Part 1

Youth in a multicultural setting

Youth in a Multicultural Setting

Tomas Bons
FoU-Södertörn
Römossevägen 25
S-146 31 Tullinge
SWEDEN
tomas.bons@fou-sodertorn.se

Abstract
The following is a presentation of how young people (age 17-20) perceive and interpret their position in society according to their immigrant background in the Swedish majority society, subjective integration.

From the conclusions of a Master thesis where many of the youths expressed a sense of not belonging to the majority they presented strategies how to handle this situation. One possibility is when education is regarded as a way of self-realisation or as a mean to make it possible to move on to a life in another country. On the other hand they presented a strategy of starting an own company as an opposition to the Swedish society. This in order to create an own controlled unit within the society.

I will also give a practical example how a Social Service-project in a multicultural suburb can tackle the problem with youths who neither attend school and nor work. A situation that is connected to their lack of integration in the majority society. The project worked with young persons in a form of individual coaching in order to create a personal relation with them to motivate them for either education and/or seeking employment. The youths did simply get a form of attention that they did not get from schools and employment offices, which seemed to be successful.

Key words: youth, ethnicity, integration

Author(s)

Tomas Bons

Tomas Bons
FoU-Södertörn
Römossevägen 25
S-146 31 Tullinge
SWEDEN
tomas.bons@fou-sodertorn.se

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