Youth transitions as ‘wiki-transitions’ in youth policies platforms

The version of a journal article that has been accepted for publication in a journal. This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in European Societies on 22/11/2019 available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/14616696.2019.1690158.In recent years, a number of youth-focused online platforms have emerged which, in different ways, seek to support young people across Europe in building pathways to independent adulthood. In this article, we draw on data from Edgeryders, a recent youth policy research project, to reflect on the extent to which online discussion platforms are useful instruments for understanding the challenges youth face in their transitions to independent adulthood across Europe. Noting the collaborative emphasis articulated by both the project designers and participants, we ask how we might make sense of the data – and the meanings conveyed by that data – produced by online projects. We propose the notion of ‘wiki-transitions’ as a means of theorising young people’s use of online space to support their transitions to adulthood

'Empowerment' and the pole: A discursive investigation of the reinvention of pole dancing as a recreational activity

The activity of 'pole dancing' has recently been transformed from an act performed exclusively in strip clubs to one currently marketed as a form of aerobic exercise. While much feminist academic work has investigated aspects of the sex industry, such as stripping, very little research has been conducted into this recent social phenomenon of pole dancing as a recreational activity. This study takes a feminist poststructuralist approach to the investigation of this topic through the discursive analysis of talk produced in a range of focus groups and interviews. Participants included instructors at pole dancing studios, pupils regularly attending the studios, one-off pole dancers and general university students (a total of 25 participants; 20 females and five males). Our analysis focuses on the ways in which ideological dilemmas surrounding issues such as empowerment, control and the male gaze are managed within the participants' accounts. Implications of these constructions are discussed in relation to the redefinition/reiteration of hegemonic, patriarchal notions of female sexuality