Childhood and youth research w

Childhood and youth research widely recognizes that it is
inadequate to consider the transition from childhood to youth to adulthood in
terms of a linear progression from dependence to independence (Furlong 2010;
Wyn and Dwyer 1999). Youth is an age group that is in transition from childhood
to adulthood, and consequently young people’s status is often ambiguous. In the
minority world, due to changes in family structures, education and the labour
market (see below), youth transitions have become longer, interrupted and more
complex. This has led to more options for young people as they may shift
between work and education, but it has also created much uncertainty and
increased financial dependency on their parents (Furlong 2010). In the minority
world, young people are now more likely to undergo a series of transitions,
moving in and out of independence and dependence in different contexts and in
relation to different people (EGRIS 2001), and yet still the ultimate goal is
to achieve independence (Gillies 2000). Similarly, in the majority world, the
notion of ‘youth transition’ from dependent child to independent adult is
problematic, since young people negotiate and renegotiate their interdependence
with their parents and siblings throughout the life course. Thus, the notion of
interdependence is a useful way of understanding how young people move in and
out of relative autonomy and dependence (Punch 2002a).