Methodolgical Routes to Aprehend Youth universes

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    Methodological routes to apprehend universes of adolescents and youngsters Journal of Human Growth and Development 2012; 22(3): 334-340

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    METHODOLOGICAL ROUTES TO APPREHEND UNIVERSES OFADOLESCENTS AND YOUNGSTERS: A FOCUS ON THE DRUG ISSUE*

    Paulo Estevo Pereira1

    , Ana Paula Serrata Malfitano2

    * This research was supported by the Coordination for Improvement of Higher Education Personnel CAPES, through the Restructuringand Expansion Program of Federal Universities (ReUni).

    1 Occupational Therapist, Public Health Expert with emphasis in Mental Health Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP), MsCin Occupational Therapy from Occupational Therapy Post graduation Program of the Universidade Federal de So Carlos (UFSCar),CAPES-ReUni fellow.

    2 Occupational Therapist, PhD in Public Health Universidade de Paulo (USP), Associate Professor - Department of OccupationalTherapy; Occupational Therapy Post graduation Program at the Universidade Federal de Carlos (UFSCar).Corresponding author:[email protected]

    Suggested citation: Pereira PE, Malfitano APS.Methodological routes to apprehend universes of adolescents and youngsters: a focuson the drug issue. J. Hum. Growth Dev. 2012; 22(3): 334-340Manuscript submitted Jan 20 2012, accepted for publication Aug 10 2012.

    ABSTRACT:

    Introduction: the drug issue has been gaining importance especially with respect to deprivedyouths, identified as very vulnerable to this matter. However, actions proposed, mostly by healthservices, have not been able to meet the specific demands of this population, leading to low adherenceto services. It turns out that the application of research methodologies based only on clinical, statisticaland/or epidemiological data, in the study of poor youths, is not enough to apprehend the diversesocial contexts, their singular experiences, either their understanding of these phenomena, requiringmost appropriate methods. Objective:discuss the use of participatory research methodologies to

    apprehend youth universes. Methods: data from a qualitative research among poor youngsterswho attend a Youth Center (Centro da Juventude) in a midsize city of the State of Sao Paulo wereused, applying the following methodological resources: participatory observation for nine months;interviews with nine youngsters young men and women, aged 15 to 29; and workshops on theresearch themes. The contributions of Social Occupational Therapy were the theoretical frameworkfor this study. Results: the application of participatory methodologies to apprehend peoples universesallowed for the access of contents and meanings about their perceptions on drugs. Discussion:Thetheme of drugs and its insertion in the lives of these deprived youngsters emerged full of nuancesnot yet perceived or accessed by health services. Therefore, it is worth considering the necessity toapprehend the youth experience in an expanded perspective, if these issues are to be faced.

    Key words:adolescent; occupational therapy; qualitative research; methods.

    INTRODUCTION

    The concept of youth is the result of a socialconstruction 1,2,3 and, therefore, subject tostereotypes and specific historical moments, definedfrom multiple references and determined based ondifferent and diverse situations such as gender,ethnies or group1.

    Such diversity of views over this segment ofthe population leads to multiple proposals to limitand classify it, either by age group (in Brazil rangingfrom 15 to 29 years old4), psychological or biologicalaspects (maturity/immaturity), socioeconomiccriteria (average income, schooling, paternity,maternity, rural or urban environment, and financialindependence), or state of mind, lifestyle or culturalsegment2.

    This multiplicity of approaches to the samepopulation group reinforces the dynamic conditionof permanent evolution / involution of youth as aconcept3, which cannot be thought of as a temporaland ahistorical continuum5. Furthermore, there is thereflection on the complexity and intensity of the socialissues raised by this segment of the population, whichhas held the hopes for a better future, as well as theresponsibility for societys diversions6.

    From this perspective, the juvenile experienceshould be addressed under two main aspects: theyouth condition and the social situation ofyoungsters7, 3. The first aspect, as a sociological andanthropological category, refers to youths particularvalues and culture; while the second, remits to theways the subjects experience their youth conditionat a given space and time3.

    Journal of Human Growth and Development2012; 22(3): 334-340 ORIGINAL RESEARCH

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    Thus, there are different ways of experiencingyouth depending on social, historical and economiccontexts; gender; social class; ethnie; place ofresidence (rural or urban, downtown or in theoutskirts); etc. Although the youth condition couldbe somehow defined, the situation of being young

    requires the pluralization3 of discourses and actions,so that one does not take the risk of generating blindspots when approaching this universe. Hence, thematter of youth and youngsters, with all its dilemmas,has come up as a social issue8that should be assistedby public policies in the past years.

    From this point of view, it is possible toobserve that the young in our society, especiallythose coming from the lower classes, have takenon a risk group discourse, as a challenge to socialintegrity. If, by one side, they are charged as thenations future2; at the same time, within the logicof the salaried society and the increase of the

    vulnerability zone due to social precariousness8

    ,they are deprived of material and cultural assets,as well as of quality work and education, generatinga huge mass of segregated people8, with all theproblems arising from this condition.

    A schizophrenic discourse5around youth isthen created, generating a series of uncertaintiesand contributing to an increase of the vulnerabilitiesthat youngsters are subjected.

    Within the contemporary scenario, youngstersliving in precarious areas of cities, with no accessto culture and leisure, fewer interchangepossibilities, parted from social institutions andconsumer goods in a consumerist society, end up

    finding shelter and belonging in other so calledmarginal (or marginalized) social structures,developing sociability and life production andreproduction ways that reinforce an imaginary socialthat looks down on them.

    If the phenomenon of drug addiction is addedto the youth category, the burden placed ondeprived youngsters increases considerably, sincethe association between poverty and drugs is seenas almost natural in the imaginary social. Inresponse to such questions, society has beeninterfering through its institutions, normally throughhealth institutions, tending to medicalize the objects

    of their assistance9, 10, 11

    .The Ministry of Health, in a document wherethe National Policy for Integral Assistance to Usersof Alcohol and other Drugs was instituted, considersthe issue of drug addiction as a public healthproblem and takes on the institutional and civilsociety actions concerning the matter12. Regardingassistance provision, the document establishes aline with the Policy of Mental Health in force,regulated and supported by Law # 10,216,sanctioned on Apr 6, 200112, based on the Centersfor Psychosocial Assistance (CAPS), linked to themental health assistance network and the rest ofthe health network, functioning under the logic of

    the territory and seeking to consider the needs anddemands of the clientele12.

    However, it is necessary to discuss, beyondthe construction of an assistance network, theelements that surround the issue and their socialcomplexity, in the involvement of the daily lifeaspects of such groups. In this sense, studies haveindicated that health services do not provide

    appropriate assistance to the young or are notprepared to assist them accordingly13, 14, 15. Thus,there is the need to create specific planning anddiscussion scopes for them, in order to guaranteeand respect their specificities15. In the context ofPsychiatric Reform, assistance guidelines andstrategies elaborated according to a more generalview of the theme end up hindering theconsideration of their particular demands15. Fromthis perspective, studies indicate that the Centersfor Psychosocial Assistance (CAPS) in the countrystill do not address the youth issue differentially,not taking into account the specificities of this

    population13

    .The literature shows that, regarding theyoung population of psychoactive substances users,the adherence rate to the treatments offered islower than that among users in general 14, 16andthat such fact can be explained both by factorsrelated to the juvenile dynamics itself, since theyseldom seek help on their own and hardly associatetheir problems to the use of substances, as well asby the inadequacy and unpreparedness of servicesin assisting this specific population14. It is worthadding the fact that there is a superficial thoughton the drug use dynamics of this population, basedon attempts to explain the situation contextualized

    only in the clinical scope, which, although necessary,move away from the many social aspects that goalong with the use of drugs by youngsterscontemporaneously.

    The predominance of the disease model inthe treatments developed can lead to excessiveemphasis on the addiction issue at the expense ofthe unconscious motivation of subjects, as well ason the social milieu role on addiction installation17.It is also worth noticing that the focus of attentionlies strongly on the picture of the young as a socialproblem, blaming them for the social demandsimposed on themselves15.

    From this point of view, there is the discussionthat, in order to provide answers to contemporarysocial problems, such as the drugs phenomenon,both the clinical resources as well as the productionof epidemiologic data are not enough3, 13. New socialtechnologies need to be used so that the theme isembraced in an extended way, in all its complexity,including the development of social technologiesthat enable the listening of the target populationabout itself and its relation with drugs.

    Nevertheless, to actually approach the youthuniverse and be truly able to listen to youngstersperspectives requires changes in the way to interactwith this universe and its actors. Discourses

    constructed about them must be abandoned anda new one, with them, must be built. A second

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    aspect to be considered is in the very nature of thedrug issue, marked by prohibitions (concealed orexplicit), target of discourses from varied nuances,which have encouraged academic, political and civilsocietal discussions.

    Due to the complexity of the theme, the use

    of participatory methodologies is needed, as wellas the establishment of new bonds betweenresearchers and actors, building a more democraticinteraction from the standpoint of knowledge,requiring the researcher to abandon the position ofestablished knowledge and be willing to learn andlearn the reality from the viewpoint of others,planning strategies that are fundamental to addressissues as the ones proposed herein.

    As an aid to such challenges, there is the needto rely on Social Occupational Therapy assumptions,which insofar seek to act directly on the socialarea18,19, try to understand the social interaction that

    act on the subjects, determining several forms andintensities of dissolution of bonds, vulnerability ofsocial networks and underemployment20, in orderto empower the subjects and lead them toappropriate their reality, finding ways to transformit and becoming co-responsible for the necessarysocial changes.

    Under this perspective, the actions ofOccupational Therapy in the social field aim at thesubjects autonomy and citizenship, through theintervention in their everyday lives, trying topromote changes18that are always contextualizedin the limits of this highly uneven reality. To thisend, the complexity of social relations must be

    understood from the interpretation of their actors,identifying and recognizing the singular experiencesof such actors, as well as the representations theymake of these experiences19.

    METHODS

    A qualitative survey was carried out withyoungsters between 15 and 29 years old, who livedin the outskirts of a medium-sized city in the interiorof the State of Sao Paulo and attended a municipalYouth Center (CJ) for the development of actions

    connected to the culture, leisure and sports. Thisterritory, regarded not only geographically, but alsofor its historical constitution and the socioeconomicand cultural relations developed therein21, waschosen based on a research strategy that sought agreater diversity of subjects with respect to the drugissue, avoiding side views from the health approach(like the Centers for Psychological Assistance forUsers of Alcohol and other Drugs CAPS-AD) andthe justice (adolescents serving social-educationaltime or in educational institutions due to offense).

    The participation in the survey field was madepossible through the insertion in the activitiesdeveloped in the region since 2005 by the UFSCar

    Center METUIA Project, an institutional researchgroup with actions in Social Educational Therapy

    that combines students, technicians and researcherslinked to the University of Sao Paulo (USP) and theFederal University of Sao Carlos (UFSCar)22.

    Thus, based on the theoretical framework ofSocial Occupational Therapy, the methodologicalresources utilized to assess the subjects studied

    were the following: participatory observation for atime period of 8 months, twice a week, by meansof the accompaniment of community activityworkshops; writing of field diaries during theprocess; semi-conducted interviews with theyoungsters; and workshops of activities, structuredby theme (identity, daily life and drugs).

    The main aspect of participatory observationis the fact that researchers plunge headlong23inthe field and, both observe from the perspective ofmembers and influence what is observed becauseof their participation on spot. Favoring researcherswith more time in contact with the people and

    contexts observed, enables the development of theresearch as a process adjusted according to themanifestations of the field itself, allowingresearchers more methodological flexibility andappropriability in conducting it23.

    During the interactions, personal observationsand perceptions were field diarized; these diariesprovided an important thinking source and becamethe basis for interpretation.

    However, not all study field phenomena canbe observed, so that participatory observation itselfdoes not favor the assimilation of biographicprocesses and events that seldom occur 23 .Therefore, it is important to add interviews with

    participants to the observation in order to learnreality aspects that may be available through thesubjects verbal reports23.

    To this end, semi-conducted interviews wereproposed together with nine youngsters sevenfemale and two male, average aged 17 - during theobservation period. The set of interviews,sequentially conducted with a guiding of addressedissues, was composed based on the issues gatheredby the bibliographic review carried out on the themeof deprived youth and drug use; these interviewssought to address the topics inherent to theyoungsters living in the outskirts, their everyday

    life, the way drugs appear to them day-to-day, andtheir perception of the phenomenon.All ethical aspects regarding research

    procedures were satisfied, so that the intervieweeshad their responses privacy guaranteed, preservingtheir identities, access to the information concerningthe study, and making it explicit to the participantstheir total control with respect to their participation,or not, in the survey. Once the youngsters agreedto take part in the survey, they received and signeda Statement of Free and Informed Consent.

    In order to obtain a more comprehensiveperspective of the theme studied, data werecollected at the Activity Workshops, which were

    realized as spaces of experimentation, learning andfree expression, where participants are perceived

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    as active beings of their self-construction processes,allowing for democratic and egalitarian experienceswith other subjects24.

    Within the perspective of OccupationalTherapy, the grassroots of this studys researchers,human activities are the centralizing element of

    professional practices, precisely for the daily lifeorganizing and structuring characteristic played bythose activities25.

    Having said that, when addressing theresearch issues by means of the youngsters doing(supplementing what was assessed through theirsaying), it is possible to seek the learning of theperceptions and concepts of participants in face ofthe themes proposed (juvenile identity, daily life inthe outskirts, and drug use), aiming to approachtheir view of their own experiences.

    RESULTS

    The composition of the research data throughthis system of methodological resources, all basedon active interaction and participation, both ofsubjects and researchers, allowed for theconstruction of the universe scenario where thoseyoungsters and the several ways through which thedrugs theme appears in their daily life are inserted.Quantitative data, although of great importance toindicate general events, are insufficient to collectthe nuances and singularities of daily experience.Therefore, actions directed to the young public,based on clinical, statistic and epidemiological data,

    most of the time, cannot access this populationsspecificities, especially concerning youngsters fromdeprived classes3.

    Thus, the drugs phenomenon, with respectto both the use as well as the dealing, constantlyappears, full of ambiguities, in the lives of theseyoungsters. The theme is present in the relationsof friendship and kinship, the communitys modesof organization, and behavior codes adopted andreaffirmed daily. Such aspects would hardly beaccessed without the presence in the territory andthe contact with youngsters through a horizontaland close relation, learning the matter from their

    view. Aspects that comprise the complex relationbetween the drugs phenomenon and the daily lifeof poor youngsters cannot be apprehended fromtherapeutic and institutional settings or by meansof more direct or directive methodologies.

    J. - Oh, I see it all the time, children like that,already...smoking...drinking, doing the wrong stuff,but... it aint coming out of the blue, right? Causethey offer it and guys dont hide to smoke, its outthere, in front of everyone... Some kids see it nthey wanna do the same. Then, they keep at it;they keep at it till...Question And do you see this in the places yougo to, closer to your home, how is it?

    J. - Closer to home. Theres places that sell it.Especially in my aunts house. Theres lots of kids

    at home. Then I wonder about their future, right?They live there! So...

    J., male, 16 years old

    Living together with the theme of drugs, inthe families or at their front doors, evinces the

    vulnerability level to which those youngsters areexposed. However, the representations that thisliving together assumes to the subjects are manytimes ambiguous, going beyond moral judgment.Lets see what J. says about it.

    Question How do you fell about that [your unclesselling drugs]?J. - Uh, I dont think thats nice cause... its a riskto them, aint it? Theyve got three sons that werearrested. But they dont think about it at the timeand everyone... Know somethin, once youre there[doing time] and get out, then want come back,and then its too late, aint it? We dont say nothing,

    though, cause it aint no use. So...

    This youngsters concerns are not with hisrelatives activities for themselves, but indeed withthe consequences of these activities. Some relationwith the theme can be perceived from the speechas a choice of life, respected, although not havingthe youngsters consent. This is an important nuanceto be highlighted.

    The researchers presence in the territory andthe daily interaction with the youngsters allowedfor the assessment of the practical explanations theyuse to justify or make intelligible, to themselvesand the others, the presence of drug dealing and

    use in their day-to-day lives. The access to theexplanations, although limited to the singleexperiences of the youngsters studied, enables theunderstanding of the issue from a differentperspective.

    Theres that, too, thats it. Cant find no job, thenya get desperate and say: No way, I gotta dosomethin! Im gonna push drugs! Can I sell somefor you? Then the guy say: Here you go, man!Take it! Then the guy push it, and make 100 bucksa day or two! And its cool, its cool, and you beginto buy things, clothes... And say: Im sharp! Guysrespect me! Cause of the drugs. And so on! Go

    on till the top! And then, its tough!C., male, 22 years old

    Question Why do you think people choose thiskind of job?G. - [Silence] Cause its the easiest way to makemoney, isnt it? Easy! They choose the easiest way,right? Easier than studying, working all day long[pause]. Get the money right away, there, right?Thats it!

    G., female, 17 years old

    Question - Why do you think people choose thiskind of job?F. - No way man, some got no choice, right? But

    theres others that, its easy money, they see itseasy... Oh, no! Just today! Then they get used

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    to it, dont wanna leave no more! Then, its toolate!

    Question So, there are no opportunities?F. - Not everyone! Some guys have opportunities,got a good Mom, a working Dad, but they wanna

    live this life! F., male, 15 years old

    These statements coexist in these youngstersrelational universe; expressing ways through whichthe subjects seek explanations for themselves andtheir realities.

    The immersion in the research universeallowed for the apprehension of the communitysmodes of operation and behavior codes thatstructure the lives of those people. It has enabledto understand how sociability is established and howsubjectivities are built in that social space. Twoexcerpts from the field diaries illustrate such idea.

    Accompanied by the METUIA trainees and C., aneighboring resident, we have started an incursionthrough the neighborhood to analyze the territory.C. is our guide. He introduces us to theenvironment, the problems they face and thecommunitys modes of operation. Discretely, hepoints at someone and explains, carefully, that thatperson and others are responsible for keeping theorder in the neighborhood. Cause here we cantcall the cops, he says. Those guys solve theproblems here.

    Field Diary, Jul 23, 2010

    This is the third visit to the Youth Center (C.J.),

    since the closing of the activities of the METUIAsgroup on Nov 25; it is an attempt to contact someof the youngsters that we have interviewed, partlyto solve the matters suggested on field, partly tosee them. However, the youngsters have not beencoming to the Youth Center for about a month,according to the Centers staff. I have arrangedwith the Centers coordination to help themdisseminate the opening of a Young and AdultEducation (EJA) class, for Sixth Grade students,at the Youth Center, through a face-to-faceincursion in the neighborhood. The plan was tohand out leaflets to people in the streets and door-to-door, as well as to post signs in places of largecirculation and concentration of people. I thought

    of taking the chance of this incursion together withthe Centers staff members to make contact withthe youngsters. We got together in front of theYouth Center, divided the material and walked down[the neighborhood]. I was surprised with themisgiving of the staff members while walking downthe neighborhood. I thought that, since they knewand were known by the residents, especially bythe young, their walking around would happenmore naturally. On the contrary, the coordinatordecided that we would only course the streets atthe beginning of the neighborhood, and would notgo down to the center area. Along this way, wewere able to observe activities of drug dealing.At 8AM, we identified people dealing close to acar. Some caves (biqueiras) [drug selling spots]were already operating. The direct approach to

    the residents, as objectively as possible, was thestrategy adopted, handing out the leaflets whileexplaining the reason of our visit. Nobody walksaround the place for no reason. As we walkedaround, the streets, at the beginning with fewpeople, began to receive more people, mostly the

    young. At every corner we passed by, the residentsstarted to crowd, checking out our presence,dominat ing the territory. The young wouldcluster; some would call out each others namesand then say expressions like Here we are! Herewe are!

    Field Diary, Feb 3, 2011

    Another nuance evinced in this process refersto the limits established between those who aremembers of the community and those who are not.What can be said and what interests only to thosebelonging to that place. Although we have accessedimportant content on this universe, a lot ofinformation was concealed, because we do notbelong in that context. It is, doubtless, a limitationof this research, but it is explained and justified bythe methodological choices we have made.

    R. So, we see things, so, cause we see things,so, we cant say nothing. Cant say nothing! So,theres somethin I learned, my Old Man alwaystell me, if you see somethin wrong, you dont saynothing! Make believe you saw nothing! So, I mean,down there [in the neighborhood] I knoweverybody, I know the guys that deal with thatstuff, know everyone there, so, they respect me,I respect them, so, thats my living.Question Why did your father advise you not to

    say anything in case you saw something?R. My Old Man dont want me...I mean, want nobad to no one, want no bad to my mates, nor tome neither, sure? Cause theres guys starting, butthats it, you say a wink wrong, youre screwingyourself. So, think twice fore you open your bigmouth.

    R., male, 24 years old

    Nevertheless, beyond the issues raised andthe relationships established with and through thetheme of drugs, other youngsters concerns couldbe evidenced, indicating necessities that are oftennot noticed by the public policies directed to them.

    Question How do you picture your future?C. I worry, cause its hard to get a job. Imgonna be 23 now. So, I wish I was 21 and wasntliving with my Mom anymore. Its alright to livewith Mother, but with my wife too, and so... Its nogood, right? Ive got a little experience. I worked;I did some moonlighting (bico) in lots of places.Every time theres moonlighting I take it. Alreadyworked with [installation of] pools, hodman [formason], butcher n in brickworks. Lots of places,we send resumes to the market, stuff like that,but people dont...

    C., male, 22 years old

    G. I wanna go to college! I dont know what tostudy yet, Im still thinking, but I like it, I wanna

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    go to college, thats for sure! Study more! Have abetter future!

    G., female, 17 years old

    The youngsters interviewed presented variedperspectives with respect to future projects, about

    what the future will bring to their lives. They face,daily, the difficulties of integration to the labormarket, suffer the stigma linked to the areas wherethey live and experience being young within adeprived social condition, exposed to thevulnerabilities intrinsic to this condition.

    Two youngsters with different futureperspectives and, somehow, present perspectives,were aforementioned.

    C. : 22 years old (bound to be 23!); littleschooling (he has completed Sixth grade). He atthe age that, especially for poor youngsters, he isexpected to be integrated in the formal labormarket, but whose insertion possibilities arebecoming more restrict to certain positions, littlequalified; he ends up living on the edge betweenthe two realities. He longs for a position in societythrough a job that would allow him not only toreproduce life, but also to produce in other ways,so that he could build his future; but this seemsincreasingly distant along time. In the meantime,he lives with the seduction of drug dealing, moreinclusive and profitable. So far, C. has beenequilibrating in this interstice, this neutral zonebetween the two places. For how long, though?

    Following, there is G., 17 years old. She worksdays at a public institution and studies nights. She

    is a senior at High School. She dreams of going tocollege and getting a degree, but still does not knowwhat to major in, but it is the future she wants forherself. She sees education as a possibility for abrighter future.

    G. represents another form of sociability,guided by working and studying, aiming at theconstruction of a life project that would guaranteea differentiated social insertion. In herneighborhood, she is in familiar terms with the drugissue, just as the other youngsters resident in theoutskirts of the city. She has her gang that, asshe says, its calmer than the others, they havefun going to pizza parlors, talking in the square,going out once in a while. Her daily life is structuredaround her job and school, with weekends free,when she prefers to stay at home.

    Unlike C., the uncertainty about her futureresides in the possibility to choose the career shelikes best, that it is personally and professionallysatisfactory. The uncertainty lies on the existenceof options, not on their shortage or lack, as in C.scase. She has got the possibility to think about whatshe will do in the future, while C. must hold on towhatever shows up. Faced with the uncertaintiesinherent to tomorrow, they are more uncertain forsome than for others.

    The use of participatory methodologies in theapprehension of the universe of the studied subjectsallowed for the assessment of other contents, linkedto the daily life of those young men and women.

    There is a remarkable difference betweenaddressing deprived youngsters as if they comprised

    a single homogeneous category, and approachingthem as from their singularities. Each juvenile grouphas specificities that need to be considered whenproposing actions that intend to be effective.

    Being a poor youngster in the outskirts of ametropolis is certainly different from the samesituation in a country city. The sociabilities aredistinct; the vulnerabilities may be presented inseveral manners. It is evident that diversities, inorder to be considered and apprehended, requiremore participatory access methodologies, such asthose presented in this article.

    The researchers presence in the territory of

    the youngsters studied, with the purpose of sharinginteractions in the context (or in part of it) wherethey are inserted, has allowed for an expandedanalysis over the drugs issue with respect to thoseyoung men and women. Being with them, lookingaround as from their view; actually listening tothem, trying not to make use of preconceivednotions; trying to favor the creation of an expressionspace free of perceptions, by means of activities,all that has made all the difference for a morecomprehensive view of that universe and how toapproach it.

    Rather than what the official statistical figuresindicate, the programs to combat drugs, the media,

    the public opinion, in short, the drug issue, althoughstrongly present in the day-to-day of the youngstersstudied, is not the main problem of their lives. Othermatters, underlying the theme of drugs, arerevealed from the interactions with the youngstersin their universe. The horizontal analysis of theobject studied (yes, object, but not objectified,reified), besides enhancing the understanding of thetheme, for it was built jointly, favors the propositionof actions and public policies that can, in fact, accessthe population they are directed.

    Thus, the drug issue and its insertion in thedaily lives of the youngsters studied appears, in

    the researchers view, full of nuances not perceivedor assessed by the public policies regarding thetheme. Issues related to those youngsters dailylives, beyond the drugs theme, emerge from thedata collected, leading to consider, in accordancewith the literature, the need to apprehend thejuvenile experience from an extended perspective,if this universe is to be addressed effectively.

    Finally, there is the necessity for a realapproximation, living together and understanding ofthese subjects through interventions and researchesdirected to the youth, so that a horizontal, respectfuland effective relation with contributions tocontemporaneity could actually occur.

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