'Growing up tough': A national survey of South African youth

Title: 'Growing up tough': A national survey of South African youth
Creator: Everatt, David, Orkin, Mark
Subject: Youth -- South Africa -- Attitudes -- Congresses
Subject: Youth -- Research
Subject: Youth -- South Africa -- Social conditions
Subject: Social surveys -- South Africa -- Congresses
Subject: Marginality, Social -- South Africa Congresses
Date: 1993-03
Type: text
Type: book
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/65862
Identifier: vital:28849
Description: The Community Agency for Social Enquiry (CASE) was commissioned by the Joint Enrichment Project (JEP) to undertake research for the National Youth Development Conference. The research programme had three components:the compilation of a computerised and annotated youth database, comprising domestic research into youth, and the extraction of five policy papers covering the areas of education, employment-creation, AIDS, violence and social context, and historical context. an international comparative component, which focused on the youth brigades in Botswana, and the whole range of youth development initiatives taking place in Kenya and Uganda, covered in an additional two position papers. a national baseline and attitudinal survey into youth in South Africa. The results of all three components of the research project will be published in book form later this year. The summary reports of the local and international comparative policy papers are available in a separate booklet. This is the report of the national survey into youth in South Africa. Aims of the survey The survey has four main aims: demographic: to accurately describe how many youth are in the different parts of South Africa, how many are in or out of school or work, and so on. attitudinal: to allow youth to express their views on a range of social, economic, political and personal issues.to analyse youth marginalisation: to scientifically analyse and describe the marginalisation of youth within South African society. programmatic: to provide results which directly assist organisations designing programmes which target youth. Designing the survey The survey was designed by the CASE senior research team of Professor Mark Orkin, Director of C A S E; Dr David Everatt, Deputy Director of CASE and project co-ordinator; and Dr Ros Hirschowitz, Specialist Researcher at C A S E. The design process was lengthy and complex, because the aims of the survey were complicated. As a first step, CASE gathered together existing youth research and survey data, in order to see what we could learn from them. We then convened a design workshop to assist us. Participants in the C A S E national youth survey for JEP 1 workshop comprised people who had experience with youth, or with survey design. They included John Aitchison (CASE and the Centre for Adult Education, University of Natal), Debbie Budlender (CASE and the National Women's Coalition), Dr Jannie Hofmeyr (Research Surveys), Ms Vanessa Kruger and Professor Ari Sitas (University of Natal), Ms Anne Letsebe (SABSWA), Mr Steve Mokwena (JEP), Mr Rory Riordan (Human Rights Trust) and Dr Jeremy Seekings (University of Cape Town). We also needed input from the youth themselves. Discussion groups with youth (called 'focus groups') were held with youth from Alexandra and Soweto, from Ciskei and the eastern Cape, from Bophuthatswana and the northern transvaal, from Chatsworth and Claremont in Durban, and elsewhere. We reached youth from cities, squatter camps, towns and rural areas. The focus groups were organised by C A S E and Research Surveys, a professional market research company. The youth told us what their concerns were, what their aspirations and fears were, and what interventions they felt are necessary to improve their lives. CASE then designed a draft survey. We had to try it out (called 'piloting') to find out if the survey tapped the youth's actual views and experiences, and so give the JEP the information they sought. The survey was piloted on a representative sample of 100 youth (aged between 16 and 30) by Research Surveys. Using the results of the focus groups and the pilots, the CASE research team then produced the final questionnaire, which went into the field in November/December 1992.
Format: 44 pages, pdf
Publisher: Joint Enrichment Project, Community Agency for Social Enquiry
Language: English
Rights: Community Agency for Social Enquiry
Rights: Joint Enrichment Project
Rights: No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior permission from the publisher

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