Wrestling with(in) the welfare state. An overview of Nordic Youth Research

The article outlines the development of youth research in the Nordic countries into a cross-national field that is characterised by interdisciplinary cooperation across national boundaries and openness towards different international strands. The field is structurally conditioned by the strong welfare states of the region. On the one hand, they have facilitated varied research into the living conditions, transition and attitudes of young people, and on the other hand, these bonds have created considerable tension between the clientelist perspective of the welfare state and more autonomous positions of youth researchers that have stressed the agency of young people and youth cultures. The article argues that it has been crucial for the different degrees of success in the Nordic countries whether this tension has produced a schism between welfare research and culturalist approaches or a fruitful and dialogue-oriented strain based on the recognition of the different structural positions of researchers and public authorities.