Approaches to Youth Studies and Identity

Identity is a key aspect of young people’s lives and a significant area examined in childhood and youth studies. This introductory chapter for this section outlines three main approaches to theorizing young people’s identity. First, it introduces the psychological approach that focuses on individual and developmental aspects of youth identity. Second, it discusses the sociological approach that examines youth identity from a social and structural perspective. Third, it elaborates the poststructuralist approach that emphasizes how discourse, power and intersectionality inform young people’s construction and performance of themselves. In assessing these approaches, this chapter also critically rehearses extant debates that have shaped this field and introduces new challenges such as the forces of globalization and digital transformation that are reshaping what it means to be a young person today. As the media has become the central arena in everyday life, work and play, especially for young people, this chapter also emphasizes the role of the media in youth identity formation. It concludes by situating this section’s chapters within these approaches (especially poststructuralism) and their implications for future research.