The usefulness of the concept of belonging in youth transitions

This chapter examines the contribution of belonging to the study of youth transitions. Recently, youth researchers have found belonging a useful concept to understand contemporary youth biographies, particularly as transitions have become progressively non-linear and precarious. Interest in belonging has also been heightened by the unprecedented flows of mobility, digital connection, social acceleration, social diversity and rapid social change that shape the everyday lives of youth in every corner of the world. Belonging, however, is an under-theorised concept that in many instances is used by youth researchers as an umbrella concept, almost as a self-evident idea and practice, to understand the relationship between young people, place, time, social structures, mobilities and communities. Against this backdrop, we contend that there is a prescient need to more comprehensively theorise the concept of belonging and to take stock of its usefulness in the field of youth studies and transitions.