Youth, risk, routine: a new perspective on risk-taking in young lives

Young people's lives continue to be the topic of public scrutiny and recurring 'moral panics'. Smoking cannabis, speeding, and engaging in street-level fights are depicted as activities based on 'poor choices' or simple hedonism, putting young people's futures at risk. Based on comprehensive, qualitative research with young people in Denmark, this book illustrates how such individualised accounts miss out on the inherently social character of risk-taking activities. Youth, Risk, Routine introduces a new approach to risk-taking activities as being an integral and routinised part of young people's everyday life. By applying social theories of practice, this insightful volume presents a framework for understanding the routinised dimensions of young people's engagement in risk-taking and how this is embedded in, intertwined with, and held in place by other everyday practices. Indeed, through extensive empirical analyses of the rich material at hand, the authors explore how routinisation, coordination, embodiment, and social context are central aspects for understanding how, why, and when young peopleengage in risk-taking practices. Youth, Risk, Routine will be of interest to students and scholars in sociology, criminology, and social work as well as wider social science audiences, particularly those interested in exploring the empirical potential of social theories of practice.

<P>Chapter 1 </P><P>Introduction: why study youth and risk? </P><I><P>Youth and 'problem behaviours'</I> </P><I><P>Youth and risk-taking</I> </P><I><P>Researching youth and risk-taking: a few analytical and ethical </I></P><I><P>reflections</P><P>Structure of the book</I> <I></P></I><P></P><B><P>Chapter 2 </P><P>Setting the scene: growing up in Denmark </P></B><P><I>Education and employment </P></I><P><I>Family life, economic well-being, and independence</I> </P><P><I>Social mobility</I> </P><P><I>Vulnerable groups and social support </I></P><I><P>Summing up: growing up in Denmark</I> </P><P></P><B><P>Chapter 3</P><P>Looking back: 'risk' in the sociology of youth </P></B><I><P>Subcultural theories: deviance and moral panics </P><P>New times, new risks: the risk society paradigm</I> </P><I><P>Governing young people: the 'at risk' concept as a technology of power</I> </P><I><P>Voluntary risk-taking and edgework: the positive aspects of risk</I> </P><I><P>Risk-taking and everyday life </I></P><I><P></P></I><B><P>Chapter 4</P><P>Looking ahead: towards a new framework for analysing youth risk-taking as practice</P></B><I><P>What is practice theory?</I> </P><I><P>Temporality and the embodiment of practices</I> </P><I><P>Shifting focus from the individual to the social</I> </P><I><P>Summing up: making practice theory work for analysing young people's</I> </P><I><P>risk-taking practices</P><P></P></I><B><P>Chapter 5</P><P>Being young: risk-taking practices and youth culture </P></B><I><P>Being young</I> </P><I><P>The fun and routine of partying</I> </P><I><P>Cannabis and partying practices</I> </P><I><P>Hanging out with friends</I> </P><I><P>Risk-taking practices as subcultural practices?</I> </P><I><P>Summing up: risk-taking practices and youth culture</I> </P><P></P><B><P>Chapter 6</P><P>Coordinating practices: risk-taking and everyday life</P></B><I><P>Balancing practices in everyday life</I> </P><I><P>Integrating risk practices with everyday life practices</I> </P><I><P>Risk practices disrupting everyday life practices</I> </P><I><P>A 'new normal': when risk-taking practices become everyday life </I></P><I><P>practices</P><P>Breaking with the everyday</I> </P><I><P>Summing up: situating risk practices in everyday life</I> </P><P></P><B><P>Chapter 7 </P><P>Embodying risk-taking: risk, embodiment, and gender </P></B><I><P>Learning practices of risk and gender</I> </P><I><P>Embodying experiences of 'too much'</I> </P><I><P>Breaking with embodied practices</I> </P><I><P>Summing up: risk, gender, and embodiment</I> </P><P></P><B><P>Chapter 8</P><P>Contextualising risk: risk-taking, youth transitions, and processes of social marginalisation</P></B><I><P>Fragile transitions: Frank's case</I> </P><I><P>Family 'transmissions' of risk-taking practices</I> </P><I><P>Adopting practices</I> </P><I><P>Counter-productive parenting practices?</I> </P><I><P>Risk-taking as a practice of place</I> </P><I><P>Summing up: risk-taking practices and transition practices</I> </P><P></P><B><P>Chapter 9 </P><P>Conclusion: routines of risk in young lives </P></B><I><P>Routinisation</I> </P><I><P>Coordination</I> </P><I><P>Embodiment</I> </P><I><P>Social</I> <I>context</I> </P><I><P>Temporality</I> </P><I><P>A turn to practice: practical implications</I> </P><B><P></P><P>Appendix: The two empirical studies </P></B>

Cover; Endorsement; Half Title; Series Information; Title Page; Copyright Page; Table of contents; Acknowledgments; 1 Introduction: why study youth and risk?; Introduction; Youth and 'problem behaviours'; Youth and risk-taking; Researching youth and risk-taking: a few analytical and ethical reflections; Structure of the book; References; 2 Setting the scene: growing up in Denmark; Introduction; Education and employment; Family life, economic well-being, and independence; Social mobility; Vulnerable groups and social support; Summing up: growing up in Denmark; References

3 Looking back: 'risk' in the sociology of youthIntroduction; Subcultural theories: deviance and moral panics; New times, new risks: the risk society paradigm; Governing young people: the 'at risk' concept as a technology of power; Voluntary risk-taking and edgework: the positive aspects of risk; Risk-taking and everyday life; References; 4 Looking ahead: towards a new framework for analysing youth risk-taking as practice; Introduction; What is practice theory?; Temporality and the embodiment of practices; Shifting focus from the individual to the social

Summing up: making practice theory work for analysing young…