It’s official! Britain has the most badly behaved, promiscuous and dangerous youngsters in Europe. That is the general opinion of the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR), a think tank whose recent investigation into British teenage culture worrying concluded that: ‘Commentators fear that British youth is on the verge of mental breakdown, at risk from anti-social behaviour, self-harm, drug and alcohol abuse. These concerns are, to an extent, borne out.’ This news had prompted a flurry of media attention and has caused many to question and hypothesise why exactly our youngsters are so bad.
The statistics are certainly damning:
– 38% of British 15-year-olds have tried cannabis (compared to 7% in Sweden and 27% in Germany)
– Britain’s teens are the third worst binge-drinkers in Europe (after those heavyweights from Ireland and, somewhat surprisingly, Denmark)
– One in ten teenage girls has self-harmed
– British teens have more sex than their counterparts in Germany, France and Italy, while the country also has the highest rate of teenage pregnancy in Europe
Anecdotal evidence is not hard to come by either, with many Britons in a flurry over the hoodies, yobs and gangstas hanging around on street corners and making mischief. In fact, the IPPR report reveals that 1.5m Britons have considered moving house to get away from loitering youngsters and 1.7m admit to avoiding leaving the house after dark because of worries over youths in the street. While 65% of Germans, 52% of Spaniards and 50% of Italians would be prepared to intervene if they came across a group of 14-year-old boys vandalising a bus shelter, only 34% of Britain’s fearful population would be prepared to help.
These figures have helped highlight what is certainly a growing problem in Britain. Recent years have seen an increasing number of incidents of violent crime involving teenagers (with a worrying trend towards the use of knives and guns), while Britain’s deeply entrenched drinking culture also means that underage drinking is commonplace. The government has of course been doing its best to tackle the problem, for example introducing anti-social behaviour disorders (better knows as Asbos) to punish and restrain trouble makers. Worryingly though, recent research by the Youth Justice Board shows that many young people view these Asbos as a ‘badge of honour’.
Many commentators appear to be of the opinion that it is a breakdown of traditional family life and values which is depriving Britain’s children of a normal upbringing and therefore driving them onto the streets to ‘hang out with their mates’. It is alleged that Southern European countries, with their Catholic traditions, place greater emphasis on the family unit, while in Scandinavia a strong welfare state and sense of civic duty keep children in line. The IPPR’s results do confirm this opinion to some extent, revealing that 45% of English 15-year-old boys and 59% of Scottish ones spend most evenings out with friends, while in France only 17% do. Meanwhile, 93% of Italian teenagers claim to regularly eat with their family, but just 64% of Britons do. It could though be argued that British youngsters don’t eat with their family and choose to spend time on the streets because they are troublesome rather than blaming the disappearance of the nuclear family for causing these social problems. It does though seem fair to conclude that greater contact with and respect for adults can help foster more mature and civil behaviour amongst children, and changes in Britain’s social structure undoubtedly are not helping this. There are also many who blame the poor standard of state education in Britain, particularly in the poorest areas, for helping to create and perpetuate these groups of anti-social youngsters. Certainly compared to the Scandinavian nations, Britain’s schools leave a lot to be desired ,and the worst-performing institutions can become part of the self-perpetuating cycle of kids who are under-educated, violent and inadequately prepared to enter society.
While the debate rages over the roots of this anti-social behaviour, just as importantly many are discussing exactly what should be done to help. Mark Eaton, BBC News’ home affairs editor, is firmly of the opinion that sports and activities are the way forward. Apparently kids attending sports schemes and community centres are 3% less likely to be depressed, 5% less likely to end up single, separated or divorced, 3% less like to later live in social housing and 2% less likely to obtain no qualifications. Although Eaton claims that ‘the conclusions are obvious’, these percentages seem far too low to be of real significance, and while it is desirable for children to get involved with social and sporting activities, forcing little Kevin to join the badminton club does not provide a satisfactory answer to these problems. The IPPR does though generally agree with the idea of stimulating youngsters and helping them to develop, concluding rather scientifically that: ‘Young people who do not have access to the factors that develop their non-cognitive abilities are increasingly vulnerable to failure, while their better socialised peers will increasingly succeed.’
Some other voices though claim that this is all just a case of media manipulation, with the press choosing teenagers as their latest target to demonise and blame for crime. Pam Hibbert from the children’s charity Barnardo’s cites the fact that ‘young crime in itself has remained fairly static in the last 10 years.’ She blames the media and politicians for highlighting and exaggerating violence involving youths to ‘breed fear’. This of course is not a new accusation, and it is well documented that the number of media reports of certain types of crime often does not correlate with the actual events on the street. It also must be pointed out the record numbers of teenagers are leaving school with good qualifications and more are choosing to go to university than ever before. This might though worryingly indicate a social gulf appearing between a successful, well-adjusted majority, and a dangerous, neglected minority ignored and left behind.
Whatever the reality of the situation on our streets, it is obvious that the British public are feeling more scared of and less connected with a younger generation who are increasingly viewed as dangerous and violent and who appear not to really care about others, and often themselves. However big this anti-social section of society really is, there are undoubtedly social and perhaps cultural reasons for the way they have ended up. Tackling these will be as big a challenge for Britain’s government as any they face. Tony Blair’s Asbo scheme appears not to have had much effect, while David Cameron’s calls to try to sympathise with and relate to youngsters (his media-labelled ‘hug a hoodie’ approach) remain unheeded. Either way, it seems something must be done.