The contextualization of the research on contemporary youth using the example of the young people of Dalmatia

Abstract

Since contemporary research on youth fails to differentiate the various youth scenes, we have taken as a hypothetical framework for our research the differentiation of youth behaviour as discussed by the German researcher Karl Lenz (1986, 1988, 1991). By using his model, we have tried to establish empirically to what extent each aspect of youth behaviour is present in the Dalmatian context. The general hypothesis has facilitated an overview of the potentially relevant empirical "answers" to the question: can the Lenz's model offer a model of analysis for the behaviour of young people in a society in transition like Croatia? The results have not entirely confirmed the initial assumption of the similarities between the young people in Croatia and those in the developed post-industrial countries. However, the wealth of common characteristics in the basic areas of activity that characterize the types of youth behaviour fits the assumption that significant differences do not exist. The results obtained allow us to conclude that, for example, the young people of Croatia today have similar priorities in their lives, and that they are similarly orientated in Peers's terms, as well as being highly demanding in questions concerning schooling and future vocation.