Så lær mig dog at kende - Billeder af unges identitetsforhandling

Abstract

Based on ethnographic research using field observation, qualitative interviews, walk-and-talk and photograph-based interviews this dissertation offers an account of how a particular group of boys (14-18 years) construct identity through their companionship. The main purpose of the present project is to investigate the dynamics within youth identity construction. How this particular group of boys “negotiate” identity within the different locations they navigate and which tactics they bring into play to cope with the socio cultural mechanisms existing in the social structure. We limit ourselves to focus on the youth clubs and the streets as the main urban sites where these boys' identity construction takes place. By treating identity as an open and relational term and focusing on identity as „group identity‟, an important point throughout the analysis is the degree to which identification within this group is based on reflections of living conditions and daily experiences. To understand the dynamics between identification and self-representation among this group of boys we look to Richard Jenkins and Erving Goffman and their theory about social identity and stigma. Stuart Hall and Lisa Malkki also help us understand how identity is constructed within contexts, which open up for the construction of multi-identities. With Peter Berger and Thomas Luckmann we focus on the scopes and modes of institutionalisation to analyse how institutionalising in the youth club site becomes a determinant factor in the pedagogical praxis. Finally, with inspiration by Michel de Certeau – and within a postmodern scope – we propose that an analysis of multi form and fragmentary situations and sites, where identity construction takes place, is a relevant element in the understanding of youth agency. The present project is also designed to assist in the future development of a pedagogical policy plan within youth club institutions.