Stop the Clock - 4th Journal of Youth Studies Conference

In a period of rapid social change and political and economic turbulence, the conference provides the opportunity to ‘stop the clock’ and make sense of what is going on for young people now - and to consider prospects for the future.

Young people today are experiencing a unique set of obstacles: climate crisis; social division and unrest; growing local and global inequalities; the intensification of precarity in and outside of working life; instability in world economy; the aftermath of a global pandemic - all of which shape the world that they are growing up in and how they make sense of themselves and their futures. For some, there is a growing sense of hopelessness, anxiety and uncertainty and sometimes a lack of confidence in political institutions and leaders, which can intensify feelings of chaos and crisis.

Turbulent times can lead to shifts in world view. New, innovative responses to challenges emerge. Technology, for example, combines with youth culture to give voice to new forms of resistance and activism.  In a 24/7 digitally connected world, local struggles can gain global traction. Featuring paper presentations, panel sessions and key note lectures from leading academics, this conference brings people together to take a snapshot view of the here and now of contemporary youth research, policy and practice.

Within this context, we look forward to receiving proposals for papers for the conference. Papers may focus on the areas listed below, however, this is not an exhaustive list.

• Youth and inequality – in local and/ or global context
• Young people, war and (post)conflict
• Past, present and future in critical youth studies: agendas for change
• The challenges of youth transitions to adulthood
• Inequalities, differences and divisions in youth: old and ‘new’
• Youth in crisis: a rising tide of mental ill-health?
• Global North and Global South: debates and research in critical youth studies
• Change and continuity in youth culture
• Young people and social media: powers for good and powers for bad
• Youth politics and resistance
• Youth and Young People in Northern Ireland: lessons we can learn and lessons we can share
• Sexuality and identity
• Poverty and exclusion in youth and young adulthood
• What’s ‘best’ and what’s ‘worst’ practice in youth work and youth policy
• Education: class reproduction, social exclusion, social mobility