Social Futures, Orientations and Identities of Young People in Queensland

Zlatko Skribis, Mark Western, Bruce Tranter and David Hogan

This multidisciplinary research projects attempts to provide a comprehensive assessment of the identities, attitudes, beliefs, expectations and social orientations of young Queenslanders at critical points in their life trajectories. By tracking them over time and watching how their identities and life circumstances change, it brings critical evidence to bear on the nature of the "new life pathways" in contemporary Australia and on who the new winners and losers are in the new social environment. By investigating issues of identity formation and transformation, mapping life pathways that move through worlds of work, education, family and the like, and showing how pathways and identities are linked, the research addresses central questions about the extent to which individuals can negotiate and take advantage of the new social arrangements they encounter in their daily lives. The project is being conducted jointly with colleagues in the University of Queensland, the University of Tasmania and Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.