The study Young people in Serbia 2015 – Situation, perceptions, beliefs and aspirations is part of an international project sponsored by Friedrich Ebert Foundation and Shell Youth Study, which has been carried out since 1953, and in the region of Southeast Europe since 2011. The research was conducted during 2015 in Serbia by SeConS, the Development Initiative Group. The authors of the research and study, Smiljka Tomanović and Dragan Stanojević, in consultation with Professor Klaus Hurrelmann, adjusted the original survey methodology to the Serbian national context, keeping in mind data comparability. The survey data was collected from a national representative sample of 1186 respondents aged between 15 and 29, of which 751 in urban and 435 in rural areas, while in-depth interviews were made with 10 young people.
Foremost, the study has shown which problems the youth is facing today: high unemployment rates, financial dependence on parents, inefficient education, and a deep feeling of exclusion from the politics. The study also implied that, in spite of everything, the youth’s individual perceptions of their own lives and future are optimistic, whilst life satisfaction levels are high.
