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The concerns and challenges of being a U.S. teen: What the data show

American teens have a lot on their minds. Substantial shares point to anxiety and depression, bullying, and drug and alcohol use (and abuse) as major problems among people their age, according to a new Pew Research Center survey of youth ages 13 to 17.

How common are these and other experiences among U.S. teens? We reviewed the most recent available data from government and academic researchers to find out:

Anxiety and depression

Serious mental stress is a fact of life for many American teens. In the new survey, seven-in-ten teens say anxiety and depression are major problems among their peers – a concern that’s shared by mental health researchers and clinicians .

In recent years, rising reports of youth depression

Data on the prevalence of anxiety disorders is hard to come by among teens specifically. But 7% of youths ages 3 to 17 had such a condition in 2016-17, according to the National Survey of Children’s Health. Serious depression, meanwhile, has been on the rise among teens for the past several years, according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health , an ongoing project of the federal Department of Health and Human Services. In 2016, 12.8% of youths ages 12 to 17 had experienced a major depressive episode in the past year, up from 8% as recently as 2010. For 9% of youths in 2016, their depression caused severe impairment. Fewer than half of youths with major depression said they’d been treated for it in the past year.

Alcohol and drugs

Anxiety and depression aren’t the only concerns for U.S. teens. Smaller though still substantial shares of teens in the Pew Research Center survey say drug addiction (51%) and alcohol consumption (45%) are major problems among their peers.

Alcohol use drops among youth, but marijuana use largely steady

Fewer teens these days are drinking alcohol, according to the University of Michigan’s long-running Monitoring the Future survey, which tracks attitudes, values and behaviors of American youths, including their use of various legal and illicit substances. Last year, 30.2% of 12th-graders and 18.6% of 10th-graders had consumed alcohol in the past 30 days. Two decades earlier, those figures were 52% and 38.8%, respectively. (In the Center’s new survey, 16% of teens said they felt “a lot” or “some” pressure to drink alcohol.)

But the Michigan survey also found that, despite some ups and downs, use of marijuana (or its derivative, hashish) among 12th-graders is nearly as high as it was two decades ago. Last year, 22.2% reported using marijuana in the past 30 days, versus 22.8% in 1998. Past-month marijuana use among 10th-graders has declined a bit over that same period, from 18.7% to 16.7%, but is up from 14% in 2016.

Marijuana was by far the most commonly used drug among teens last year, as it has been for decades. While more than 10% of 12th-graders reported using some illicit drug other than marijuana in the late 1990s and early 2000s, that figure had fallen to 6% by last year.

The Michigan researchers noted that vaping, of both nicotine and marijuana, has jumped in popularity in the past few years. In 2018, 20.9% of 12th-graders and 16.1% of 10th-graders reported vaping nicotine in the past 30 days, about double the 2017 levels. By comparison, only 7.6% of 12th-graders and 4.2% of 10th-graders had smoked a cigarette in that time. And 7.5% of 12-graders and 7% of 10th-graders said they’d vaped marijuana within the past month, up from 4.9% and 4.3%, respectively, in 2017.

Bullying and cyberbullying

Issues of personal safety also are on U.S. teens’ minds. The Center’s survey found that 55% of teens said bullying was a major problem among their peers, while a third called gangs a major problem.

Girls more likely than boys to be bullied, at school or electronically

Bullying rates have held steady in recent years, according to a survey of youth risk behaviors by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About a fifth of high school students (19% in 2017) reported being bullied on school property in the past 12 months, and 14.9% said they’d experienced cyberbullying (via texts, social media or other digital means) in the previous year. In both cases, girls, younger students, and students who identified as gay, lesbian or bisexual were more likely to say they’d been bullied.

As for gangs, the share of students ages 12 to 18 who said gangs were present at their school fell from 20.1% in 2001 to 10.7% in 2015, according to a report on school safety from the federal departments of Education and Justice. Black and Hispanic students, as well as students in urban schools, were most likely to report the presence of gangs at school, but even for those groups the shares reporting this fell sharply between 2001 and 2015, the most recent year for which data are available.

Four-in-ten teens say poverty is a major problem among their peers, according to the Center’s new report. In 2017, about 2.2 million 15- to 17-year-olds (17.6%) were living in households with incomes below the poverty level – up from 16.3% in 2009, but down from 18.9% in 2014, based on our analysis of Census data. Black teens were more than twice as likely as white teens to live in households below the poverty level (30.4% versus 14%); however, the share of white teens in below-poverty-level households had risen from 2009 (when it was 12.1%), while the share of black teens in below-poverty-level households was almost unchanged.

Teen pregnancy

Far fewer U.S. teens are having to juggle adolescence and parenthood, as teen births continue their long-term decline . Among 15- to 19-year-olds, the overall birthrate has fallen by two-thirds since 1991 – from 61.8 live births per 1,000 women to 20.3 in 2016 , according to the CDC. All racial and ethnic groups have witnessed teen-birthrate declines of varying degrees: Among non-Hispanic blacks, for example, the rate fell from 118.2 live births per 1,000 in 1991 to 29.3 in 2016 .

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Drew DeSilver is a senior writer at Pew Research Center .

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How Teens Today Are Different from Past Generations

Every generation of teens is shaped by the social, political, and economic events of the day. Today’s teenagers are no different—and they’re the first generation whose lives are saturated by mobile technology and social media.

In her new book, psychologist Jean Twenge uses large-scale surveys to draw a detailed portrait of ten qualities that make today’s teens unique and the cultural forces shaping them. Her findings are by turn alarming, informative, surprising, and insightful, making the book— iGen:Why Today’s Super-Connected Kids Are Growing Up Less Rebellious, More Tolerant, Less Happy—and Completely Unprepared for Adulthood—and What That Means for the Rest of Us —an important read for anyone interested in teens’ lives.

Who are the iGens?

challenges of youth in 21st century essay

Twenge names the generation born between 1995 and 2012 “iGens” for their ubiquitous use of the iPhone, their valuing of individualism, their economic context of income inequality, their inclusiveness, and more.

She identifies their unique qualities by analyzing four nationally representative surveys of 11 million teens since the 1960s. Those surveys, which have asked the same questions (and some new ones) of teens year after year, allow comparisons among Boomers, Gen Xers, Millennials, and iGens at exactly the same ages. In addition to identifying cross-generational trends in these surveys, Twenge tests her inferences against her own follow-up surveys, interviews with teens, and findings from smaller experimental studies. Here are just a few of her conclusions.

iGens have poorer emotional health thanks to new media. Twenge finds that new media is making teens more lonely, anxious, and depressed, and is undermining their social skills and even their sleep.

iGens “grew up with cell phones, had an Instagram page before they started high school, and do not remember a time before the Internet,” writes Twenge. They spend five to six hours a day texting, chatting, gaming, web surfing, streaming and sharing videos, and hanging out online. While other observers have equivocated about the impact, Twenge is clear: More than two hours a day raises the risk for serious mental health problems.

She draws these conclusions by showing how the national rise in teen mental health problems mirrors the market penetration of iPhones—both take an upswing around 2012. This is correlational data, but competing explanations like rising academic pressure or the Great Recession don’t seem to explain teens’ mental health issues. And experimental studies suggest that when teens give up Facebook for a period or spend time in nature without their phones, for example, they become happier.

The mental health consequences are especially acute for younger teens, she writes. This makes sense developmentally, since the onset of puberty triggers a cascade of changes in the brain that make teens more emotional and more sensitive to their social world.

Social media use, Twenge explains, means teens are spending less time with their friends in person. At the same time, online content creates unrealistic expectations (about happiness, body image, and more) and more opportunities for feeling left out—which scientists now know has similar effects as physical pain . Girls may be especially vulnerable, since they use social media more, report feeling left out more often than boys, and report twice the rate of cyberbullying as boys do.

Social media is creating an “epidemic of anguish,” Twenge says.

iGens grow up more slowly. iGens also appear more reluctant to grow up. They are more likely than previous generations to hang out with their parents, postpone sex, and decline driver’s licenses.

Twenge floats a fascinating hypothesis to explain this—one that is well-known in social science but seldom discussed outside academia. Life history theory argues that how fast teens grow up depends on their perceptions of their environment: When the environment is perceived as hostile and competitive, teens take a “fast life strategy,” growing up quickly, making larger families earlier, and focusing on survival. A “slow life strategy,” in contrast, occurs in safer environments and allows a greater investment in fewer children—more time for preschool soccer and kindergarten violin lessons.

“Youths of every racial group, region, and class are growing up more slowly,” says Twenge—a phenomenon she neither champions nor judges. However, employers and college administrators have complained about today’s teens’ lack of preparation for adulthood. In her popular book, How to Raise an Adult , Julie Lythcott-Haims writes that students entering college have been over-parented and as a result are timid about exploration, afraid to make mistakes, and unable to advocate for themselves.

Twenge suggests that the reality is more complicated. Today’s teens are legitimately closer to their parents than previous generations, but their life course has also been shaped by income inequality that demoralizes their hopes for the future. Compared to previous generations, iGens believe they have less control over how their lives turn out. Instead, they think that the system is already rigged against them—a dispiriting finding about a segment of the lifespan that is designed for creatively reimagining the future.

iGens exhibit more care for others. iGens, more than other generations, are respectful and inclusive of diversity of many kinds. Yet as a result, they reject offensive speech more than any earlier generation, and they are derided for their “fragility” and need for “ trigger warnings ” and “safe spaces.” (Trigger warnings are notifications that material to be covered may be distressing to some. A safe space is a zone that is absent of triggering rhetoric.)

Today’s colleges are tied in knots trying to reconcile their students’ increasing care for others with the importance of having open dialogue about difficult subjects. Dis-invitations to campus speakers are at an all-time high, more students believe the First Amendment is “outdated,” and some faculty have been fired for discussing race in their classrooms. Comedians are steering clear of college campuses, Twenge reports, afraid to offend.

The future of teen well-being

Social scientists will discuss Twenge’s data and conclusions for some time to come, and there is so much information—much of it correlational—there is bound to be a dropped stitch somewhere. For example, life history theory is a useful macro explanation for teens’ slow growth, but I wonder how income inequality or rising rates of insecure attachments among teens and their parents are contributing to this phenomenon. And Twenge claims that childhood has lengthened, but that runs counter to data showing earlier onset of puberty.

So what can we take away from Twenge’s thoughtful macro-analysis? The implicit lesson for parents is that we need more nuanced parenting. We can be close to our children and still foster self-reliance. We can allow some screen time for our teens and make sure the priority is still on in-person relationships. We can teach empathy and respect but also how to engage in hard discussions with people who disagree with us. We should not shirk from teaching skills for adulthood, or we risk raising unprepared children. And we can—and must—teach teens that marketing of new media is always to the benefit of the seller, not necessarily the buyer.

Yet it’s not all about parenting. The cross-generational analysis that Twenge offers is an important reminder that lives are shaped by historical shifts in culture, economy, and technology. Therefore, if we as a society truly care about human outcomes, we must carefully nurture the conditions in which the next generation can flourish.

We can’t market technologies that capture dopamine, hijack attention, and tether people to a screen, and then wonder why they are lonely and hurting. We can’t promote social movements that improve empathy, respect, and kindness toward others and then become frustrated that our kids are so sensitive. We can’t vote for politicians who stall upward mobility and then wonder why teens are not motivated. Society challenges teens and parents to improve; but can society take on the tough responsibility of making decisions with teens’ well-being in mind?

The good news is that iGens are less entitled, narcissistic, and over-confident than earlier generations, and they are ready to work hard. They are inclusive and concerned about social justice. And they are increasingly more diverse and less partisan, which means they may eventually insist on more cooperative, more just, and more egalitarian systems.

Social media will likely play a role in that revolution—if it doesn’t sink our kids with anxiety and depression first.

About the Author

Diana Divecha

Diana Divecha, Ph.D. , is a developmental psychologist, an assistant clinical professor at the Yale Child Study Center and Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, and on the advisory board of the Greater Good Science Center. Her blog is developmentalscience.com .

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Adolescents and the new challenges of the 21st century

Adolescence is known as a turbulent period in a person's life, in which they develop from a child into an adult. It is important for the mental health of adolescents that they establish and maintain social relations. Global trends and developments in the 21st century are making this increasingly difficult. The Educating 21st Century Children report , by, among others, Utrecht University Professor of Youth Studies Catrin Finkenauer, describes some of the associated challenges. The researchers show how global trends in the 21st century, such as climate change, forced displacement, increasing individualism and digitalisation, can influence the development of adolescents, their relations and their mental health.

Climate change

Climate change is one of the greatest challenges of the 21st century. Its effects range from agricultural downturns and decreasing biodiversity to rising sea levels and increasingly severe heat waves. In addition to these effects, climate change also makes it more difficult to establish and maintain social relations. For example, a limited harvest or supply of water due to climate change can heat up social tensions as a result of mutual competition. Moreover, extreme weather conditions cause fear, stress and insecurity, which can lead to reduced empathy and a greater chance of conflict.

These examples demonstrate that climate change creates social challenges, but it also creates social opportunities, including increased social connectivity in relation to climate change concerns, at both the national and international level. Swedish pupil Greta Thunberg, who held a solo climate protest in 2018 in the form of her school strike, is an example of this. Her actions were soon echoed by over 20,000 adolescents worldwide, who participated in school strikes of their own.

Forced displacement

Following a historical increase in violence and conflict and the effects of climate change, more and more people have no choice but to leave their homes. Young people are the most vulnerable group in this context. Many of them have dealt with traumatic experiences either before or during migration. Such traumas can impede the establishment of social relations, even though these relations are incredibly important in recovering from traumas. Additionally, most people forced to leave their homeland are faced with complex legal systems and persistent insecurity regarding residence rights in their host country. This persistent insecurity can affect their capacity for trust, which forms an obstacle to establishing and maintaining social relations.

Adolescents could have the conviction that asking for help is a sign of weakness

Increasing individualism

The increase in prosperity, education, urbanisation and technology has resulted in another global trend: individualism. Increasing individualism is not without benefits, as it contributes to free speech, self-expression and the fight for equal opportunities. However, the global increase in individualism also presents challenges, by disturbing adolescent development of the balance between independence and mutual dependence, for example. Among other things, this may result in the conviction that asking for help is a sign of weakness, even while dealing with personal hardships or mental health problems.

Increasing individualism can also undermine young people's motivation to continue helping their relations, for example, when these relations are dealing with hardships (such as disease) or when maintaining the relation is demanding or difficult (making sacrifices or showing forgiveness). Young people can experience this as infringing on their personal freedom. New technologies that simplify the process of establishing alternative relations exacerbate this problem by making it easier for young people to find and establish new relations.

Jongere ligt op de bank met een telefoon

New technologies

New technologies, particularly information and communication technologies and social media, are developing at a rapid pace and are increasingly omnipresent. On the one hand, these new technologies have a positive effect on social relations, as they make it possible to contact others from anywhere and at all times. On the other hand, digital communication has proved to present challenges of its own. Research has shown that digital communication is less comforting than face-to-face communication. This is in part because there is no physical contact, such as hugging someone or holding their hand. Even if you send someone a hug emoticon, this does not have the same impact as an actual hug. Enjoying the benefits of new technologies while reducing the associated difficulties can be a challenge for young people.

As the examples above demonstrate, global challenges such as climate change, forced displacement, increasing individualism and new technologies can influence and shape the social development of young people. The Educating 21st Century Children report has made a start on this analysis, but future research will be necessary to more accurately chart these influences and improve young people's resilience.

Research theme Dynamics of Youth

If you want to tackle social problems, it would be best to start with children. The Utrecht-based research theme Dynamics of Youth invests in a resilient youth. Academics from all fields collaborate in order to learn to better understand child development. How can we help children and youngsters to grow and flourish in our rapidly changing society.

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Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.

A series of FT View editorials and daily online debates will make the case for a new deal for the young. Beginning on Monday 26 April, they will address housing, pensions, jobs, education, the climate and tax over the course of the week. Click to register for the events and see all the other articles

Growing inequality between generations has been exacerbated by the pandemic and has left many people in their teens, twenties and thirties feeling like they have got a raw deal.

The Financial Times wanted to bring those young people into a discussion about shifts in asset prices, pensions, education and the world of work so we launched a global survey. We asked people aged between 16 and 35 to tell us what life has been like for them in the pandemic, and which problems need fixing most urgently.

The survey was only open for one week but we had a record number of responses, with 1,700 people replying to the callout and spending an average of 30 minutes each on their responses.

While the majority of respondents were from the UK and US, others who shared their views were from Europe, Brazil, Egypt, and Asia-Pacific. Many of the respondents, though not all, were graduates who worked in sectors such as law, banking, media, education, science and technology. Many did not want to share their full names or personal details for fear of professional and personal repercussions.

People spoke of the difficulties — and benefits — of being young in today’s difficult economic times compared with their parents’ generation, and about issues relating to housing, education, jobs, pensions and the environment.

The responses formed the starting point for an in-depth analysis of the problems faced by young people today by Sarah O’Connor, our employment columnist. It is the first article in an FT series on what policies would make the economy work better for today’s youth.

Here we highlight some of the many hundreds of comments we received from readers:

Cramped housing

I absolutely cannot relate to mid career professionals being glad to be at home in their leafy three bedroom houses with gardens, when I have to have mid afternoon calls with the sound of my flatmates frying fish for lunch in the background. — A 20-year-old female reader living in London

The burden of student loans

Student loans feel like a unique problem for our generation. I can’t think of a similarity in the past when youth had such large financial burdens that can’t be discharged in most cases. Not that cancellation is necessarily the right choice. I knew what I signed up for, but what was the alternative, work in a coffee shop while the rest of my generation bettered themselves?

Mortgages and car payments just aren’t comparable to the $100k in loans I’ve been forced to deal with since I was 22. The rest seems similar. We have climate change and equality, my parents generations had communist totalitarian governments, nuclear war and . . . equality. — Matt, who works in Chicago, US

Mismatched ideas

The older generation has never understood that while our pay has increased it has been wiped out by extortionate rise in property prices. The older generation also thinks young people only enjoy spending money on experiences rather than saving money, which is not true. — A 30-year-old engineer living in the UK

Living with uncertainty

Older generations don’t feel the uncertainty we younger generation live with. Now it is more common for us to have more temporary jobs, for example, the gig economy. This uncertainty makes planning for future harder and makes taking risks impossible. — Ahmed, a lecturer living in Egypt

Scrap stamp duty on housing

The government needs to sort out house prices and stop inflating them. It should also scrap stamp duty and introduce annual property taxes instead. — A 25-year-old investment banker living in London

Emotionally better off than my parents

I know I’ll be better off than my parents. My mom came from an Italian immigrant family with seven siblings. I’m one of the first people to graduate from college with a four-year degree and one of the only people employed. Neither of my parents really ‘did’ therapy through their adult lives despite needing it, whereas I’ve had a therapist since my second year in college.

I think a common misperception about being better off is the focus on wealth — being better off also means being more emotionally and mentally healthy, which I know I am already better off than many of my family members. — Alicia, a financial analyst living in America

London feels increasingly full of anxious, burnt out 20- and 30-something-year-olds who spend half their income on a cramped flat with a damp problem and spend their weekends in the foetal position on their landlord’s Ikea sofa, endlessly scrolling through the latest app.

We have so much more than our parents did at our age, but also so much less. — A 25-year-old woman from the UK

Artificially high property prices

Current policies like Help to Buy are making things worse for young people in Britain. The prices of new builds are artificially inflated as builders know HTB can only be used on new builds! £450,000 for a one bed flat in London? Jog on. It’s insane. — Chris, in his late twenties living in London

Gen X doesn’t understand Gen Y

Generation X, doesn’t understand Generation Y, who doesn’t understand Generation Z — Andreas, a young doctor from Bulgaria

Regulate financial markets

I also have a feeling that regulating the financial markets would create more stability which would reduce the constant fear of a market meltdown — Kasper from Finland

Who is accountable?

Sustainability (renewable energy, mindful meat consumption, plastic usage awareness, social responsibility, ESG) are utmost key, and older generations seem to miss this. It feels they have put us in a stage where there is no going back, and there is no accountability whatsoever. — Renato, a risk manager from Brazil

Soaring rents

Many items that are considered a luxury to older generations, holidays, clothes, going out to eat, for example, are cheaper these days, but buying a house or renting is so much more expensive compared to when my parents were young. A lot of young people can afford the former not the latter, but for many older generations it seems the opposite was true, which creates contrasting views from each side about who has it worse. — Sophie, in her mid-twenties, from London

Young vs old

A number of older people I know are relatively sympathetic to a lot of the issues we face. There is a young versus old narrative pushed by certain sections of the media which, at least for many older people with families, has rung hollow with me. Generally they do recognise that we live in a more competitive world than they grew up in, for university places, jobs, housing etc. If anything I feel older generations probably understand younger people better than we understand them — Alex, a student solicitor in London

Cannot afford to buy a house

There is no acceptance that working from home is not feasible for younger people where you’re in significantly smaller accommodation. My company released an internal communication informing us how to be more efficient working in shared accommodation or working from your bedroom at the same time as starting consultation on closing all offices and homeworking permanently. — Lewis, who is working and studying in Bristol, UK

I have a mildly dystopian view

I feel older generations don’t understand the value of money, and it feels strange because my parents have lived a frugal life and I am doing well enough for myself, yet, given the economy, I feel compelled to save, while they don’t understand why I think thrice before every purchase.

On the issue of non-renewable resources, I feel that my parents have a particularly different mindset compared to mine; I have a mild compulsion to turn off any running tap or switch if it’s not being used. They have this comfort and faith that there will be enough for the coming generations, while I have a mildly dystopian view of the future Water/Resource Wars — Pia, a woman in her twenties in India

Steep housing costs

At my age on an apprentice’s salary my dad owned his own house and was buying and flipping more houses. I’ve got a masters degree, earning about 40 per cent more than the national average and I’m still struggling to find anywhere. They just don’t seem to understand, my dad refused to believe me until I showed him the tiny studio flats selling in my area for almost £300k — A data scientist in his late twenties, working in the UK

My generation is worn out

In many ways I think I am better off than my parents were. I’ve been able to travel and live in different countries. I had more choices than women before me. Where I live, I can love whomever I want to love. I do not have a physical job that wears down my body. But I guess each generation faces different challenges.

My generation is perhaps more likely to be mentally worn out. Housing is less affordable and returns are relatively less certain and I don’t have a pension or a pensions saving account that is protected from double taxation. — Deborah from the Netherlands

Change the voting system

It is probably an unrealistic policy change, but I would like to see some kind of weighting system applied to future voting (be it elections or referendums). The older you are, the fewer years you have left to live and the less you will have to suffer from poor long-term choices.

Brexit is a good example of this. Foolish and impressionable members of the older generation selfishly voted to leave the EU — a decision which will cause long-term damage for my generation well after they are deceased. Older people’s votes should have counted for less in the referendum. — David, working in fintech in London

Introduce a ‘meat licence’

I would introduce a “meat license” which every adult in the UK would require before they purchase/consume meat. To get this license, once a year they would have to go to an abattoir and slaughter a cow or pig. Once they have done this, they are allowed to consume as much meat as they want during the year.

This would encourage others to switch to alternatives that are available or at least reduce meat waste which is a tragically growing issue in the rich world. — Dan, working in London, UK

Replace student fees

Instead of tuition fee loans and maintenance loans I would give all young people a lump sum at regular intervals for their first several years post 18. They could use this towards going to uni, getting training, buying a house, etc. It would help diversify the paths people take post 18 whilst redistributing wealth. — A man in his mid-twenties living in Sheffield, UK

*Comments have been edited for length, style and clarity

Feel free to join the conversation by sharing your thoughts and experiences in the comment section below.

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Adolescents in the 21st Century: Back to Dialogue from Marked Lives vs Dreamed Lives

First Online: 15 November 2019

Cite this chapter

Marco Braghero 4 , 5

What makes the co-construction of a new alliance between school–adolescents–family–territory topical, necessary, vital, and imperative?

The twenty-first century started with one of the most significant and profound educational emergencies of all times. The following elements characterize this crisis:

The progressive loss of trust in the institutions and in the adult world.

The disruption of communities and the solitude of families.

The absence of new paradigms able to interpret and face changes under way, with the subsequent poor awareness of the impact on young generations and on the planet of the two revolutions under way: digital and biotechnological. The fourth revolution, as Floridi, L. (2018), The fourth revolution. How the infosphere strains transforming the world, Italian edition La quarta rivoluzione. Come l’infosfera stra trasformando il mondo, Milano, Raffello Corina Editore, which is transforming the world, does not find any critical space yet in educational curricula. A sort of “anthropological mutation” of digital adolescents is taking place which may appear as a surprise to the world of adults and in particular to all those who are in charge of education.

A dialogue-based approach can represent an effective “counter-device” (Agamben, Che cos’è un dispositivo? i sassi nottetempo, Milano, 2006) capable of fighting dementia and digital solitude (Spitzer, M. (2012), Digital dementia. How to make us and our children crazy. Droemer Knaur , Munich 2012, Italian edition (2013) Demenza digitale, Milano, Il Corbaccio, Spitzer, M. Digital loneliness, (2016) Italian edition, Solitudine digitale, Milano, Il Corbaccio), and of contributing to co-construct a new educational alliance based on responsibility, commitment, and understanding. Dialogue is an inclusive practice where the entire educational community is involved, which is generously, carefully, and profoundly listening to adolescents.

Dialogue, as a bridge with and between generations, develops higher awareness and critical skills with respect to the continuous and sudden changes under way and provides the ability to imagine the future.

In this article, the possibility to co-construct a new educational alliance between school–students–families–territory is analyzed. School managers and teachers, “coach facilitators” of this process, are in charge of generating dialogue, facilitating it and keeping it open.

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Contextualising Intersections Between Digitalisation and Education: Post-Pandemic Psychosocial Insights from Indian Classrooms

The Formation of the Subject in the Family-School Boundary During Adolescence

Dynamics in the Educational Self of an Adolescent: From the Dominance of Parental Voices to Their Silencing

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Marco Braghero

Mindfulness and Contemplative Practices, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy

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Braghero, M. (2019). Adolescents in the 21st Century: Back to Dialogue from Marked Lives vs Dreamed Lives. In: Pingitore, A., Mastorci, F., Vassalle, C. (eds) Adolescent Health and Wellbeing. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-25816-0_9

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The Plight of Youth in the 21st Century: Key Issues and Interventions in a Developing Economy's Perspective

Posted: 9 Aug 2014

Anthony M. Wanjohi

Kenya Projects Organization (KENPRO)

Date Written: January 7, 2014

The issues surrounding youth are as old as humanity. However, the issues facing youth in the 21st Century are far much different from issues of youth in the yester centuries. The main purpose of this study was not only to unpack the key issues facing youth in the 21st century in a developing economy’s perspective, but also to suggest the strategies that can be adopted to address these issues. Descriptive survey research design was used in the study. The target population included youth and parents/guardians in Ngong’, a town situated in the Southwest of Nairobi in Kenya. The sample size included six hundred and thirty (n=630) youth and thirty two (n=32) parents and guardians. The random sampling procedure was used to select the group of youth who took part in the study while purposive sampling procedure was used to select the parents and guardians. The data collection methods used included a questionnaire and Focus Group Discussion (FGD). The collected data were analyzed using both quantitative and qualitative approaches. Quantitative data from the youth questionnaire were analyzed with the help of SPSS and presented in simple frequencies and percentages. Tables and figures were used to summarize data. Qualitative data collected using FGD were analyzed using a qualitative data analysis technique and reported in narrative form. The study revealed that the key issues facing youth in the 21st Century among the developing economies like Kenya included but not limited to lack of unemployment, lack of basic youth support services like funding, substance abuse, youth reproductive health issues and breaking of family and societal value system. The study suggests the local governments, development partners and communities to design local youth programs (including society and family value building programs), create youth agencies and task forces, and initiate a policy driven youth agenda to address the plight of youth in the 21st century.

Keywords: youth social-economic issues, youth family issues, the plight of youth, youth issues, 21st century youth issues, contemporary youth issues, modern youth issues, developing economies youth issues, developing countries youth issues, growing economies youth issues, Kenya youth issues, addressing youth

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Anthony M. Wanjohi (Contact Author)

Kenya projects organization (kenpro) ( email ).

85726 Nairobi, 00200 Kenya

HOME PAGE: http://www.kenpro.org

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Raising Kids

10 Social Issues and Problems That Trouble Today's Teens

Technology and social media can amplify the struggles teens face, but they aren't the only issues they encounter.

Social Media

Peer pressure, on-screen violence, sexual activity, alcohol use, academic problems, how to talk to your teen.

Just like adults, teens nowadays often face social problems. They may also be more susceptible to challenges because their brains are still developing and their bodies are changing quickly. Combine that with advances in technology, and today's teens are facing new and different social issues than their parents may have.

Not only has electronic media amplified some teenage troubles, but digital communication and social media have also changed the way teens interact with their peers and romantic interests. The end result is a group of young people who struggle with essential interpersonal communication skills like picking up on social cues.

Some of this dysfunction can be linked to technology—especially since the average teen spends more than eight hours each day using electronic devices. That said, not all teen social issues are linked to the digital world. Teens also are at a higher risk for overdose, might not practice safe sex, and are facing increasing academic pressures.

Here's a closer look at the top 10 social issues teens nowadays struggle with.

Brianna Gilmartin

Instagram, Twitter, and SnapChat can be great ways for teens to connect, but social media can be problematic for several reasons. It can expose your teen to cyberbullying, slut-shaming, and so much more.

Social media can hurt friendships, and it's changing the way teens date. Research shows it can impact their mental health. And no matter what precautions you take, teens are likely to be exposed to unsavory people, unhealthy images, and sexual content online.

Help your teen learn to navigate social media in a healthy way by following these tips:

Talk about ways to stay safe online.
Ask what your teen is doing on social media.
Educate yourself about the latest apps, websites, and social media pages teens are using.
Consider limiting your teen's screen time .

While peer pressure has affected teens for generations, social media brings it to a whole new level. Sexting, for example, is a major cause for concern. Many teens don't understand the lifelong consequences that sharing explicit photos can have.

But sending inappropriate photos isn't the only thing kids are coerced into doing. Teens face pressure to have sex, use drugs or alcohol, and even bully others.

To keep your kids from falling victim to peer pressure, consider these tips:

Give them skills to make healthy choices and resist peer pressure.
Talk to teens about what to do if they make a mistake.
Let them know it's safe to come to you when they have problems or make poor choices.
Demonstrate that you can listen without judging or overreacting.
Help them find healthy ways to make amends and move on if they peer pressure others.

Teenagers are going to witness some violent media at one time or another. And it's not just TV, music, and movies that depict violence. Many of today's video games portray gory scenes and disturbing acts of aggression. Over the past couple of decades, studies have linked these violent images to a lack of empathy and aggressive behavior .

Other studies have shown the top factor in determining the way kids relate to media is how their parents think and act. That means the more violence parents watch, the more likely their kids will think it's OK.

To help limit exposure to on-screen violence, pay attention to your teen's media use and consider implementing these guidelines:

Restrict or limit your teen from watching R-rated movies or playing M-rated video games. Consuming that material excessively (and unsupervised) is not healthy.
Talk about the dangers of being exposed to violent images and monitor your teen's mental state.
Discuss sexual situations and racial stereotypes that your teen might see.
Help them identify what's good and what's bad about the media.
Boost their media literacy by helping them think objectively about what they're seeing on television, TikTok, in the movie theater, or in a video game.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), an estimated 5 million adolescents in the U.S. have had at least one major depressive episode . That means 20% of American teenagers may experience depression before reaching adulthood. Data from NIMH also shows that depression is much more prevalent in female teens (29.2%) than male teens (11.5%) and among teens who reported two or more races (27.2%).

Spending too much time on electronic devices may be preventing young people from in-person activities with their peers, such as sports or other physical activities, that can help ward off depression. They're also experiencing new conditions like "fear of missing out" or FOMO, which further leads to feelings of loneliness and isolation.

Keep in mind that depressive disorders are treatable, but it's important to seek professional help. Here's how to navigate this situation:

Schedule an appointment to a health care provider or contact a mental health professional if your teen seems withdrawn, experiences a change in sleep patterns, or starts to perform poorly in school.
Consider online therapy as an option if your teen is reluctant to meet with a therapist in person.
Be willing to discuss what they're thinking or feeling, including their thoughts of suicide. Having these conversations can reduce their fears and let them know someone is willing to listen, but it also needs to be handled thoughtfully.
Call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 or 911 if they are in immediate danger.

Nearly one in four teens between the ages of 12 and 18 report being bullied each year. Research suggests that social media has made bullying much more public and more pervasive. In fact, cyberbullying has replaced in-person bullying as the most common type of harassment that teens experience.

To help guard against these kinds of teenage troubles, regularly talk to your teen about bullying and consider utilizing these tips to help:

Discuss what they can do when they witness bullying.
Talk about options if they become a target themselves.
Recognize that being proactive is key to helping your child deal with a bully.
Talk to your child about when and how to get help from a trusted adult.
Acknowledge that talking about how someone has humiliated them is never an easy topic.
Remind them that asking for help isn't a sign of weakness; it's a show of courage.

According to the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) survey, 30% of high school students reported having had sex and 21% said they were currently sexually active . That represents a decline over the past decade (47% had had sex in 2011; 34% were currently sexually active).

This decline in sexual activity doesn't necessarily mean teens nowadays are using contraceptives, though. Just over half of sexually active teens reported using a condom in their last sexual encounter, according to YRBSS data, while about one-third used hormonal birth control and 10% used both.

This may explain why more than half of the 26 million new sexually transmitted infections in the U.S. are among young people between the ages of 15 and 24. Here are some things you can do to ensure that your teen understands the risks of teen sex and how to be safe:

Talk to your teen about sex and allow them to ask questions.
Let them know they can come to you about anything and that no questions are off-limits.
Do your best to not shame them or make them feel embarrassed by their inquiries.
Instill the importance of safe sex practices—even if you don't think your child is engaging in sexual activity.
Discuss contraception options and make sure they have access to contraception if they're sexually active.
Give them resources to learn about safe sex.

The percentage of teens nowadays using illicit substances is roughly 10.9% of eighth graders, 19.8% of 10th graders, and 31.2% of 12th graders, according to most recent data from the Monitoring the Future Survey published by the National Institute on Drug Abuse. While this decline has been noted since the survey began in 1975, there has been a dramatic rise in overdoses among teens.

Illicit fentanyl, a powerful synthetic drug, is largely responsible for these overdoses. Drug dealers are adding it to counterfeit pills made to resemble prescription medications, which means that although teen drug use is declining, it's becoming more risky for those who do partake.

It's important to have regular conversations with your teen about the dangers of drugs. Here are some key topics you need to discuss:

Mention the dangers of over-the-counter drugs and prescription medications. Many teens don't recognize the risks associated with taking a friend's prescription or popping a few pills.
Tell your teen that drug use during adolescence increases their risk for developing a substance use disorder later in life.
Address how easily addictions can happen.
Discuss how drug and alcohol use can affect their brain development.
Talk about the risks associated with overdosing.
Explain the danger of illicit fentanyl contaminating counterfeit drugs.
Recognize talks about drug use are not one-and-done conversations, but something you should be discussing on a consistent basis.

Alcohol use and binge drinking continue to decline among teenagers. Still, 15.1% of eighth graders, 30.6% of 10th graders, and 45.7% of seniors say they used alcohol in the past year. The forms of alcohol teens are using have also changed. More kids are choosing flavored alcohol (also called "alcopops") and alcohol with caffeine in it. About 36% of seniors reported drinking flavored alcohol.

It's important to talk to your teen about the risks of underage drinking. Here are some tips on how to navigate those conversations.

Educate them about the dangers of alcohol use, including the fact that alcohol can take a serious toll on their developing brain.
Express your disapproval of underage drinking. Saying you don't approve can make a big difference in whether your teen decides to drink.
Discuss the dangers of drinking and driving.
Let them know that if they do decide to drink, they should call you or another trusted adult for a ride rather than risk getting behind the wheel.
Assure your teen that it's safe to reach out to you if they make a mistake and need help.

About 22% of 12- to 19-year-olds in the U.S. are obese, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data. Hispanic and Black children are more likely to be overweight or obese than White or Asian children.

Children and teens who are overweight or obese are often targeted by bullies and are at a much greater risk of lifelong health problems such as diabetes , arthritis, cancer, and heart disease. They may also struggle with body image issues or develop eating disorders as a way of changing their appearance.

But surveys show parents may not recognize when their kids are overweight. They tend to underestimate their child's size and the risks associated with being overweight. Here are some ways you can help:

Ask their health care provider privately about their weight in comparison to their height and age—though many health care providers will alert you to an issue without asking.
Find ways to support and empower your teen , especially if their doctor recommends a different eating plan or exercise.
Ensure your teen has the necessary tools to make changes, but recognize that they must want to change. You can't force the issue, nor should you try to control them,
Avoid shaming or embarrassing your teen about their weight, but instead communicate acceptance for who they are as a person. They need to know their worth is not tied to their weight.

About 5% of high school students drop out of high school each year in the United States, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. A high school dropout is likely to earn significantly less over their lifetime when compared to a high school graduate, which can have a significant impact on a young person's future.

But it's no longer just "troubled teens" who are dropping out of school. Some teens feel so much pressure to get into a good college that they're burning themselves out before they graduate from high school.

Here are some ways you can help your teen avoid academic problems:

Stay involved in your teen's education.
Provide support and guidance when needed.
Be ready to assist your teen if they encounter problems.
Try to remove some of the pressure they may be facing by not placing so much emphasis on grades, achievements, and college acceptances.

Bringing up any difficult subjects with your teen can feel uncomfortable. And your teen isn't likely to respond well to a lengthy lecture or too many direct questions. But having a conversation with your teen about social issues and other teenage troubles isn't something you should shy away from.

Even when it seems like they're not listening, you're the most influential person in your teen's life. It's important to lay a strong foundation before the window of opportunity closes. A good way to strike up a conversation about drugs, sex, vaping, or other uncomfortable situations is to ask a question like, "Do you think this is a big issue at your school?"

Listen to what your teen has to say. Try not to be judgmental, but make your expectations and opinions clear. It's important that your teen understands that you don't condone certain behaviors and that they know the consequences of breaking the rules. That said, you also need to communicate that if they do make a poor choice, it's not the end of the world and that you're there to help.

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Associations Between Social Media and Cyberbullying: A Review of the Literature . Mhealth . 2016.

Smartphones, Social Media Use and Youth Mental Health . CMAJ . 2020.

Sexting, Mental Health, and Victimization Among Adolescents: A Literature Review . Int J Environ Res Public Health . 2019.

Emotional Desensitization to Violence Contributes to Adolescents' Violent Behavior . J Abnorm Child Psychol . 2016.

Screen Violence and Youth Behavior . Pediatrics . 2017.

Tips on How to Deal With Media Violence . Common Sense Media.

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Youth embody ‘spirit’ of 21st century more than parents, new survey shows

A UNICEF poll reports that children and young people remain hopeful and more globally minded compared to older generations.

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Even in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change and other global challenges, children and youth are nearly 50 per cent more likely than older people to believe that the world is becoming a better place, according to the results of a landmark intergenerational poll published on Thursday.

The international survey was conducted by the UN Children’s Fund ( UNICEF ) and Gallup, the global analytics and advice firm, and has been released ahead of World Children’s Day on 20 November.

The Changing Childhood Project is the first poll of its kind to ask multiple generations for their views on the world and what it is like to be a child today.

Part of the solution

Henrietta Fore, the UNICEF Executive Director, said that despite numerous reasons to be pessimistic, children and young people refuse to see the world through the bleak lens of adults.

“Compared to older generations, the world’s young people remain hopeful, much more globally minded, and determined to make the world a better place,” she added.

“Today’s young people have concerns for the future but see themselves as part of the solution”.

More than 21,000 people in 21 countries participated in the survey, which was conducted across two age cohorts – 15-24 years old, and age 40 and up – and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hopeful, not naïve

Nationally representative surveys were undertaken in countries across all regions – Africa, Asia, Europe, and North and South America – and income levels.

 The findings revealed young people are also more likely to believe childhood has improved, and that healthcare, education and physical safety are better today when compared with their parents’ generation.

However, despite their optimism, youth are far from naïve. The poll showed they want to see action to address the climate emergency. At the same time, they are skeptical about the information they consume on social media, and struggle with feelings of depression and anxiety.

This generation is also more likely to see themselves as global citizens, and they are more willing to embrace international cooperation to combat threats such as the pandemic.

Aware of risks

The survey also found children and young people are generally more trusting of national governments, scientists and international news media as sources of accurate information. 

They are also aware of the problems the world is facing, with nearly 80 per cent seeing serious risks for children online, such as exposure to violent or sexually explicit content, or being bullied.

Young people want faster progress in the fight against discrimination, more cooperation among countries, and for decision-makers to listen to them.

Nearly three-quarters of those surveyed who are aware of climate change believe Governments should take significant action to address it. The share rises to 83 per cent in low- and lower-middle countries, where climate impacts are set to be greatest.

Young climate activists take part in demonstrations at the COP26 Climate Conference in Glasgow, Scotland.

21st century citizens

In practically every country, large majorities of youth said their countries would be safer from COVID-19 and other threats if Governments would work together, rather than on their own.

They have also demonstrated stronger support for LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer) rights, with young women at the forefront for equality.

The survey also revealed a strong alignment between the two generations, including on the issues of climate, education, global collaboration, though some of the deepest divides occurred around optimism, global mindedness and recognition of historical progress. 

“While this research paints a nuanced view of the generational divide, a clear picture emerges: Children and young people embody the spirit of the 21st century far more readily than their parents,” said Ms. Fore.

“As UNICEF prepares to mark its 75th anniversary next month, and ahead of World Children’s Day, it is critical we listen to young people directly about their well-being and how their lives are changing”.

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A STUDY ON YOUTH AND THEIR CHALLENGES IN THE 21 st CENTURY

2020, Tathapi with ISSN 2320-0693 Vol. 19 Issue 16 Month May Year 2020 Impact Factor 5.60

As we progress to the 21 st century, there is a great deal to anticipate. Simultaneously different issues that face our nation and the world, require our prompt attention. A portion of these are environmental change, biodiversity misfortune, ascend in brutal fanaticism and imbalance. There are many issues that the youth of the 21 st century faces. In that the significant issues are from society. We as a whole get institutionalized into one major group, it is just some teenagers that are 'rotten ones'; there are acceptable teenagers just as awful. They have recently been given a terrible generally speaking reputation because of a little minority of numbskull vandals. From generation to generation, there has been a consistent pattern of the old looking down on the youth of their time. The perspectives scarcely contrast, the more current generation annihilating the foundation the last has fabricated. The old have experienced as long as they can remember times and have increased important information and experience that the youth are inadequate. Youth in the 21 st century's economy are underestimating what they have simply because a few of us don't see how to help change the economy or influence the change for the great. Additionally, innovation has affected the youth picture. More youths are approaching new advances, for example, new PDAs and instances of 'jaywalking' are expanding quickly in created regions [1]. The open picture on youths is that we are on our telephones constantly and have no consideration about our own security. Hence, the present study has been done with a view to highlight the challenges faced by the youth in the 21 st century and study based on secondary sources of data collections.

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Dr. V.S.Valumuni

Sankalp Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies (SJMS)

The youth generation is the future of a nation; rather, this should become a truth, and it will only become so when the youth are sufficiently empowered and strengthened. The government as well as the society are quite hopeful with respect to the capabilities of the Indian youth since they have the best suitable potential that can facilitate growth and progress for the nation, but both the government and the society should analyze whether the youth are rightly getting sufficient opportunities and facilitates or not.

Anthony M. Wanjohi

The Sociological Review

morrin phiri

Human Systems Management

Dunya Ahmed

BACKGROUND: While everything around us, especially the future of our youth generation, seems to be going wrong, there is always a ‘silver-lining’ that need to be discovered. Life has taught us always that with every major negative event, we have lots of positive opportunities that need to be discovered. OBJECTIVE: This paper aims to explore the new normal post-COVID-19 pandemic generation perspectives. METHODS: In this paper, the outcome of a global study of youth perception about their future in the post-COVID-19 pandemic is carried out and discussed in details. RESULTS: The results of the study help to foresight the type of the coming youth generation in the new normal and address their challenges and requirements in the new normal. The paper results lead to understanding what ways COVID-19 have affected and changed their life as a youth. The results show what shape the vision of youth toward. CONCLUSION: The outcome of this international youth-focused study opens lots of insights...

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Challenges of the 21st century: Can we conquer them?

Are we procrastinating the solutions to challenges of the 21st century in the name of economic growth? asks Priyal Tale

Ralph Waldo Emerson rightly said: “Every wall is a door.” But the whirling dilemma we face today is whether we are creating doors out of walls or walls out of doors? Are we creating a heaven on earth or destructing its beauty?

The progress in technology in the past 500 years has opened the potential of the human brain and spirit to us. However, the COVID19 has revealed our weaknesses in the face of contemporary problems.

Challenges of the 21 st century challenges cannot be solved by a 20 th century attitude of neglect and apathy. These can only be solved by innovation, imagination and integrity not merely of our leaders but also of every single individual on this earth.

Let’s start of with analyzing some of these challenges and find potential solutions for them.

Increased inequalities

Due to development in agriculture, healthcare facilities and scientific inventions our standard of living has increased significantly. This has led to the challenges of increasing population, pollution, unsustainable use of resources to satisfy the increasing demand for our needs. The overpopulated cities remind us of the ants living in their colonies. This has resulted in multiple problems like improper urban planning, lack of sanitation facilities, drinking water, food, shelter, energy scarcity, etc. Globalisation and transportation have transformed our lives, but now we are building the walls of aggressive nationalism and protectionism which is reflected through trade wars, increasing tariffs, cyber threats and social diplomacy. This has caused an increase in the divide between rural-urban , north-south, developed-developing including other economic, social and political inequalities . Are we working enough to see that no one is left behind?

Even a single child going hungry throws shame on the entire human species, but today, according to the WHO 850 million people go hungry everyday which adds to nearly one-tenth of the total world population. Hunger, poverty, climate change, population, pollution, floods, droughts, heatwaves, food security are all related to each other. All this can be solved by increasing awareness, education, by increasing research and use of better environment friendly alternatives. We need to cooperate with one another for the betterment of all, but instead of doing this when the world is coming closer, the people are going away because of selfish interests.

The Digital Divide

We need to understand that if the misusers of technology are getting smart, the protectors of security need to get smarter. For this technological education needs to be promoted. The growth of the internet has brought a challenge of digital divide. In all this, the children, elderly and women are affected the most due to lack of access . The gaps in education and information need to be solved by inclusive policies and schemes.

The increasing state funded cyber attacks, the wave of dis-information, fake news and the spread of false propagandas is acting as a divide, in not only individuals but also nations. The role of social media in US elections, Brexit, increase in terrorist radicalisation through false propaganda are few examples of our huge challenges.

Data is the new gold, we need to promote data security, privacy and reduce the trade monopolies to the big technological giants by increasing taxes. This money can be utilised to support the poor with Universal Basic Income.

The role of media in stopping terrorism, communalism, protectionism, fake news is very important. It has the power to educate masses. The participation of youth in every aspect is important and the government faces a challenge of creating new jobs. We need to overcome this as urgently and effectively as possible in order to reap the benefits of our demographic dividend. This can be done by tackling the 21st century challenges and predicting the future problems.

The patriarchal mindset which is supposed to be an age old concept shows its roots even today. Women face many challenges like gender discrimination , unequal wages, period poverty, access to education, early marriages , etc. We have come a long way in improving the condition of women, we need to go much farther. We need to involve them in innovation, economy, sports and understand that women’s issues are important for the development of the world.

Empowering Youth Voices in Digital Health Rights Governance

Climate change.

Carbon Tax is a good solution to the growing concerns of carbon emissions. Developed countries like the USA should learn that global warming and climate change will be a threat to all and will affect both developed and developing nations equally. Instead of fighting for arms and economic supremacy, we all must focus on building sustainable nature based innovations and make sure we bring them to practice.

Civil Society Participation

This chain of problems can only be stopped only if we plan and execute policies, reduce the shortcomings. For this active participation of every citizen is important. After-all we are all global citizens and we need to work for our brothers and sisters in every part of the world. We need to be mindful of the fundamental human values of community welfare, compassion, sympathy, etc. In this nature will guide us. So let the challenges be defined by us as opposed to the challenges defining us. Let’s accept the challenge of passing a more beautiful, greener, healthier planet to the next generation.

Let these words of Swami Vivekananda guide us on our path to development: “Arise, awake and stop not till the goal is reached.”

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thank you, it is an eye opener for students of international relations.

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Essay on Life In 21st Century

Students are often asked to write an essay on Life In 21st Century in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Life In 21st Century

Introduction.

Life in the 21st century is marked by rapid changes and advancements. It’s a time of technology, innovation, and global connections. We have seen improvements in many areas, from communication to healthcare.

The 21st century is known as the digital age. We use smartphones, laptops, and the internet daily. These tools have changed how we work, learn, and connect with others. They offer convenience and open up new opportunities.

Globalization

Our world has become a global village. We can communicate with people from different cultures and backgrounds. This has increased our understanding and appreciation of diversity.

Advancements in healthcare have improved our lives. New treatments and medicines have been developed. Diseases that were once deadly can now be cured or managed.

Life in the 21st century is exciting but also challenging. We must use the advancements wisely and work together to overcome the challenges.

250 Words Essay on Life In 21st Century

The 21st century lifestyle.

The 21st century is a time of rapid change and progress. We live in a world where technology is at our fingertips, making our lives easier and more comfortable.

Technology and Communication

One of the most significant changes in the 21st century is the advancement in technology. Today, we can communicate with anyone, anywhere in the world, in just a few seconds. Smartphones, the internet, and social media platforms have transformed the way we interact.

Education and Learning

Education has also seen a massive transformation. Online learning is now a reality, allowing students to learn at their own pace from anywhere. This has made education more accessible to everyone, regardless of their location or circumstances.

Health and Medicine

The field of health and medicine has also evolved. New treatments and medicines have been developed, increasing the average lifespan. People are now more aware of their health and are taking steps to lead healthier lives.

Challenges of the 21st Century

In conclusion, life in the 21st century is a mix of advancements and challenges. We have the tools to make our lives better, but we also have the responsibility to use them wisely for the benefit of all.

500 Words Essay on Life In 21st Century

Life in the 21st century is full of excitement and challenges. It is a time of rapid change and amazing progress. We live in an era where technology has become a key part of our lives.

Education has also changed a lot in the 21st century. Now, not only do we learn in classrooms, but we also have the option to learn online. This has made education more accessible to everyone. We can learn from the best teachers and experts from all over the world without leaving our homes.

Health and Lifestyle

Life in the 21st century is also different because of changes in our health and lifestyle. We now know more about how to take care of our bodies. We understand the importance of eating healthy food and exercising regularly. But, the busy pace of life can make it hard to find time for these things.

Environment

Life in the 21st century is full of both challenges and opportunities. We have amazing technology and access to information. But, we also face problems like taking care of our health and the environment. It’s an exciting time to be alive, and we all have a part to play in shaping the future.

Remember, the 21st century is our time. Let’s make the most of it!

That’s it! I hope the essay helped you.

Apart from these, you can look at all the essays by clicking here .

Happy studying!

Youth Skills Development: Preparing Young People for the Future

July 15, 2022 por Liliana Serrano Pájaro - JungKyu Rhys Lim - Cecilia Rodríguez Alcalá 1 Comment

The COVID-19 pandemic widened pre-existing opportunity, skills, and achievement gaps, with devastating impacts on our future generations. It has been more than two years and a half since the pandemic has changed the lives of 165 million students in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), who, on average, lost 237 days of school and faced tremendous learning losses.

In fact, the latest IDB flagship report highlighted the following:

Learning losses represent more than an entire year of schooling
The risk of dropping out of school is now 2.5 times higher
If we fail to act, young people in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) will see a decrease in their annual income of between $15,000 and $30,000 over their lifetime due to lower educational achievement.

Viktor Frankl wrote, “In times of crisis, people reach for meaning. Meaning is strength. Our survival may depend on our seeking and finding it.”

In commitment to their communities, youths are transforming our societies in many ways: as activists working to close gender gaps, combat climate change, and reduce violence; as entrepreneurs creating innovative products; as scientists supporting efforts to address COVID-19; as artists keeping culture alive; and as changemakers in academia, governments, and civil society shaping our democracy.

Young leaders in LAC are raising their voices and calling for economic justice, equality, and rights- including quality education- blazing a path forward for humanity.

Skills for Life in the 21st Century

At the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), we are implementing a roadmap to prepare educators and students for today’s challenges and future opportunities. As part of the IDB’s 21st Century Skills Initiative , we are helping countries transform their education systems by working alongside stakeholders from public, private, and civil society sectors.

We are also working with more than 50 coalition partners to equip young people with skills for life, employment, and entrepreneurship.

The 21st Century Skills Initiative has programs and knowledge products in six key areas: art, citizenship, digital skills, behavioral science, sports, and mindfulness, which all aim to develop transversal skills. We believe in lifelong education, integrating both formal and non-formal education, to provide flexible and personalized learning experiences.

Four Key Skills Youth Need in the 21st Century

Transversal skills enable young people to reinvent themselves throughout all stages of life, adapt to changing and diverse circumstances, and identify opportunities for growth amid differences. Among them, 21st century skills, or transversal skill s that people need in the 21st century , include:

Digital skills (such as computational thinking)
Advanced cognitive skills (such as critical thinking and problem-solving)
Executive function-related skills (such as self-regulation and metacognition)
Socio-emotional skills (such as self-esteem, adaptability , creativity , perseverance , and empathy).

We consider these skills are both transversal and foundational, as they are widely transferable to various contexts, not specific to a certain job, task, sector, discipline, and occupation, and key competencies for individuals to thrive.

In sum, 21st century skills help individuals of all ages to reinvent themselves throughout life, and adapt to changing and diverse circumstances, while navigating new and significant challenges including climate change, migration, aging, and the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Transforming Youth for the Future: Skills for Life Series

As a part of the 21st Century Skills Initiative’s efforts to create applicable knowledge to help generate impactful solutions, through IDB Skills for Life Series, IDB has introduced more detailed information about transversal skills -such as learnability , digital skills , digital literacy , critical thinking, creativity , media literacy , and social skills for inter-ethnic cohesion- to address the strategic importance of equipping young people with skills for employment, entrepreneurship, and life.

In this series, distinguished education experts and professionals share their insights and knowledge about different transversal skills.

Systems of learning need to adapt to a new normal of global life . Alarm bells have been ringing for the last decade about the future of work and the changing skills demands brought on by technology and automation. Communities, regions, and countries need to make strategic investments in redesigning today’s learning systems into systems of lifelong learning that will best position them and their workforce in a globally competitive environment. This skills brief offers recommendations on how to properly enable lifelong learning systems. Learn more here .

Learning how to self-regulate the learning processes to make efforts to learn more effectively is a key life skill. Not surprisingly, one of the most important characteristics of successful learners is their capacity for self-regulation. In this brief, Hector Ruiz Martin shares expert insights on how to regulate one’s learning processes is nothing other than learning to learn. Download the report here .

Digital skills are becoming more relevant than ever, because of the digital revolution that we are experiencing in the labor market, but also due to the accelerated needs for them that COVID-19 brought about. There have been efforts to help develop and assess digital skills. Yet, despite these efforts, many people still face difficulties in developing an appropriate level of digital skills. Download this brief and learn how we can develop, train, and measure digital skills, as well as the implications of training and measurement of digital skills.

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought such chronic stress to the lives of young children on a scale not seen in modern times. Mental health experts warn that the chronic stress of young children has substantially increased by the COVID-19 pandemic and is reported to worsen over as stressors stemming from this crisis have caused sudden and ongoing disruptions in multiple domains of daily life. Download this report and l earn more here .

are essential to building empowered and cohesive communities in ethnic diversity. In a world with massive population movements and growing anti-immigrant sentiments, schools stand out as important platforms to instill key social skills into our children to build inter-ethnic cohesion. Achieving this requires the implementation of rigorously tested educational actions. provides the evaluation results of a particular educational program that was implemented in a high-stake context where the ethnic composition of schools changed abruptly due to a massive refugee influx. The program significantly and ethnic segregation in schools, and improved prosociality in children.

In this brief , we examine the concept of literacy and digital literacy. Then, we review the latest digital literacy studies in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the European Commission, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Lastly, we provide suggestions by comparing digital literacy studies, including ICT studies, in South Korea with international literacy assessment metrics. This brief aims to contribute to developing digital literacy measurements applicable to ICT in education internationally and mitigate the digital divide. Learn more here .

has become key to the skill set that people should develop not only to have better prospects in the labor market, but also a better personal and civic life. This brief shows how policymakers and teachers can help students develop their critical thinking skills. T defines critical thinking skills and shows how the concept can be translated into teacher-friendly rubrics to support them to design or redesign better lessons but also to assess their students. Lastly, the brief highlights 10 concrete steps for policymakers, school principals, and teachers to better prepare students for the future with critical thinking skills and improve the quality of their education.

Media literacy education is a tool for combating mis/disinformation in a time where there is so much uncertainty. The lack of credible news means that we are left with news stories driven by propaganda, misinformation, or manipulated content and even fiction or just fallacy. This impacts every person in every situation and influences the conversations, policy, and beliefs whether we are talking about race, gender, economics of poverty, climate, and so much more. Learn more here .

Creativity is a critical human 21st-century skill that allows us to produce novel and valuable ideas. Creative ideas are original and make a unique contribution to any field, but also, they help to solve complex problems that humanity is continuously facing. Creativity is essential at the individual level to solve problems on the job and in daily life. This brief will discuss how creativity has been conceptualized and will share some strategies to foster creativity in a learning environment and the workplace. Also, it will discuss how technology impacts creativity development. Learn more here .

As we face the ravages of COVID-19, climate change, economic disparities, and social injustice, the world needs listening skills more than ever. Listening skills are one of the core life skills that are critical in life, work, and school. Listening skills enable children to access information, develop other skills, such as empathy, and critical thinking, and have better academic performances and lives. Listening skills are one of the most desired and needed in workplaces. In this brief, we explain the importance of listening skills and listening processes. Then, we review how policymakers can help develop listening skills. Lastly, we review how policymakers can measure and assess listening skills. Learn more here .

To this end, the curriculum reform is at the top of the education agenda today. Skills gaps are growing between what society and the labor market need, and what formal systems of education and training provide. The curriculum is the primary instrument for education systems to translate what society needs in terms of human capital, into specific content, competencies, and skills. This new IDB report examines how different education systems inside and outside the Latin American and Caribbean region have incorporated 21st century skills in their curriculum, and the enabling conditions to translate the intended curriculum into a de facto curriculum in the classroom. How people are educated and trained today will determine whether countries in the region will be able to transform and provide greater prosperity and opportunities for all. Discover best practices and lessons learned here .

Latin American and the Caribbean region must invest in its human capital and take advantage of its demographic dividend in order to prosper, innovate, and achieve sustainable growth. The Bank will continue to foster 21st century skills in the region by strengthening ecosystems, promoting public-private partnerships, and providing lifelong learning opportunities.

Stay tuned and follow our blog series on education, economic opportunities and #skills21. Download our publications on skills for life and keep an eye out for our news!

Liliana Serrano Pájaro

Liliana Serrano Pajaro is a consultant for the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) in the “21st Century Skills” initiative and supports the implementation of training projects in Colombia and the region. His experience includes coordinating the cooperation for Latin America and the Caribbean of the human development and education programs of the Organization of American States (OAS), as well as the expansion of the OAS Consortium of Latin American Universities with governments, universities and higher education institutions. Also, she has experience supporting regional innovation initiatives that promote the use of ICTs in education. Liliana is a Social Communicator and Journalist from Universidad de la Sabana in Colombia, she has a certification in Design of Social Impact Alliances from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. and has more than nine years of experience in the area of communications in education and development programs for Latin America and the Caribbean.

JungKyu Rhys Lim

Rhys Lim is an educator and behavioral scientist. Dr. Lim's research studies how to help people, communities, and organizations prevent, prepare for, respond to, and recover from crises and threats (such as climate change, automation, aging, migration, and health risks public). To help people better meet these challenges, Dr. Lim supports the IDB initiative that strengthens education and training ecosystems for 21st century skills. He has a Ph.D. in Communication from the University of Maryland.

Cecilia Rodríguez Alcalá

Cecilia Rodríguez Alcalá is the founder of Paraguay Educa, an NGO dedicated to providing opportunities for children and youth in Paraguay to develop life skills through Edtech. Cecilia is an advisor for the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) and for the educational platform META. She is currently a consultant at the Vice Presidency for Sectors and Knowledge of the IDB and is working in development projects of the social sector.

Reader Interactions

August 15, 2023 at 2:37 pm

The Green Skills for Youth to towards a sustainable world is an Agenda that needs a special attention, for this to be achieve there is a need for robust sensitization by organizing a youths Engagement at National and Communities level, for them to understand their role and responsibilities to the Green Skills For Youth towards a sustainable World. Therefore, I am kindly asking IDB to extend their support to Africa to undertake a project that will let the youth to understand what really the Green Skills for, and how Important is it to them. Kindly contact me via email [email protected] for submission of project Proposal Thank you

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The Plight of Youth in the 21st Century: Key Issues and Interventions in a Developing Economy’s Perspective

African Research Journal of Education and Social Sciences, Vol. 1, No. 1, 2014

[Author: Anthony M. Wanjohi, Project & Research Director, Kenya Projects Organization, P.O Box 8076 – 00200, Nairobi – Kenya | Email: [email protected] | Site: www.kenpro.org ]

The issues surrounding youth are as old as humanity. However, the issues facing youth in the 21 st Century are far much different from issues of youth in the yester centuries. The main purpose of this study was not only to unpack the key issues facing youth in the 21 st century in a developing economy’s perspective, but also to suggest the strategies that can be adopted to address these issues. Cross sectional survey research design was used in the study. The target population included youth and parents/guardians in Ngong’, a town situated in the Southwest of Nairobi in Kenya. The sample size included six hundred and thirty (n=630) youth and thirty two (n=32) parents and guardians. The random sampling procedure was used to select the group of youth who took part in the study while purposive sampling procedure was used to select the parents and guardians. The data collection methods used included a questionnaire and Focus Group Discussion (FGD). The collected data were analyzed using both quantitative and qualitative approaches. Quantitative data from the youth questionnaire were analyzed with the help of SPSS and presented in simple frequencies and percentages. Tables and figures were used to summarize data. Qualitative data collected using FGD were analyzed using a qualitative data analysis technique and reported in narrative form. The study revealed that the key issues facing youth in the 21 st Century among the developing economies like Kenya included but not limited to lack of unemployment, lack of basic youth support services like funding, substance abuse, youth reproductive health issues and breaking of family and societal value system. The study suggests the local governments, development partners and communities to design local youth programs (including society and family value building programs), create youth agencies and task forces, and initiate a policy driven youth agenda to address the plight of youth in the 21 st century.

Key words : youth issues today, plight of youth, Kenya youth issues, youth issues interventions, youth unemployment, youth drug abuse, youth substance abuse, youth reproductive health issue, youth sustainability

1.0 Introduction

Youth is the period of human development which occurs between childhood and adulthood. The typical age bracket for youth is 18 to 30 years, although various countries and institutions may adjust the age brackets higher or lower to suit their particular concerns. In Kenya, the official definition of youth is the period between the ages of 18 and 35 years (KNBS, 2010). In this study, the term youth is used with reference to ‘youths’, which means ‘young people’ between the age of 18 and 35 years.

The issues surrounding youth are as old as humanity. However, the issues facing youth in the 21 st Century are far much different from issues of youth in the yester centuries. Examining the Kenya’s youth issues perspective could unpack the pronounced yet underlying issues.

Literature review reveals that there are myriad issues that continue to face youth in developing economies like Kenya today. These include but not limited to unemployment (UN Habitat, 2006), fragile livelihoods, HIV/AIDS and sexuality, abuse and exploitation, crime and violence. This would therefore imply that interventions should be directed towards the areas of policies (ILO, 2004), sexual/reproductive health, HIV/AIDS, substance abuse, creation of livelihood opportunities, crime, political domain and recreation and entertainment.

There is no doubt that certain efforts have been made towards addressing the plight of youth. However, developing economies like Kenya are still grappling with numerous youth issues of varied magnitude. Identifying and prioritizing the key issues facing youth could therefore provide the road map towards youth sustainability not only in Kenya, but also in other developing economies.

2.0 Purpose of the Study

While it is evident that there various ‘known’ issues facing youth in Kenya of today, there are still a number of underlying and an undressed issues that continue to threaten the well-being of today’s and tomorrow’s society which rests upon the wellness of today’s youth. The past and in essence, the present interventions have neither addressed the plight of contemporary today. Therefore, the main objective of this study was not only to unpack the key issues facing youth in the 21 st century in developing economy’s perspective, but also to suggest the strategies that can be adopted to address these issues.

3.0 Methodology

Cross sectional survey research design was used in the study. The design was found appropriate given the nature of the target population and sample frame. Further, the design was also suitable owing to its quantitative strength (Owens, 1991), its mode of data collection and its potential towards generalization of the findings to a larger population. Thus, the findings on the issues facing youth and interventions to address the same could be generalized.

The target population included youth and parents/guardians in Ngong town, an upcoming suburb situated in southwest of Nairobi.

The random sampling procedure was used to arrive at a representative number of youth in the selected centers of worship and Ngong town. The study reached a total number of four hundred and eighty nine (489) youth who attended church services. Another group of one hundred and forty one (141) youth was randomly selected from Ngong’. The sample was made up of the youth in the streets, hotel, and entertainment joints. The research assistants personally assisted the respondents in answering the questionnaire.

Purposive sampling procedure on the other hand was used to arrive at the sample of parents and guardians who attended church services in Ngong’. These were selected to participate in the Focus Group Discussion (FGD). In sampling the participants, the researcher was assisted by the church ushers. The total number of those who were selected included thirty two (n=32) parents and guardians. The researcher grouped them into 4 groups, each having 8 members. It was believed that a group between 7 to 10 individuals would provide a setting for effective communication and decision making (Witkin & Altschuld, 1995). The focus groups assisted the researcher with provision of information on the key issues and concerns facing the youth and information on the interventions to the issues.

Questionnaire and Focus Group Discussion methods were used to collect data from youth and parents respectively. The questionnaire for youth was structured while the interview schedule used in the FGD was open-ended. The instruments covered demographic characteristics of the respondents and items on youth issues and interventions.

The collected data were analyzed using both quantitative and qualitative approaches. Quantitative data from the youth questionnaire were analyzed with the help of SPSS and presented in simple frequencies and percentages. Tables and figures were used to summarize data. Qualitative data collected using FGD were analyzed using a qualitative data analysis technique. The researcher’s work was made easier by the fact the data collected from the focus groups was already sorted out during the open forum. The main points that were noted down were used for qualitative analysis.

4.0 Results

4.1 Demographic Characteristics of the Respondents

The majority (61%) of the youth who took part in the study were between the ages of 18 and 25 years; 39% of them were between 26 and 35 years of age. Slightly more than half (56%) of them were males. The vast majority (83%) had acquired secondary and tertiary education. Only 16% of them were married. In terms of job placement, only 19% of them had formal employment while the remaining 81% had no any employment.

The background information for parents and guardians showed that 69% of them were female while the remaining 31% were male. The majority of them were teachers and others were engaged in small informal businesses.

4.2 Family Issues facing Youth

The following were the theorized family related parameters from which the data were collected about family issues affecting youth in the 21 st Century: praying together, eating together, family gatherings and recreation together. Figure 1 shows the distribution of youth on whether they participated in various family related activities.

On the family activities, 15% of the youth indicated that they had never prayed together with their families, 11.7% had never held family gatherings, 10.8% had never recreated and 7% had never dined together. This could imply that parents did not often gather or pray or even recreate together with their children. Lack of close knit families could therefore be the undoing of today’s developing society.

4.3 Socio-economic Issues Facing Youth

The following were among the predetermined issues from which the data were collected about socioeconomic issues facing the youth in the 21 st Century. These issues were ranked according to their order of priority. Those, which were ticked as most urgent, were the most pressing issues that needed immediate attention. The social-economic issues included unemployment, lack of funding, substance abuse, school dropout, crime, poor moral standards and lack of spiritual commitment. Figure 2 shows the distribution of youth on the issues.

On prioritizing the main social-economic issues facing youth in the 21 st Century based on “very urgent”, the following order emerged: first, unemployment (64.4%); second, lack of funding (55.9%), third, alcohol and drug abuse (45.7%); fourth, low spiritual commitment (41.9%); fifth, crime (36.8); sixth moral decadence (31.4%) and seventh, school dropout at 27.6%.

In order to clearly show and rank the key underlying issues facing youth in the 21 st Century growing economies, the distribution of youth regarding the most urgent issues was further tabulated. Table 1 shows youth issues prioritization ranking percentage based on the ‘urgency’ responses.

From the issue-priority ranking , it was evident that the top most key issues facing youth in the 21 st Century among the developing economies like Kenya included unemployment, lack of basic youth support services like funding and substance abuse.

4.4 Parents’ and Guardian’s Responses on the Plight of Youth

The data collected from the Focus Group Discussion based on the questions asked about the major issues facing youth today, were qualitatively analyzed. The following issues were singled out: unemployment, lack of youth services and funding opportunities, alcohol and drug abuse, crime and violence, lack of awareness on reproductive health, inadequate attention from the parents, lack of role models in the society, school dropout, social stratification in terms of economic and social background, negative peer influence, wide generation gap between the parents and children and identity crisis.

The feedback from parents and guardians about the major issues facing youth in developing economies like Kenya were quite much consistent with what the youth who took part in the study indicated. Most of the participants were in agreement that the key issues facing youth included high rates of unemployment, lack of adequate youth services and funding opportunities, alcohol and drug abuse, crime and violence, low reproductive health knowledge and lack of role models in the society.

4.5 Interventions to Address the Key Issues Facing Youth

The interventions to the issues facing youth in developing economies like Kenya were analyzed both quantitatively and qualitatively. The data collected from the youth were analyzed quantitatively while data from FGD were qualitatively analyzed.

The data collected from youth about the interventions to the problems facing youth included initiating the following: initiating self help groups, increasing youth funding channels, supporting entertainment industry, introducing informal entrepreneurship training programs, organizing youth retreats, initiating and supporting income generating projects.

The key interventions that were suggested by the majority of youth who took part in the study included supporting youth self help groups (74%) and offering general support of youth micro-enterprises (54%). A considerable percentage (19%) indicated that organizing youth retreats could also help in addressing the key issues facing youth today. This could have driven by the fact that youth today lack self-introspection and objective driven approach to life. Thus, such approaches could help in addressing some of the key underlying issues characterized by the wave of globalization.

Parents and guardians on the other hand suggested various interventions that could be put in place to address the plight of youth. They suggested that youth seminars/workshops covering various thematic issues could help address some of the key underlying issues. They also pointed out that entertainment programs could be introduced including but not limited to Youth Talents Shows, Music, Poetry, Sports among others. Such initiatives should be coupled with educational programs.

Parents also suggested the introduction of guidance and counseling offices to take care of youth counseling, career guidance and job placement needs. Further, they reiterated that the initiation of endowment funds by various development partners could also support youth enterprises. Since youth are characterized by inconstancies, the participants further suggested that youth enterprises support mechanisms should be set to continually monitor and evaluate youth driven projects to ensure sustainability.

5.0 Discussion

The finding of this study on the issue of youth unemployment as being key and critical issue facing youth in the 21 st Century is not new. Youth unemployment in the world currently stands at two or more times the rate of adult population, a fact that is consistent in both developed and developing countries. According to ILO (2010) findings, the youth unemployment issue is a global issue which is prevalent in both developed and developing economies. However, the problem is much more acute in developing economies like Kenya which are still trying to address other economic, social and political concerns. Thus, the issue of youth unemployment is likely to continue taking center stage in many developing economies of the world in the next couple of decades.

Substance abuse among both adults and youth is another common issue. However, with increasing levels of stress due to the demands of modern day life, the rates of substance abuse are on the increase. In this study, almost half of youth (45.7%) indicated that substance abuse was a key and one of the most pressing issues facing youth today. This finding is consistent with earlier literature which shows that alcohol use and drug abuse among youth in Kenya is on the increase (NACADA, 2012). Bearing in mind that the majority of youth have no constant source of income, taking of alcohol and other drugs not only exposes them to health problems but to social problems. Thus, there is a need for tangible interventions, including designing and implementation of sound youth drug abuse policy framework.

This study further revealed that reproductive health concern among youth in developing economies is among the key issues facing youth in the 21 st Century. Today, more than ever before, the plight of youth in dealing with reproductive health concerns is far much deeper owing to various threats such as HIV/AIDS prevalence, globalization and the erosion of moral values that traditionally held the society morally together (Wahab, Odunsi, & Ajiboye, 2012). Reproductive health concerns that include but not limited to lack of adequate knowledge about sexuality, HIV/AIDS, teenage pregnancies and abortion are key and real issues facing developing economies like Kenya. The need for counter-interventions is therefore a matter of urgency rather than choice.

Another key issue facing youth today is the lack of cohesion in the family unit. This was evident from the extent of youth participation in key family activities like praying together, eating, gathering and recreating together. A substantial percentage of youth indicated that they never participated in these family activities. This was also echoed by parents and guardians who participated in the study. The family as a unit of nature and nurture has been compounded with numerous challenges. Traditional societal values that held the family together in Africa’s context are today profoundly threatened by the social-economic demands (Bigombe & Khadiagal, 2002) of the 21 st century. Thus, interventions to address youth issues are expected to be much shaped by changing family and societal value system. There is a need for interventions to be geared much more towards influencing key family and societal values. Without such interventions, there is a high likelihood of ‘things falling apart’ and ‘the center no longer holding’ in the society of 21 st and later Centuries.

6.0 Conclusions and Recommendations

6.1 Conclusions

The scores with the highest percentage resulting from the analysis of the responses of youth on the level of urgency regarding the main issues facing youth represent the highest priority areas. These include prioritizing youth employment, youth support services including funding and substance abuse interventions.

Owing to the fast changing dynamics in the society, it is not enough to put in place youth issues interventions mechanisms without closely reinforcing the values of the family unit which is the foundation of youth well-being.

Some unintended outcomes of this study included the following:

Education and awareness – not only did parents get involved in focus group discussion but also they learnt about research application from the data collection process and also became much aware of youth issues and concerns,
Networking – focus group participants learnt from each other and built professional and personal relationships that could develop into future collaborative local programming efforts and
Program design – as a result of the focus group session, some participants indicated that they were planning to use the information in initiating youth programs and projects.

6.2 Recommendations

The study suggested networking initiatives to be undertaken by members of local communities and development partners. Determining if similar youth issues and concerns are being confronted by other communities in developing economies would be helpful in planning and implementing programming efforts. For instance, if other neighbouring communities are already addressing some of the identified top youth priority issues, the immediate study community might also learn and benefit from their experiences.

Communicating the findings of the study to people via various channels of communication like chief barazas (meetings) church groups and other forums like media might help in creating awareness which may result to certain measures being undertaken.

The findings of the study are also expected to help the local governments, development partners and communities to design local youth programs (including society and family value building programs, create youth agencies and task forces, and initiate a policy driven youth agenda to address the plight of youth in the 21 st century.

6.3 Recommendations for further studies

While this study endeavored to examine the key issues facing youth in the 21st Century from a developing economy’s perspective, the study did not exhaustively explore the issue of family and its impact on youth well-being. Thus, there is need to conduct further studies on the impact of structural fabrics of African family on youth development.

Bigombe, B., & Khadiagal, G.M. (2002). Major trends affecting families in Sub-Saharan Africa . Retrieved from http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/family/ Publications/ mtbigombe.pdf.

Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) (2010). 2009 Kenya Population and Housing Census . Nairobi: KNBS.

Owens, G. R. (1991). Organizational Behaviour in Education . Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall.

ILO (2010). Youth and work: global trends. Geneva: International Labour Organization.

ILO (2004). Improving prospects for young women and men in the world of work, a guide to youth employment. Policy consideration and recommendations for the development of National Action loans on Youth Employment . Geneva: Internal Labour Organization.

National Authority for the Campaign against Alcohol and Drug Abuse (NACADA,) (2012). Rapid situation assessment of the status of drug and substance abuse in Kenya , 2012. Retrieved from http://www.nacada.go.ke/documents-and-resources/category/8-research-survey-findings?download=40:rapid-assessment-of-alcohol-and-drug-abuse-situation-in-kenya-2012.

UN Habitat (2006). Youth Employment Summit (YES) Kenya 2006 . Retrieved from http://www.unhabitat.org/downloads/docs/ 3749_26714_draft_agenda.pdf

Witkin, R., & Altschuld, J. (1995 ) . Planning and conducting needs assessments: A practical guide. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.

Wahab, E. O., Odunsi, S. O., & Ajiboye, O. E. (2012). Causes and Consequences of Rapid Erosion of Cultural Values in a Traditional African Society. Journal of Anthropology, Volume 2012, Article ID 327061, p.7. Retrieved from http://www.hindawi.com/journals/janthro/2012/327061/

Wanjohi, A. M. (2014). Plight of youth in the 21st century: key issues and interventions in a developing economy’s perspective. African Research Journal of Education and Social Sciences, Vol. 1 (1). Available online at http://arjess.org/social-sciences-research/the-plight-of-youth-in-the-21st-century-key-issues-and-interventions-in-a-developing-economys-perspective.pdf

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World Youth Report: Addressing the complex challenges facing young people today

Today, there are 1.2 billion young people aged 15 to 24 years, accounting for 16 per cent of the global population. The active engagement of youth in sustainable development efforts is central to achieving sustainable, inclusive and stable societies by the target date, and to averting the worst threats and challenges to sustainable development, including the impacts of climate change, unemployment, poverty, gender inequality, conflict, and migration.

The World Youth Report focuses on youth education and employment, and explores the complex challenges facing the largest generation of youth the world has ever seen.

The Report provides insight into the critical role of young people in the context of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and related frameworks.

Advancing Youth Development

Far from being mere beneficiaries of the 2030 Agenda, young people have been active architects in its development and continue to be engaged in processes that support its implementation, follow-up and review. At the level of global policy, finance and measurement are major issues to be addressed as part of worldwide youth development efforts. At the national level, policy and programmatic responses to the Sustainable Development Goals have been slow and should be accelerated.

In education, 142 million youth of upper secondary age are out of school. In employment, 71 million young people are unemployed; and millions more are in precarious or informal work. Disparities within and between countries in education and employment among youth are stark, with gender, poverty, rurality, disability, and migrant/refugee status all being major elements of disadvantage. For instance, about 156 million youth in low- and middle-income countries are working poor (ILO), while almost 30 per cent of the poorest 12- to 14-year old have never attended school.

Evidence-based youth policies, tailored and adapted to national and local contexts, help ensure that youth development challenges are addressed. Key elements that help ensure an effective youth policy include providing political leadership and strategic vision; securing adequate budget and resource allocations; using timely and accurate data on the situation of young people; utilizing the knowledge, experience and expertise of young people in the design, implementation and evaluation of the youth policy; mainstreaming and integrating youth policies across sectors; taking into account the linkages and impacts of policy objectives; and developing a transparent monitoring and accountability framework.

The Report focuses primarily on the areas of education and employment, underlining the realization of targets under these Goals as fundamental to overall youth development. Issues related to other Goals—including gender equality, good health, reducing inequality, combating poverty and hunger, and action on environmental issues and climate change—are also addressed within the scope of the Report.

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Reasons Behind Youth’s Engagement to Drug Abuse in the 21st Century Essay

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Question at Issue

Unemployment and Drug Abuse among Youths in the 21st Century

Peer Pressure and Drug Abuse among Youths

Family lifestyle and drug abuse among youths, works cited.

What are the reasons behind youths’ engagement in drug abuse in the 21st century?

Although youths in the 21 st century engage in drug abuse due to several factors, it suffices to declare factors such as the rising unemployment status, peer pressure, and their hiked tendency to copy their parents’ behaviors as the principal drivers of drug abuse. However, one would wish to know why.

Unemployment and Drug Abuse among Youths in the 21 st Century

Eighner’s words of people being satisfied with what they have and or letting go of what their financial ability cannot afford do not seem to apply in the life of youths in the 21 st century.

Youth joblessness has become a key issue in the 21 st century. It has continued to have serious effects on development potential of young people. The increased rate of unemployment among young people encourages them to use drugs to change the way they feel or they way they perceive their incapacitated situation rather than accepting the situation and or using the right means of overcoming it.

They have to carry on with offensive acts and prostitution to sustain themselves. Drug abuse has physical, mental, and social effects. Physical injury also results from accidents that youths encounter while they are drunk. Joblessness and poverty also make the youths resort to self-treatment following the evident absence of funds for appropriate therapeutic treatment.

Morrel et al. confirm the existence of a “link between unemployment and increased drug, tobacco, and alcohol use” (237). Unemployment leads to stress, which makes youths use drugs hoping to feel better. However, on the contrary, they end up being drug addicts. Unemployment makes youths become vulnerable to drug abuse because they have a lot of free and idle time on their hands, which gives them the chances to involve themselves in socially deviant behaviors with drug abuse being one of those behaviors.

Lack of employment is among the factors that influence their feeding habits and hence their health. In fact, Eighner has come in handy to address the issue of healthy eating habits that even the jobless youth should use (6). However, he also points out financial issues that arise because of lack of jobs that determine what people or rather youth will choose to consume (drugs) based on their little or no cash at all (7).

Many youths who have no employment end up abusing drugs because they need to survive and or keep on pressing in this life. When youths are growing from being children to adults, they have a lot of hopes and aspirations, which fade off as time goes by as they involve in drug abuse as a way of forgetting their unemployment status.

Moreover, congruent with Eighner’s words, a decent job can help add to habitable earnings, civilized shelter, and high-quality social sustenance, which can help promote health and wellbeing of the youths, help them recover from mental health problems, and avoid substance abuse-related harms (6).

However, youths still abuse drugs despite some having good employment. In fact, Wells and Stacy say, “Finding meaningful employment will not solve all problems, but it’s a very important part of the bigger picture for many people” (164). Congruent with Curry’s Why We Work, it is possible for youths to experience stress to the extent of demanding ‘time offs’ (23) in their jobs. As a result, majority will use this opportunity to use stimulants as a way of relieving themselves from stress. Stimulants will make a youth forget his or her situation.

On the other hand, depressants like prescription of sleeping pills can give the youth a good and extended night’s sleep, which is especially common to unemployed young people for they want to remain sleepy so that they do not think much of their situation. They prefer taking depressants to escape their problems. As they repeatedly take the pills, they end up being drug addicts. Research done by Florida found out, “states with higher unemployment rates do tend to have higher rates of drug use” (Wells and Stacy 163).

Peer pressure is among the strongest predictors of drug use during adolescence. Peers initiate youths into drugs, provide drugs, model drug- using behaviors, and shape attitude about drugs. Currently, youths are adopting a common lifestyle.

Most adolescents are drained by this lifestyle not because they lack something essential in their lives like a job or because they have a genuine reason as to why they have adopted to that very lifestyle but because they want to fit into their peer group for acceptance. Peer pressure leads to the abuse of drugs by teenagers. Teens engage in drugs in order to rhyme with their peers. The extensive and continuous use of these drugs lands them to drug addiction.

A drastic rise in drug abuse among teens in the 21 st century has been noted following their parting with their parents to join their peers at school. On the contrary, Cisneros’ The Storyteller is an article that features the life of a young tutor who has been far from her parents for a while. Although Cisneros has peers in her workplace, she is an epitome of young people who choose to go against the norms to do what is right no matter the pressure (Cisneros 153) of experimenting things along with her peers.

According to Morrel et al., “teenagers seem to have more problems with peer pressure because they are just beginning to learn about whom they are and what their belief systems are” (240).

Peer pressure stands out as among the principal causes that can drive the present-day knowledgeable youths towards drugs dependence. When educated youths are through with their studies, they start hunting jobs. Sometimes, the jobless time can extend due to rapid changes in the job market thus leading them to start experiencing headaches, depressions, and confusion.

At this stage, the peers who seem to be helping them to overcome the situation lead the educated youths into the act of abusing drugs. By the time they realize they are abusing drugs, they already have reached the addiction stage. Peer pressure qualifies as one of the central roots of drug abuse among youths because many teenagers try drugs because they were given by their friends. Unfortunately, what people believe their peers want them to do is often the cause of what they actually do.

The way family functions can have a strong impact on a teenager. Teenagers coming from families where there is minute parental management and attention have high chances of misusing drugs in relation to teens from homes with more parental participation. Teens who spent the better part of the day without their parents have high chances of participating in hazardous behaviors. Tough folk relations can help prevent drug abuse.

Coming from a home that stresses on using of harmful substances has a tendency to make a young person perceive it as up to standard. Detrimental family pressure may be an aspect in a teen’s early drug testing. In fact, “Exposure to family members who reach for a substance to cure every pain of ailment can cause a teen to do the same” (239). Young people acquire many of their principles from parents and other mature influences.

They often mimic what they see. In addition, adolescents who have the perception that they are not close to or treasured by their parents are at a larger hazard because they have low self-esteem, which leads to depression and hence drug addiction. A teen may also engage in a drug abuse act when he or she comes from a family with poor familial factors like poor communication strategies between youths and their parents.

In conclusion, youths lie within a delicate age set, which is prone to many dangers especially drug abuse. The paper has discussed drug abuse as the main challenge facing youths in the 21 st century. It has clearly described how youths engage in drug abusing activities. Three reasons behind this engagement have been addressed.

Unemployment is one of the issues discussed in this paper whereby many unemployed persons engage in abusing drugs as a way of getting consolation. Peer pressure also plays a big role in the act of drug abuse among the youths. Lastly, family lifestyle has a major influence on teens and their likelihood of abusing drugs.

Curry, Andrew. Why We Work. London: Routledge, 2010. Print.

Cisneros, Sandra. “The Storyteller.” The Oprah Magazine 10.3(2009): 153. Print.

Eighner, Lars. “On Dumpster Diving.” The Threepenny Review 1.47(1991): 6-8. Print.

Morrel, Stanley, Jack Taylor, and Kerr Bill. “Jobless. Unemployment and Young People’s Health.” Medical Journal of Australia 168.5(1998): 236-40. Print.

Wells, Brian, and Barrie Stacy. “A Further Comparison of Cannabis (marijuana) Users and Non users.” British Journal of Addiction to Alcohol and Other Drugs 71.2(1976): 161-165. Print.

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IvyPanda . 2018. "Reasons Behind Youth’s Engagement to Drug Abuse in the 21st Century." November 28, 2018. https://ivypanda.com/essays/reasons-behind-youths-engagement-to-drug-abuse-in-the-21st-century/.

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Youth embody ‘spirit’ of 21st century more than parents, new survey shows

Part of the solution

Hopeful, not naïve

Aware of risks

21st century citizens

A STUDY ON YOUTH AND THEIR CHALLENGES IN THE 21 st CENTURY

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