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Young People, Participation and Public Space

Presentation to Youth in Local Government Conference, Children’s Issues Centre,

University of Otago, July 2004.

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Overall PhD Research Aim

• To identify and provide a model of the connection between young people, public space and citizenship through an interrogation of T.H. Marshall’s (1950) theory of social citizenship, an extensive review of literature and action research.

• Study Title: Young People, Public Space & Citizenship

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Setting the scene…………….

* Young people are major users of public space, White (1990,1998) Loader (1996).

* Young people are constructed as ‘problem’ and ‘non citizens’, Brown (1998).

* Young people report feeling unconsulted, not part of community life, Measor & Squires (2000), Article 12 (2000), Tyler et al (1998).

* Young people and citizenship/participation is a major issue.

* Public Space issues affect others also such as the homeless, aged, women, Indigenous people and people of middle eastern appearance.

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Key Research Objectives

• Identify and establish the conceptual relationship between young people, public space and social citizenship.

• Investigate social citizenship/participation as it relates to young people.

• Develop a theoretical model of young people’s social citizenship which locates rights to public space within an expansive concept of social citizenship/participation.

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Outline of Research Method, Methodology and Approach

• Place young people aged 14-25 at the centre of the action research process, using a modified Grounded Theory approach.

• Work with small groups to develop the survey instrument and map concepts of lived experience of public space and community participation.

• Reflect on and evaluate outcomes of each stage in research process, taking findings into the next stage.

• Conduct questionnaire with young people in Brisbane, Logan and Dunedin.

• Conduct data analysis, feedback findings to interested participants.

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Stages in the action research process

One:

Conduct semi-structured conversations with young people.

Two:

Conduct focus group work with young people, using mental/physical mapping to raise public space issues.

Draft pilot questionnaire.

Three:

Test pilot questionnaire with young people of the Dunedin Youth Forum, reflect on and evaluate with respondents; review and finalise survey instrument with Logan City Youth Council

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Stages in the action research process

Four:

Conduct full questionnaire with various groups of young people in educational settings in Brisbane and Logan areas, to include state & private high schools.

Five:

Conduct grounded theory data analysis and interpretation for PhD thesis chapter content.

Six:

Discuss data results and give feedback to participant young people as, and if, required.

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Theoretical Framework

• A selection of critical material drawn from the following bodies of theory informs the work and contributes to the theoretical and methodological framework of the study:

• Citizenship/Participation Theory• Public Space Theory• Theories of Youth• Grounded Theory

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Theoretical Framework: Citizenship/Participation Theory

• Civil, political and social citizenship.• Social citizenship/social rights.• Social exclusion/inclusion.• Citizenships of difference/marginality.• Citizenship education for ‘active

citizenship’.• Communitarian citizenship-

participation.• Multiple citizenships.• Human rights.• Liberal citizenship-rights & duties.• Radical citizenship-citizenship &

democracy.• Governance.

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Theoretical Framework:

Public Space Theory

• Urban design ideology/priorities/trends.

• Contested space.• Spatial politics.• Consumption space.• Public/private space.• Surveillance.• Curfews and other control

measures.• Gated/walled communities.

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Theoretical Framework:

Theories of Youth

• Constructions of youth.• Youth as hope of the nation,

vulnerable, threat.• Lifestyles.• Life-course patterns/transitions.• Youth identity/identities.• Social Participation.• Child & youth rights.• Gender issues.• Race issues.• Social inclusion/exclusion.

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Theoretical Framework: Research Methodology

Grounded Theory

• An approach to the collection, analysis and ordering of research data where new theory emerges from the data, rather than from literature.

• This is preferable within the overall aims of action research, to a situation where pre-existing theory shapes and directs the data and the results of the research effort.

• The Grounded Theory approach starts with Glaser & Strauss (1967), then there is Strauss & Corbin (1990) and Glaser (1992).

• This approach allows research data to reflect and illuminate the full weight of the lived experience of the young people at the centre of the research process, which might otherwise not happen.

• The research method is a self-completion survey instrument or questionnaire, to collect data from the 1200 participant young people aged 14-25, from state & private high schools, QUT, community groups and Queensland Police Service recruits.

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The survey- questions 1-5

• 1. As a young person do you feel that you are negatively stereotyped by people in the wider community?

• 2. Do you think there are enough youth facilities in your area?

• 3. How involved do you feel in your local community life?

• 4. Are you happy with the way your school/university/TAFE involves you in the community?

• 5. Looking at things from your perspective, would you say that the wider community where you live is aware of or concerned with the issue of safety?

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The survey- questions- 6 to 12

• 6. What does the word ‘Citizenship’ mean to you?

• 7. Are there public places such as malls, streets, parks and other places in your local area that you avoid due to safety issues?

• 8. Is your school/university/TAFE a place you think of as safe?

• 9. Do security cameras make you feel safe in using public places?

• 10. Should there be more security cameras in your local area?

• 11. What would make your use of public places more enjoyable?

• 12. What would make your use of public places safer?

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The survey- questions- 13-15

• 13. Do you think using public space raises issues for the following?

• - people with a disability• - people who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender• - people from Indigenous backgrounds• - people from ethnic minority backgrounds• - any other people?• 14. Do you consider yourself to be

any/some/all of the above? If so, please say here if you wish…………………………………

• 15. Please give your gender: Male………….. Female………….

• 16. Please give your age:• 17. Anything else you want to say?

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Early findings-what 400 Brisbane state high school students said:

• 1. As a young person do you feel that you are negatively stereotyped by people in the wider community? NO:78 YES:322

• 2. Do you think there are enough youth facilities in your area? YES:86 NO:314

• 3. How involved do you feel in your local community life? YES:57 (some feeling of involvement) NO:343 (no or little feeling of involvement).

• 4. Are you happy with the way your school/university/TAFE involves you in the community? YES:167 NO:233

• 5. Looking at things from your perspective, would you say that the wider community where you live is aware of or concerned with the issue of safety? YES:120 NO:280

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More early findings: 400 said:

• 7. Are there public places such as malls, streets, parks and other places in your local area that you avoid due to safety issues?

• YES:179 NO:154• 8. Is your

school/university,

TAFE a place you think of as safe?

YES:209 NO:118

• 9. Do security cameras make you feel safe in using public places?

• YES:95 NO:221• 10. Should there be

more security cameras in your local area?

• YES:183 NO:120

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References for this presentation

• Article 12 (2000) Curfews and Crime-what young people think. Edinburgh: Save The Children Fund Scotland.

• Brown, S. (1998) Understanding youth and crime-Listening to youth? OPUS.

• Loader, I. (1996) Youth, Policing and Democracy. London: Macmillan.

• Measor, L. & Squires, P. (2000) Young people and community safety: inclusion, risk, tolerance and disorder. Aldershot: Ashgate.

• Marshall, T.H. (1950) Citizenship and Social Class. London: Pluto.

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References continued

• Tyler, B., Jablonka, J. and Flick, M. (1998) Making Space. A Report to the Darwin City Council on Young People, Anti-Social Behaviour and Community Response. Darwin: Centre for Social Research Northern Territory University.

• White, R. (1990) No Space of Their Own-Young People and Social Control in Australia. Melbourne: Cambridge University Press.

• White, R. (1998) Hanging out: negotiating young people’s use of public space. Barton: ACT: N.C.P. Attorney General’s Department.

• www.yspace.net

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Overview of Workshop

• Setting the scene.• Key research objectives.• Research methods/process.• Theoretical framework.• References for this presentation.

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More early findings………..

• 17. Anything else you want to say?