Policies and Young People in Rural Development (PAYPIRD)

Project Details

FAIR Contract nr: ERBFAIRCT984171
FAIR Project nr: 4171
Project type: SC
Project title: Policies and young people in rural development

Start date: 1 April 1999

Duration: 22 months

Total cost: 669,000 EUR

EC Contribution: 669,000 EUR

Scientific Officer: Muriel HUYBRECHTS

Area: Changes underway in rural areas.

Acronym: PAYPIRD

Background

In order to develop effective policies, both for achieving rural development objectives (e.g. through LEADER and through the Structural Funds), and for tackling young people’s economic and social exclusion in rural areas, the EU needs better information about the effects of existing policies on young people's rural labour market opportunities, the causes of their exclusion, and how these are changing. This project is intended to remedy this deficiency, leading both to a better understanding of the causes of exclusion and integration of young people in rural areas, who are after all the future of those communities, and to a more appropriate policy response.

Objectives

This study seeks to answer the questions: How do policies at various levels impact on the 'pathways' to young people’s exclusion and integration in rural areas, and how do these differ between social groups (especially by class and gender) and between rural areas? What role can policies play in ensuring the active participation of young people in rural labour markets?

The specific objectives of this research are as follows:

  1. to analyse from young people’s perspective in 7 study areas (in Scotland, Ireland, Germany, Portugal, France, Finland, and Austria) the effects of policies and operational programmes at various levels on young people’s integration into rural labour markets, and therefore on social cohesion in rural areas;
  2. to explore how changes in labour markets, labour market policies and welfare regimes, at various levels, interact with changes in the nature and duration of the youth transition to include or exclude young people from rural employment opportunities;
  3. to consider appropriate means and levels of policy implementation.
    The emphasis is on comparative case studies of how policies impact on real-life conditions and experiences, and on linking these narratives with macro processes of economic, social and institutional change. Consequently, the methodology is mainly qualitative, supplemented by quantitative contextual enquiry and secondary data analysis.

Description

A common research design has been developed and applied in all study areas, which is elaborated in the final report. In summary, this can be divided into three crucial stages.

From the outset we have found it helpful to focus on the different systems through which resources, including knowledge and information, are allocated in society. These four systems (market, state, civil society, and social networks) are crucial in structuring the life-chances of young people in rural areas as well as in forming the arenas in which young people themselves can engage and act. From this conceptualisation we developed a number of themes for analysis which seek to investigate the operation of each of these systems and their interactions. These are as follows:

  1. How far can state policies addressing integration of young people into employment tackle social exclusion?
  2. What characteristics make rural areas attractive to young people, and what are the implications of this for rural development? ("The attractiveness of rural areas: a crucial issue for local development policies")
  3. An analysis of rural labour markets in Europe and young people’s role in them ("Rural young people and labour market indicators")
  4. What can be learnt from projects involving youth in local community development? ("Rural Youth in Local Community Development – Lessons through ‘Partnership")
  5. The effect of rural development policies on young people’s integration into the social and economic life in rural areas? ("Rural development programmes and their impact on youth integration")
  6. The role of social networks in finding employment ("Social networks, labour market and policy impact in Santa Marta de Penaguião")
  7. The interface between school and the labour market as one dimension of youth transition ("Experiences of rural youth in the ‘risk society’: transitions from education to the labour market")

Final Report

The Final Report was published in March 2001. 

It is structured as follows. Following an introductory chapter, Chapter 2 summarises the conceptual and theoretical context for this work, touching on labour markets, social exclusion, and the youth transition. In Chapter 3 we review existing knowledge of these issues and provide such contextual information as we can, drawing primarily on Eurostat data and the Luxembourg Expenditure Survey. One section explores the feasibility of developing indicators of rural labour market strength, given the available data sources. Another substantial section explores the use of household panel micro-data. Chapter 4 describes the methodology in more detail, explaining how the research was undertaken.

Chapters 5 to 10 then investigate, in turn, each of the themes listed above, except for the theme of strength of local labour markets which is included within Chapter 3. Each of these chapters is written by one of the partners but seeks to integrate findings from all of the study areas, drawing on the reports produced by each national team concerning their own study area. These ‘national’ reports are not included in this volume but will be available separately, in summary form. Finally, we draw conclusions from the research and make recommendations for policy.

Two sections are downloadable here as Word documents:

Hard copies of the full report (330 pages) are available from the Arkleton Institute at a cost of £20 including postage. Sterling cheques should be made payable to the University of Aberdeen. Please check availability with the Centre before sending your cheque.

Co-ordinator details:

First name: Mark
Name: SHUCKSMITH

Organisation: University of Aberdeen
Address: Arkleton Centre for Rural Development Research
University of Aberdeen
Aberdeen, AB24 3UF
United Kingdom

Tel.: +44 1224 27 23 60
Fax: +44 1224 27 39 02
E-mail: m.shucksmith@abdn.ac.uk

Partners' details:

First name: Gerhard
Name: CHRISTE

Organisation: Institut for Arbeitsmarktforschung und jegendberufshilfe Oldenburg (non profit research organisation)
Address: Haarenfeld 7
DE - 26121 Oldenburg
Germany

Tel.: +49 4 419 738 837
Fax: +49 4 419 738 839
E-mail: IAJ.Christe@t-online.de

First name: John
Name: CANAVAN

Organisation: University College Galway
Address: Department of Sociology
National University of Ireland
Galway
Ireland

Tel.: +353 91 52 44 11
Fax: +353 91 52 97 00
E-mail: john.canavan@nuigalway.ie

First name: Thomas
Name: DAX

Organisation: Bundesanstalt fuer Bergbauernfragen
Address: Moellwaldplatz 5
AT - 1040 Wien
Austria

Tel.: +43 1 504 886 90
Fax: +43 1 504 886 939
E-mail: thomas.dax@babf.bmlf.gv.at

First name: Elizabeth
Name: AUCLAIR

Organisation: Fors recherche Sociale Association loi 1901
Address: Rue Godefroy Cavaignac 28
FR - 75011 Paris
France

Tel.: +33 1 40 09 15 12
Fax: +33 1 40 09 15 32
E-mail: forsrs@easynet.fr

First name: Jose Francisco Gandra
Name: PORTELA

Organisation: Universidade de Tras-os-montes e alto douro Public University
Address: Av. Almeida Lucena s/no
PT - 5000 Villa real
Portugal

Tel.: +351 59 33 25 45
Fax: +351 59 32 57 80
E-mail: jportela@cutad.pt

First name: Toivo
Name: MUILU

Organisation: University of Oulu
Address: Department of Geography
University of Oulu
Oulu, FIN-90571
Finland

Tel.: +358 8 553 1711
Fax: +359 8 553 1693
E-mail: toivo.muilu@oulu.fi