Youth and social exclusion: A sociological analysis of multiple forms of exclusion and the dynamics of social integration

Abstract

This paper addresses the need to rethink prevailing definitions of youth that remain largely anchored in biological age categories. While existing research has acknowledged social influences, there is a persistent gap in fully conceptualizing youth as a sociocultural constructed and historically contingent life stage. The objective of this study is to reconceptualize youth by foregrounding the social, cultural, and structural conditions that shape the transition into this phase of life. The study employs a comparative historical and theoretical sociological methodology, drawing on systematic conceptual analysis and critical synthesis of classical and contemporary sociological literature. The findings demonstrate that youth cannot be treated as a universal or homogeneous category, as its meanings and boundaries vary across social contexts and historical periods. These variations influence social positioning, often producing fluctuating experiences between marginalization and integration. The study underscores that understanding youth requires attention to structural constraints, temporal transformations, and contextual dynamics. The implications highlight the importance of adopting sociocultural grounded frameworks in research and policy to more accurately capture the lived realities of young people and to address the social challenges shaping their trajectories.

Keywords: Life course; social construction; sociological theory; social inequality; youth