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This report presents the results of a research study on housing issues facing young people in Sweden. The study is part of a European project entitled "Youth Housing and Exclusion", chaired and co-ordinated by the Féderation Relais in Paris. In order to provide comparable results, the survey has been designed to correspond with parallel projects in six other countries in the European Union - Belgium, France, Germany, Portugal, Scotland and Spain. For each country, the project includes the following three studies: • A state-of- art report on the housing situation for young people. • A survey carried out among a representative sample of young people in each country. • One or more qualitative surveys among specific groups of young people.

Teenagers have no obvious right to spaces of their own. They often have nowhere else to go except outdoor public places, where they often come into conflict with other groups. This article explores this dilemma. Based on empirical studies in Sweden, the article describes how teenagers use public spaces in their local environments to create meaning and context in their existence. It indicates which places they use, what characterizes these places, and how teenagers use them. Variation and variety in the structures and environments of places mean that the local field of activity cannot always be encompassed by traditional generalizing theories. Knowledge of the significance of local variations in the identity construction and action strategies of youth thus becomes an important link in understanding and interpreting the postmodern society.