This paper adresses coping strategies with digital media in transitional phases using the example of socialization in higher education in Europe. The central question is the role of media in transitional phases in general. More specifically, it focuses how European students use media in transitional phases. Therefore, transitional phases must be considered from a subject-orientated perspective as well as from a social perspective. The subject forms the transitional phases through its own capacity for acting and coping whilst the social context takes a framing effect on it (von Felden, 2014). To what extent media is important for students in coping strategies, depends on how much the subject’s environment has been shaped by media in the subject’s past (Aufenanger, 2008). In Europe, access to (digital) media is widely spread and often begins in childhood already (Livingstone, d’Haenens, & Hasebrink, 2001). Through this early media access, media can be ascribed to have a special meaning in the socialization processes of young people. Moreover, adolescents are permanently in different transitional phases of their lives (from childhood to youth, from youth to adulthood) in which media can act as intermediary on the one hand in integrating to society on a communicative level, on the other hand in being part of a media permeated peer-group (Röll, 1998). If mediatization is perceived as a meta process which influences on the subject in an individual, social and cultural way (Krotz, 2014), individual media appropriation to cope with transitional phases gets a significant meaning. These phases of transition, when life is changing significantly, can also be defined as complicated discontinuities merging into each other (Griebel & Niesel, 2002). In addition, several burdens come along with these transitional phases (Griebel & Niesel, 2002), so European students – that’s the assumption – have to develop their own strategies to cope with these burdens.
Socialization in higher education is not exceptional in this case, because young adults are challenged by this next transitional phase, i.e. from school to employment. Horstkemper and Tillmann (2008) clearly differ socialization in higher education from socialization in schools. Higher education combines education with science and affects the self-development of mature, socialized students significantly, so that discipline-specific habitus can evolve (Horstkemper & Tillmann, 2008). Thereby, it must be stated that university has attached new importance amongst others through the Bologna Process and in this context learning in universities has changed. Moreover, socialization in higher education, understood as a discontinuous process, cannot be regarded detached from other socializing influences. Besides university, peers, family, employment and, of course, (digital) media have an influence on the self-development of these individuals. Furthermore, Hurrelmann (2006) specifies media as a tertiary socialization-instance. Within the presentation, it will be necessary to reconsider this position, if media does have a continuously influence on the process of socialization and if media is understood from an interactionistic perspective (Aufenanger, 2008), i.e. socialization with and through media. However, functionality of media should be accommodated, because media provides spaces for articulation and communication, which are relevant for media appropriation, identity development and socialization processes (Theunert & Schorb, 2010). In educational establishments, (digital) media acts mostly intermediary and influences and structures communication (Theunert & Schorb, 2010). The socializational meaning of socialization in higher education and media outlined here shows that coping strategies with and through media are a very contemporary and relevant issue. Within the presentation, the authors will take the opportunity to direct attention on the challenges of transition in higher education that young Europeans try to cope with or through media.

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