Importance of Everyday Life Experience

Young people interact with the social world in different ways and the difference is related to their everyday experiences. They have different ideas, thoughts and perceptions about their social relations, cultures, and the institutions that surround them. Their experiences formulate the ways they live. On this basis, this thesis has argued that the everyday life experiences of Turkish, Kurdish and Turkish Cypriot youth offer dynamic, mobile, and fluid positioning which is part of the process of moving beyond being considered ‘migrant children’. the identity formation of young people through ‘everyday life experiences’, taking into account the diverse positioning of individuals in understanding the broader social relations that are constituted in the process. This includes the thoughts and perceptions individuals make about their position in society and their views of where and to what they belong. The everyday experiences of young people include social relations and their participation in institutions because these reflect social positioning and, thus, gives more concrete results in analysing the positions of young people.

The identifications of these young people are constructed through their social relations and institutions, such as family, community organisations, transnational media or school. They perceive the conflict with their parents as an outcome of cultural discrepancies, socialising in different countries, and being attached to the country of origin less than their parents. They develop a position of plurality within the society, practicing the culture of the country of origin at home by eating Turkish food, watching Turkish television, attending community organisations and by practicing the culture of the receiving society outside home with their peers. The majority of these young people emphasize that they have developed their social life in the society in which they live and get used to the lifestyle in the receiving country. Their social networks with relatives in the country of origin have an interpersonal and emotional meaning and do not mean there is a shared mentality in sustaining social networks. Different to their families, they have constructed social networks with their relatives in the country of origin and other destinations which are based on interpersonal and emotional relations rather than collective links and identity. They negotiate their positioning in relation to community organisations and take decision on what to accept or not. In this way, community organisations function as spaces where young people can negotiate, and either select or reject aspects of the culture of the country of origin. Young people incorporate different cultural practices and socialise with various cultural repertoires in their everyday life, As a result of these diverse experiences, these young people negotiate their relation with the community organisations in choosing which activities to participate in, or even changing organisation or stopping altogether if the organisation does not correspond to their view.

Their social relations are mainly based in London, but young people also build social networks with relatives in the country of origin in a selective way. They position themselves with reference to Turkish- Kurdish and British culture. Many youth are constantly moving across different cultural spaces, creating their own identity in the process. Their perceptions about their identity positioning are transformed through their everyday life experiences.