Engaging the angst of unemployed youth in post‐industrial Japan: a narrative self‐help approach
Date
2018
Authors
Kido, Rie
Editors
Advisors
Yoneyama, Shoko
Lin, Delia
Lin, Delia
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
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Theses
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Statement of Responsibility
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Abstract
This thesis examines the experience of indefinable angst (ikizurasa) among youth who
are in a long‐term period of unemployment in post‐industrial Japan. The current
dominant model for unemployment support is largely based on activation policies,
which assume that users can identify their problems and clarify their needs in regard
to job seeking. However, the effectiveness of activation policies is limited for
individuals with long‐term unemployment precisely because of their angst, which
prevents them from acting rationally. This thesis explores another model to support
such youth by using empirical data collected from those with a strong sense of ikizurasa.
It addresses two questions: 1) What is ikizurasa angst? and 2) What sort of approach
can be effective to mitigate it? For answering these questions, two research methods
are adopted: 1) participant observation in a self‐help group where unemployed youth
with ikizurasa gather to help themselves by sharing their own narratives, and 2) indepth
interviews of ten participants of the group.
This thesis argues that the term ikizurasa is a reflection of individualised
marginalisation in a post‐industrial society where a life career becomes destandardised,
the form of marginalisation is diversified and individualised, and the
collective expression of marginalisation is weakened. Since the term ikizurasa denotes
only subjective pain and not objective situations, it enables people to express their
feelings of alienation and share them with others. This study found that through
dialogical interactions, participants were able to re‐interpret the meaning of ikizurasa
from a narrative of isolation to that of connectedness.
The thesis further notes that for meaningful support of someone with ikizurasa,
(re)constructing human relationships through the sharing of narratives may be a
prerequisite before making an attempt to find work. The participant observation of the
narrative self‐help practice showed that members could renew their sense of self and
also clarify their needs in a practical manner, which had been difficult to achieve in
existing activation schemes. The effectiveness of the self‐help group is based on
‘indirect aim‐setting’, which means that the goal is not getting a job, but rather selfhelp
and enhancing the users’ subjectivity.
This thesis concludes that a relational approach that enables youth to reconnect
themselves to society is especially effective in an increasingly individualised world, and
suggests an institutional framework to enhance relational support, as well as
employment and welfare assistance for youth with Ikizurasa.
School/Discipline
School of Social Sciences : Asian Studies
Dissertation Note
Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Social Sciences, 2018
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