Project description
Twinning programme to study Estonia’s youth
Sociology applies the life course theory to several areas of family life, offering helpful resources throughout a person’s lifetime, especially in the period of transition to adulthood. There are both qualitative and quantitative methodologies to study these transitions. However, a mixed approach could lead to better support for young adults. To that end, the EU-funded YouthLife project will initiate a three-year twinning programme to bridge qualitative and quantitative approaches to life course research with the aim of introducing methodological innovations and providing new insights into youth transitions to adulthood. The new knowledge will be applied in the design of the new Estonian Longitudinal Study of Youth. The project will foster mutually advantageous networking and knowledge exchange between Tallinn University, the University of Bamberg, the University of Southampton and the Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute.
Objective
The YouthLife project aims to strengthen research on youth transitions from a life course perspective by facilitating multifaceted capacity building at the Centre of Interdisciplinary Life Course Studies (CILCS) at Tallinn University (TLU) through a partnership with three internationally-leading research institutions with complementary methodological expertise and experience: University of Bamberg (UB), University of Southampton (UoS), and the Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute (NIDI). YouthLife will create beneficial conditions for TLU to become a first class research institution integrated into leading international networks of life course research with the potential to be a reliable and credible partner for further collaborative research at EU level. The project will increase research, cooperation and networking capacities through peer-to-peer interaction, experience exchange, methodological knowledge transfers and mutual learning during four intensive training courses, six practical workshops, online resources, study and research visits. YouthLife will also improve research management and administration (RMA) skills at TLU and upgrade its RMA support system. The project will tackle the divide between quantitative and qualitative approaches in life course research, introduce methodological innovations and provide new insights into youth transitions to adulthood. The methodological knowledge and experiences gained will be applied to the elaboration of the conceptual and methodological framework of the new Estonian Longitudinal Study of Youth (ELSY) during the project and its implementation afterwards, with the aim of filling the gap in longitudinal data for a better understanding of youth transitions to adulthood.
Fields of science
Keywords
Programme(s)
- H2020-EU.4.b. - Twinning of research institutions Main Programme
Topic(s)
Funding Scheme
CSA - Coordination and support actionCoordinator
10120 Tallinn
Estonia