Abstract two: Tension and dilemmas in youth participation (change work) In this abstract we discuss tensions and dilemmas in social and educational experiences where young people participate to make changes in their lives. Researchers argue that there are two positions in relation to power dynamics in youth work for change and improvement (Hargreaves, Lieberman, Fullan, and Hopkins, 1998; Checkoway, 2011; Williamson, 2016; Bettencourt, 2020). One is that for youth participation to be effective, it needs to be rooted in everyday contexts of young people’s lives (Lister 2007; Bladt and Percy-Smith 2021). This concerns especially the participation of young people defined as having marginalized positions. There is a body of participatory research which invites them into research processes based on the ideas that young people have the skills and expertise to influence and form their own life circumstances (Tisdall 2021; Bladt and Percy-Smith 2021; Levy 2021; etc). On the other hand, studies show also that young people’s concerns; interest and needs are conditioned by the extent to which institutions are open to them. Organizational policies, priorities, bureaucratic and personnel dynamics places a demand on young people that can work against their needs and concerns. The focus of the paper is to analyze and reflect on the tensions and dilemmas related to the two positions, and what consequences it might have in relation to young people’s involvement and trust in change work. To support and illustrate the analysis, examples from the mentioned project are used. Our findings contribute to a relatively underexamined area of (P)AR (or youth research), where tensions are typically framed as interpersonal rather than structural in nature.

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