and Popular Culture in Africa: Media, Music, and Politics. Rochester: University of Rochester Press. 2021. 405 pp.

“‘A story is a living thing’: a conversation with Oein DeBhairduin about the importance of Irish Traveller voices and authentic representation”

ABSTRACT This article explores the representation of Irish Travellers in Irish youth literature and culture and the importance of Irish Travellers’ own voices and storytelling. Negative conceptualisations and stereotypes regarding Irish Travellers and the Irish Traveller community have a long history in Irish literary traditions, media, and publishing. Recognising, disrupting, and re-writing these conservative and normative regimes are crucial for imagining and enacting more equitable and inclusive literature for all young people. This interview conversation with award-winning writer, activist, and educator Oein DeBhairduin discusses issues involved in representing Irish Travellers in literature and media, the importance of Irish Travellers as storytellers and creators, norms around what constitutes “Irishness,” and the significance of independent publishers regarding inclusive publishing.

Facilitator Suggestions to Increase Cultural Relevance of an Evidence-Based Intervention: A Qualitative Analysis

Abstract Once an intervention is deemed “evidence-based,” it is often disseminated across contexts, settings, and populations beyond those in which it was originally tested. The cultural relevance or “fit” of an evidence-based intervention (EBI) in diverse local contexts is a debated topic, but few studies have explored facilitators’ perceptions. This study examines facilitators’ suggestions for improving the cultural relevance of a universal preventive EBI that has been widely disseminated in middle schools for over 30 years. Using process evaluation data from a dissemination project (2019–2022) in 363 schools across 16 U.S. states, 566 open-ended responses from EBI facilitators were analyzed using the Framework Method (i.e., a content analysis approach). Five broad themes emerged from 758 unique suggestions: (1) social or technological relevance (52% of codes), (2) teacher or school-related considerations (13% of codes), (3) student engagement (10% of codes), (4) adaptations for diverse students (9% of codes), and (5) curriculum mechanics (4% of codes). Facilitators overwhelmingly suggested improving cultural relevance by updating social and technological aspects to reflect current trends in substance use, youth culture, and implementation. The study highlights a component of cultural relevance that is particularly salient to on-the-ground implementers. Feasible ways for EBIs to stay current on social trends and technology and to reflect evolving trends in risk behaviors, youth culture, and implementation are essential to increase or maintain their cultural relevance. Addressing these areas is crucial for enhancing the long-term reach, effectiveness, adoption, implementation, and maintenance of EBIs across diverse populations and evolving cultural landscapes.

‘Peace is a beacon of hope’: young people’s commitment to building a culture of peace in Scotland

ABSTRACT Young people are important actors in building and sustaining just and positive peace. This paper presents the conceptualisations of and commitments to a culture of peace youth would like to uphold in one of the least peaceful places in the United Kingdom, Glasgow. Fifty-nine youth participants (12–18 years old) coming from wealthy and disadvantaged areas of the city participated in arts-based workshops where they were asked to contribute to a Peace Wall by responding to peace-related prompts. We used the foundational elements of the culture of peace outlined in UN Resolution 53/243 titled Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace for a reading of youth conceptualisations and commitments. Our findings show young people’s strong commitment to a culture of peace in their communities through upholding human rights, equity, freedoms, respectful relationships with others, and personal responsibility. However, we also identify some missing elements, such as cooperation and solidarity with others. In our discussion, we discuss these findings and point to two key contributions to research and practices, with a particular focus on how to support youth learning to become peace facilitators and peacemakers.

Mediatization’s Promise and Downfall: Facebook, Our World, and Mike Bartlett’s Love, Love, Love

Abstract Throughout his career, Mike Bartlett has kept an eye on and incorporated the ever-changing development of technology into his plays, especially when they prove to be powerful tools for narrative and character conflicts. Bartlett’s first foray into exploring mediatization’s influence on society occurred in Love, Love, Love (2010), which highlights specific moments of technological advancement over a forty-year period, including the 1967 broadcast of Our World, the first live satellite transmission to be broadcast globally. I frame the seminal Our World through a more contemporary technological and global advancement – Facebook, which upon its initial release had great promise to upend the way we define our global society through its portals of communication. Both Our World and Facebook are watershed moments for our digital mediatized society. Both promise youth culture a new way of viewing the world, as seen through the optimistic view of the play’s main characters, Kenneth and Sandra, to the performance of the Beatles during the show. The remainder of Bartlett’s play highlights how the Edenic assurance of mediatization fails to live up to the idealized global village suggested in Our World by foregrounding technology’s movement from a communal global experience to the lone individual, who compartmentalizes media experiences to a value of one. The promise of technology from the 1960 s has failed to move society forward. Instead, it has separated and disrupted communicative patterns, alienating individuals from face-to-face conversations into face-to-screen isolations.

Языковое формирование сатирического образа молодежи 1980-х годов (на материале британского телевизионного сериала “The Young Ones”)

The aim of the research is to determine the relationship of linguistic means with the satirical orientation of the television series “The Young Ones” as a way to form the image of youth subcultures. The article analyzes the linguistic means used in the series, and also determines their influence on the perception and interpretation of images of youth subcultures. It is shown that hyperbole, absurdity, irony, and homonymy not only create a comic effect, but also serve as instruments for criticizing social norms and traditional cultural codes. It is noted that the satirical context of the series is enhanced by the specificity of the use of these means, reflecting and distorting the realities of youth culture, its radical attitudes, and its protest attitude towards society. The scientific novelty of the research consists in the initial identification of the linguistic mechanisms for forming the satirical context of the series “The Young Ones” and determining their role in displaying youth culture and social attitudes. The results show that the identified linguistic elements contribute to the creation of an image of youth subcultures oriented towards a radical rethinking of social norms and historical figures, thereby manipulating viewer perception and enhancing the satirical effect of the series.

Commoning by zoning? Social work’s involvement in urban spatial conflicts

ABSTRACT The article explores how social workers are engaged in the making of public space in local communities. Based on a case study which the authors conducted in a German municipality the analysis show that Social Work acts in different spheres in reaction to a certain ‘local’ problem: A conflict that arose between established user and new user groups at a skate park leads to interventions of social workers not just on the site of the park itself as well as local politics and community planning. Despite using different professional sets of action, the social workers involved all deploy a strategy which might be called ‘zoning’: By defining and reserving distinct segments of the public space for different user groups the children and young people in the community receive designated places for their leisure activities. But at the same time, they are exclusively allocated to these places and thus excluded from the wider public space with their sports activities and youth cultures. In reference to the more recent concept of the Commons as well as to earlier traditions of community work the article concludes by suggesting an alternative understanding of space for Social Work practice.

‘Cubs of Wall Street’: Cocaine Use in Top‐Boy Culture

ABSTRACTAlthough cocaine use is rising among youth in many countries, little is known about the social context and its influence on this new pattern of use. Drawing on a theoretical framework of class, gender, and peer‐status dynamics and extensive data from personal interviews, we investigate how cocaine use is culturally situated and socially organised in certain Norwegian high school cultures. The focal sample consists of study participants who stated that they had used cocaine. They totalled 32 persons, of whom 28 were boys. We identify four key cultural characteristics linked to cocaine use: (i) affluence: users often had backgrounds rich in economic capital; (ii) a party‐centred culture: cocaine was introduced in contexts with excessive partying and binge drinking; (iii) top‐level networks: cocaine use was linked to exclusive social networks, based in Norwegian high school graduation celebrations; and (iv) masculinity: boys used more cocaine than girls, to boost their energy and self‐confidence. We conclude that the key driver of cocaine use is a structurally determined socialisation pattern, which we theorise as a ‘top‐boy’ culture. This culture is anchored in status‐seeking elite school milieus characterised by affluence, heavy partying, and exclusive homosocial networks. Boys invested in this culture may engage in cocaine use to signal membership and to mimic the hallmark of ‘ease’, in accordance with a rather orthodox type of masculinity. Whereas youth cultures often represent pockets of resistance to traditional hierarchies, this culture instead seems to strengthen such established hierarchical arrangements.

ОТБАСЫЛЫҚ ТӘРБИЕНІҢ ЖАСТАРДЫҢ ҚҰҚЫҚТЫҚ МӘДЕНИЕТІН ҚАЛЫПТАСТЫРУҒА ӘСЕРІ: ӘЛЕУМЕТТІК-ГУМАНИТАРЛЫҚ АСПЕКТ

The article examines the role of family education in the formation of the legal culture of youth in the context of social sciences and humanities. The main factors determining the formation of legal awareness and responsibility in the family environment are analyzed, their importance in the development of social adaptation and civic engagement of young people is determined. In addition, the interrelation of family values, social norms and a pedagogical approach to legal education was considered. The results of the study can serve as a useful source of information for making effective decisions in the field of social pedagogy and sociology in the direction of improving the legal culture of youth, as well as in developing state youth policy.

THE DEVELOPMENT AND PRACTICE OF FOCUS GROUPS IN IRAN

Contemporary Iran often appears misunderstood, both with Western media and Islamic regime propaganda failing to capture the true essence of its young generation's identities and daily lives. At the same time, there is little attention paid to the interpretive paradigm across Iranian social science and humanities academia within which positivism reigns supreme. The present paper addresses these issues by highlighting key sociocultural characteristics relevant for researchers conducting qualitative studies in Iran, particularly through focus group interviews. Drawing from detailed observations in Tehran and personal experiences growing up in Iran, this paper offers practical insights to help researchers design effective research agendas and enhance focus group studies. The aim is to guide researchers in navigating cultural complexities, avoid common pitfalls, and improve the validity of their findings by providing a clearer understanding of Iranian urban youth culture. Ultimately, the study emphasizes the importance of detailed contextual circumstances for effectively designing and successfully executing the focus group discussions.

From Childhood Experiences to Social Media Addiction: Unraveling the Impact on Adolescents.

Social media usage among adolescents has significantly increased in recent years, playing a crucial role in contemporary youth culture. The increasing adoption of the internet across all age groups has led to numerous benefits, but also concerns regarding its misuse, particularly among adolescents. However, alongside these benefits, problems related to internet misuse have also escalated. Background/Objectives: A review of the literature reveals a lack of studies examining the long-term effects of childhood experiences on later social media addiction. This study aims to investigate the impact of childhood experiences on social media addiction during adolescence. Methods: This study employs a relational survey model, a quantitative research method. Data were collected using the Childhood Experiences Scale and the Social Media Addiction Scale for Adolescents. This study's participants included 371 adolescents attending secondary education institutions under the Ministry of National Education of Türkiye during the 2024-2025 academic year. Participants were selected through simple random sampling. Relationship and impact tests were used to analyze the data. Results: This study found that adolescents with adverse school experiences exhibited social media addiction. A significant relationship was found between adverse school experiences and the time spent on social media. Furthermore, in terms of the gender variable, it was found that females scored significantly higher on the Social Media Addiction Scale for Adolescents compared to males. Conclusions: Based on the results of this study, it is observed that adverse experiences encountered in children's school life may influence social media addiction in their future lives. In future studies, researchers may identify different childhood experiences that impact social media addiction.

Reviving Zimbabwean Traditional Dance through Popular Youth Culture

As Zimbabwean youth increasingly gravitate toward modern, globally influenced music and dance, traditional cultural expressions risk fading into obscurity. This study investigates how traditional Zimbabwean dance forms can be integrated into contemporary youth culture to preserve cultural heritage in the face of globalised trends. Grounded in Raymond Williams’ concept of “culture as a whole way of life” and Homi Bhabha’s theory of cultural hybridity, the research also employs the positive deviance approach to engage a group of young creatives in experimenting with cultural fusions. The study was conceived as action research, and data was collected through field observations and interviews with dancers and creatives. Findings suggest that by identifying and promoting those individuals who have already begun blending traditional and contemporary dance, the revitalisation of Zimbabwean dance heritage can foster cultural continuity and serve as an avenue for youth self-expression. The results contribute to ongoing discussions on cultural preservation, innovation in cultural expression, and the role of the arts in civic engagement and social change.

Conceptual Framings of Menstruation in 20th-Century British Menstrual Product Advertising: Visible Stigma, Invisible Bleeding

This article aims to build on previous scholarship on the analysis of menstrual product advertising through a case study of British print advertisements in magazines from the latter half of the 20th century. Drawing on curatorial techniques and thematic analysis, the discussion situates these advertisements within the context of the study of youth cultures, girlhood studies, and postfeminist media cultures alongside sociological examinations of menstruation. The analysis demonstrates key continuities between discourses of postfeminist media culture and modernity represented in these archival advertisements and contemporary notions of menstrual normativity.