El tránsito a la vida adulta de los jóvenes en dificultad social: la incidencia de la intervención socioeducativa y la perspectiva de profesionales y empresarios

Authors

Miguel Melendro EstefaníaSalto de línea Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia. Facultad de Educación. Departamento de Teoría de la Educación y Pedagogía Social. Madrid, España.

DOI

10.4438/1988-592X-RE-2011-356-042

Abstract

The Transition to Adult Life for Young People with Social Difficulties: the Impact of Socio-educational Intervention and the Perspective of Professionals and Employers

This article reports the results of a recent study on the effects of socio-educational intervention in young people’s transition to an independent, responsible adult life while in socially difficult situations. The most significant characteristics of the transition to adult life are reviewed, as is the position of professionals and employers regarding the process. A causal/correlational ex-post-facto methodology is used in the study, employing a longitudinal analysis of the available information about the time of emancipation of the young. A random, statistically significant (nc99% me0.1) sample of young people in socially difficult situations is selected, along with a sample of employers and socio-educational teams. A battery of instruments (questionnaires, interviews, content analysis) is applied, and the results are compared and triangulated. The results show that an acceptable level of social and occupational integration is achieved by the young people in terms of access to work, occupational experience, average salary and existential satisfaction. The social and occupational integration programmes and the socio-educational teams score highly. The young people’s most significant learning experiences during the intervention process are described: occupational competence, coexistence, living independently and personal maturity. Employers show a high level of satisfaction with social and occupational integration programmes, although their assessment of the young people’s job performance is low. The socio-educational teams underscore the scarcity of resources for supporting young people’s transition into adult life and report low expectations for the young people’s eventual social and occupational integration. The discussion portion of the paper elaborates on the complex balance between the perspectives of young people, business owners and professionals and concludes by providing ten proposals for improvement.

Keywords

Young people, socially difficult situations, socio-educational intervention, social and occupational integration, educational teams, emancipation, sustainable society