Konsten att välja rätt spårvagn : en studie av segregation, skolval och unga människors studieplaner

The art of choosing the right tram – A study of urban segregation, choice of school and young people’s life plans When discussing barriers to integration and young people’s choice of school, research often focuses on language skills, cultural capital, supportive environments and other more obvious, distinct and material aspects that have an impact on educational achievement. In the present study, we have instead chosen to look at how young immigrants construct their inner career landscapes and life-plans, and how this relates to their perception of ethnicity, neighbourhood and identity. The sample used here consists of altogether twenty individuals. The interviews were used to explore certain designated dimensions and processes. All interviews were conducted in the school environment, in classrooms and other locations. The students attended two different inner-city schools. A narrative-sociological approach is used in the analysis. The young people’s perceptions and narratives are analysed in relation to concepts such as: territorial stigmatization, identity, self-perception and modifications of life plans. The findings show that the feelings of otherness which originates in housing conditions, experiences of exclusion and the everyday life of many immigrants, are transposed into the school area and transformed into strategies and life plans.

Normalisering av ungdomar i problem genom styrning av föräldrar : Från strukturella orsaksförklaringar till familjecentrerade lösningar

Normalizing problematized youth by governing their parents: From structural explanations to family-centred solutions The current article explores the ways that organizational representatives outline the causes of and propose solutions to the problematic behaviour of youth living in, what is described as, an immigrant neighbourhood in a Swedish city. The empirical material, consisting of interviews with representatives from various organizations (such as the police, schools, social services and NGOs) as well as field observations, has been analyzed using the theory of governmentality. The causes of problematic youth behaviour are related to disadvantaged immigrant urban space, unemployment, unstable home situations and family relations, and parents’ deviant norms, knowledge and culture. In the discourses about causes and solutions, a recurring frame of reference is the issue of immigration in general and parent’s migrant background in particular. In spite of the complexity of the proposed causes, the pronounced solutions are directed towards the fostering of immigrant parents, the establishment of zones of communication and early prevention. Hence, the prevailing solutions are permeated by discourses of activation of parents.