Youth study Serbia 2018/2019

Abstract

- Young people primarily engage in socialising and entertainment in their free time. The focus is on private life-family/ friends and consumerism prevail over social engagement and self-development. Certain forms of social anomie and pathology are considered widespread and even normal for society. This perception, however, is not enough to trigger a revolt or an attempt to change this state by personal engagement. — The family is a significant source of support for young people during the period in which they grow up; it provides them with financial, emotional and social support. However, the family takes on obligations that should have been assumed by the state, which places a heavy burden on rather scarce family resources. As a consequence, young people neglect the role of social institutions as well as their own responsibility for the position they are in, just as they overlook their own responsibility for changing the society they live in. — There is a widespread desire among young people to leave the country; young people in Serbia lead the way in this aspect compared to other countries in the region. The main reason for emigration is the desire for a better standard of living, but the intensity of this desire is more related to a pessimistic view of the future of the Serbian society than to the difficulty of the current financial situation in which youth find themselves. — Completion of a higher level of education by young people of different socio-economic status is unequally distributed. Higher socio-economic status “guarantees” a higher completed level of education, higher academic aspirations, a more positive status of the degree and a successful career. The system directly encourages precariousness of both work and the worker, as has also been confirmed through analysis of the factors affecting job choices – salary and job security are the dominant factors. — Young people are not interested in politics; they do not discuss the topic, nor do they seek information on politics. Institutions of society and the state are not something that warrants the trust of young people, and this is especially true of the political parties. There is widespread dissatisfaction with the state of democracy and the status of democratic values in Serbia; nevertheless, there is support for the democratic political system in general. Serbia’s accession to the European Union evokes positive associations and a view that it would have positive effects on the Serbian economy, political system and cultural identity