Suchergebnisse

Civil Society and many youth activists were elated when the youth, those aged between 21 and 40 years, were given prominence in Ghana's parliament after the 2012 elections. Indeed, as many as 44 young people were elected during Ghana's 2012 Parliamentary Elections. Prior to this, the number of young people in Ghana's parliament was negligible. In view of the demographic advantage of the youth and their invaluable contributions to Ghana's political history, there have been incessant calls for their representation and an eventual return to the days of the 1950s when politics was dominated by the youth. The outcome of the 2012 Parliamentary Elections was therefore hailed as unprecedented and described by many as a giant step towards youth representation in national decision making. However, a survey of all the young parliamentarians and some 4400 young people carefully selected through purposive sampling provides the basis for this paper's thesis that the growth in the number of young people in Ghana's parliament does not necessarily guarantee youth representation in national decision making; rather, it promotes tokenism, exclusivity and co-optation of the youth into decision-making structures of state. The study makes practical recommendations to create a relationship between youth in Ghana's parliament and youth representation.

This article explores models of prevention/intervention and positive youth development within the context of social justice. Both of these models seek to support young people, but they have vastly different methods and goals. The author argues that these models fall short of effectively supporting youth because they neglect to interrogate how power, privilege and oppressive forces shape a young person's identity and how that young person engages with society. Therefore, a new approach to working with youth is needed: a social justice youth work model. The author proposes this model as a means for youth and adults to work together to achieve a high quality of life in an equitable world. The paper outlines three steps to enact this approach with young people: 1. develop self-awareness within youth and adults; 2. build solidarity across differences; and 3. take action towards dismantling unjust systems. In order to do this work successfully, adults must first interrogate their own motivations for engaging in social justice work with youth.

Abstract  This paper begins with a profile of Japanese youth which compares them statistically and sociologically with those of other nations. Next, I attempt to differentiate between "adolescent" and "youth," and explain the adolescent as a consequence of industrial society. I also try to divide youth culture into three types: partial culture, sub‐culture. and counter‐ culture. Finally, I discuss the history of Japanese youth culture, primarily since the coming of the industrial age after World War 11. As examples of adolescent cultures, I refer to "Taiyo‐zoku." "Zenkyoto," "Hippie," "New Young," and "Shin‐jinrui." Among these, "Zenkyoto" and "Hippie" are important as counter‐cultures; they reject the prevailing society and actively seek a new post‐industrial society. Adolescent sub‐culture. on the other hand, has dwindled since the decline of the "Zen‐ kyoto" around 1970. Since 1980, Japanese youth can be grouped into three main categories. The majority enjoy affluence and consumer goods, like the "Crystal‐zoku," who are obsessed with famous brands. They are in the partial culture, and are oriented to super‐industrial society. The second group is made up of those who have unique adolescent cultures. like the "Shin‐jinrui," who are sensuous and highly responsive to information. They are in the sub‐culture, and are oriented to the modified industrial society. Minority groups who take action to protect their interests and human rights, like ecological groups derived from the counter‐culture movement, comprise the third category. They are in the counter‐culture, and are oriented to post‐industrial society.

AbstractThis paper performs a cross-country level analysis on the impact of the level of specific youth minimum wages on the labor market performance of young individuals. We use information on the use and level of youth minimum wages, as compared to the level of adult minimum wages as well as to the median wage (i.e., the Kaitz index). We complement these data with variables on the employment, labor force participation, and unemployment rates of 5-year age interval categories—all derived from the official OECD database. We distinguish between countries without minimum wages, countries with uniform minimum wages for all age groups, and countries with separate youth and adult minimum wages. Our results indicate that the relative employment rates of young individuals below the age of 25—as compared to the older workers—in countries with youth minimum wages are close to those in countries without minimum wages at all. Turning to the smaller sample of countries with minimum wages, increases in the level of (youth) minimum wages exert a substantial negative impact on the employment rate for young individuals.JEL Classification:J21, J23, J31