Recognition in Targeted Youth Work: Young Adults’ Experiences of Care, Respect, and Esteem

Abstract

This article develops a framework, based on recognition theory, for examining youth work services that target young Finnish adults who are not in education or employment. It complements previous research by examining targeted youth work (TYW) as an institutional context with specific ways of recognising young adults. Drawing upon Axel Honneth’s recognition theory and Randall Collins’ interaction ritual theory, it explores how the context can provide access to different kinds of recognition-based situations. Thus, the analysis addresses how the three different forms of recognition (care, respect, and esteem) are activated and experienced by young adults in targeted youth work. Examining data drawn from 35 interviews with young adults who have been or are currently outside of education or employment, the findings highlight the potential of targeted youth work to offer social interactions that can help clients to encounter care, respect, and esteem. Findings also reveal the potential challenges of providing recognition in targeted youth work, such as the lack of meaningful opportunities for self-determination and autonomy. This study contributes to research on how recognition theory can be understood and applied in social and youth work services.