Subjective Well-Being and Future Orientation of NEETs: Evidence from the Italian Sample of the European Social Survey

Cristiano Felaco and Anna Parola ()
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Cristiano Felaco: Department of Social Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Vico Monte della Pietà 1, 80138 Naples, Italy
Anna Parola: Department of Humanities, University of Naples Federico II, Via Porta di Massa 1, 80133 Naples, Italy

Social Sciences, 2022, vol. 11, issue 10, 1-13

Abstract: The acronym ‘NEET’ includes adolescents and young people aged 15–34 years not engaged in education, employment or training programs. According to recent studies, NEET represents a high-risk category to suffer from lower well-being and mental health problems. Following a life course approach, this study examined the self-reported subjective well-being and the future orientation of NEETs. To do this, the study used the latest European Social Survey data (Round 9—2018), limiting our analysis to Italian respondents aged 15–34 years. The final sample included 695 participants. Descriptive analysis and Student’s t-test were performed to compare the subjective well-being and the future orientation of NEETs with those of non-NEET young adults. We hypothesize lower subjective well-beings in the NEET group and more difficulties in future planning than in the non-NEET group. Then, a mediation path model was carried out to study the relationship between employment condition (non-NEET/NEET) and subjective well-being through future orientation. The path model showed the mediator role of future orientation. Results indicated that future orientation plays a role in mitigating the effect of the unemployment condition on well-being. Starting from these findings, practical implications regarding career guidance interventions are discussed.

Keywords: NEET; young people; subjective well-being; future orientation; mediation analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A B N P Y80 Z00 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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