2. Youth subculture

2.1. The concept of youth subculture

It is most certainly true today that there is not one singule youth culture but a variety of different youth subcultures. The 90's can not be described as the same as the 60's or 70's or even the 80's.There are many reasons put forward by sociologists for this such as there are more styles available today, media influence us more and there is a higher disposable income per household to spend on fashions.

But what is a youth subculture? Before answering this question let us look at what “culture” in general is. Defining culture is a complicated task, since many different kinds of scholars have attempted to nail down this amorphous term.

Society presents us, when we are born, with a set of circumstances and constraints, and culture is the way in which we make sense of those circumstances in our daily lives. A good example is found in considering two babies born in America. One is born in rural Appalachia to a poor, working class white family. The other is born to a Japanese-American middle-class family in San Francisco. Both these babies are born into American society, but the cultures that each baby will experience at home, at school, and throughout life are likely to be different in some very important ways.

In examining youth cultures, we looked at the ways in which different groups of youth make sense of their lives through the constructed values, ideas, rituals, symbols, customs, and belief systems that make up their everyday lives. We studied the distinct patterns of life, choice, and taste that define different groups of youth.

The concept of subculture first appeared in the mid-1940s. Gordon defined subculture as "... a sub-division of a national culture, composed of a combination of factorable social situations such as class status, ethnic background, regional and rural or urban residence, and religious affiliation, but forming in their combination a functioning unity which has an integrated impact on the participating individual".

The common elements of a subculture include:

1. relatively unique values and norms,

2. a special slang not shared with society,

3. separate channels of communication,

4. unique styles and fads,

5. a sense of primary group belonging seen in the use of 'us' and 'them',

6. a hierarchy of social patterns that clarify the criteria for prestige and leadership,

7. receptivity to the charisma of leaders and

8. gratification of special unmet needs.

2.2. The formation of youth subcultures

A subculture group forms when the larger culture fails to meet the needs of a particular group of people. They offer different patterns of living values and behavior norms, but there is dependence on the larger culture for general goals and direction. Subcultures try to compensate for the failure of the larger culture to provide adequate status, acceptance and identity. In the youth subculture, youth find their age-related needs met. It is a way-station in the life of the individual - it is as if society permits the individual to 'drop out' for a period of years. However, for some people the way-station becomes the place of permanent settlement.