Social inclusion, digitalisation and young people: research study
In: Șerban, Adina Marina and Stefan, Veronica and Potocnik, Dunja and Moxon, Dan (2020) Social inclusion, digitalisation and young people: research study. Council of Europe, Strasbourg.
This study aims to explore the existing state of play when it comes to digitalisation and social inclusion of young people. The overall question leading this study was: "What is the intersection between social inclusion and digitalisation?". In order to explore this intersection, three main sub- questions were used: 1) What are the relevant policies, legal frameworks and practices at European, national and local level looking at the intersection of social inclusion and digitalisation in the youth field? ; 2) What are the instruments (tools, platforms) that the national and local authorities, or other entities, have been developing to train the specialists in the youth field (the youth workers, youth educators, youth specialists, civil servants) to work on digitalisation and social inclusion o that the state and non-state actors make available for young people in order to respond to their needs and interests related to digitalization? ; and 3) What are the potential risks and opportunities of digitalisation for young people – especially for the ones that are at risk of social exclusion? Considering the research questions stated above, the objectives of the study are the following: 1) To offer a general review of the European, national and local youth policies, focusing on social inclusion and digitalisation ; 2) To present existing practices, based on a brief analysis of the national, transnational and local projects ; and 3) To present potential risks and opportunities of digitalisation. In terms of data collection, two main methods used were: 1. The online questionnaire using open questions. Data was collected using an online questionnaire answered by EKCYP correspondents and youth organisations across Europe ; and 2) Desk review of relevant documents. The researchers conducted a desk review of mainly secondary sources (literature, legislation, action plans, governmental programmes, resolutions and decisions). Desk analysis was complemented by the secondary analysis of data collected during the EU's 6th Cycle of Structured Dialogue.