Researchers Surprised By Teenage 'joiners'
The Age
Monday April 30, 2007
CONTRARY to the stereotype of the angst-ridden adolescent, today's teenagers are more connected to the community than many adults give them credit for, a study suggests.
By the age of 16, nearly a third had secured jobs - clocking up an average of 10 hours a week - while many proved to be "joiners" in formal group activities. More than half of those aged 14 to 16 were members of sporting clubs while a fifth of the 700 young people surveyed said they participated in youth or student groups. "We were surprised to see how involved they were, given their relative youth," said researcher Dr Anita Harris. "They are really interested in having a say in the immediate institutions of life - like their family, friendship networks, school and even work."The use of technology by teenagers - a trend that has come under scrutiny following the suicide of two young girls from Upwey - was also identified in the findings. More than a quarter of the sample said they were members of online groups.Traditional sites for youth association - such as religious groups and community centres - were proving less meaningful, noted co-researcher, Johanna Wyn. Hayley Cowling, 15, a year 10 student at McKinnon Secondary College, exemplifies the teen spirit detected in the survey. She has already secured some independence from the parental purse with a job at the local McDonald's.Friends, of course, loom large in her universe. "My mum doesn't treat me like a kid any more. I feel like an adolescent and I do feel responsible," she says. "I spend a lot of time with my friends. We go the park or the beach or just hang out at somebody's house.""Hanging around", along with computer-related activities and shopping, emerged as a strong theme in responses from the 700 Victorian teenagers, aged 14 to 16, who participated in the survey. In-depth interviews were also conducted.The study is part of an ongoing Australian Research Council-funded project exploring youth citizenship and social connection. It will be discussed at a national youth conference, Are We There Yet?, to be held this week in Melbourne.Strikingly, the study suggests an overwhelming majority of teens felt they were not represented or heard in formal platforms of the media, local electorate or local council. There was an ambivalence in teen attitudes to these forms of civic engagement."What appears to be interesting is that, while participants feel they cannot have their say in these areas, they did not feel as though they wanted more of a voice," Professor Wyn said.
© 2007 The Age