Young people’s attitudes and values

Abstract

This chapter discusses the attitudes and aspirations of young people themselves. First, it considers whether being employed, being jobless, or having a temporary contract affect young people's attitudes to trust and trustworthiness Those who have managed to find good jobs, along with those who choose not to participate in the labour market or education, are more trusting than students, while the unemployed and above all those who find themselves in precarious employment are the least trusting of all. Young people — whether employed or not — also showed strong signs of solidarity with those who did not have jobs. The chapter then assesses young people's work values, arguing that generational differences in attitudes to work are a myth. It also looks at emerging policy lessons from research on youth attitudes and values.