Sociological Diagnosis of the Times from a Viewpoint of Changing Youth Cultures

Tuesday, 8 July 2025: 09:00-10:45
Location: ASJE014 (Annex of the Faculty of Legal, Economic, and Social Sciences)
RC34 Sociology of Youth (host committee)

Language: English

The aim of this session is to sociologically identify distinctive features of the present age through empirical and theoretical studies on changing youth cultures.

As Mannheim once described sociology as the study of 'diagnosis of the times', we seek to achieve a comprehensive understanding of the present age, which has been termed as the ‘Anthropocene’, a geological epoch shaped by the impacts of human activities, and a driver of a new age of reflexivity (reflexive modernity).

Reflexivity has been central to sociology including the field of youth studies over the last three decades and generated significant controversy. Some argue that reflexivity is also tied to the scholarly attempt to define the present age as the Anthropocene. Many theoretical reflections addressing social changes suggest that our societies have entered a transitional phase. Particularly, it is worth investigating the cultures of youth navigating life transitions in this current age of transition.

We encourage proposals grounded in all methods, including longitudinal comparative research (quantitative/qualitative) and that address the thematic scope of our session.

Session Organizers:
Izumi TSUJI, Chuo University, Japan and Tomohiko ASANO, Tokyo Gakugei University, Japan
Oral Presentations
Marriage and Fertility Aspirations in Post-Pandemic China: Changes in the Preferences of Young Adults
Sampson BLAIR, The State University of New York, USA; Timothy MADIGAN, Commonweath University, USA; Sha LUO, The University of Wisconsin, USA
Redefining Marriage: The Impact of College Education on Youth Marriage Purpose in China
Wenjing QIN, Fudan University, China; Yiqing Gan GAN, Fudan University, China
Research on the Process of Seeking ‘Da Zi’ and the Trend of Moderate Interaction of Young People
Xinyi MA, School of Social and Behavioral Sciences,Nanjing University, China
The Transformation of Intimacy: Generation Z's Love and Friendship Relationships Redefined
Chryssanthi ZACHOU, American College of Greece-Deree, Greece; Evaggelia KALERANTE, University of W. Macedonia, Greece
Social Change and Current Challenges: Youth Social Careers
Laima ZILINSKIENE, Vilnius University, Lithuania
Distributed Papers
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