Learning on the streets. Urban youth and vending in Zimbabwe

在城市环境下的非洲青年通常被认为是破坏性的，倾向于暴力行为，而大多数人仍然保持和平。但是，如果年轻人在暴力、非民主的环境中长大，那么他们会获得哪些政治思想和行为，以及如何获得？该项目有三个目标：1)通过概念化非正式经济网络的作用，为非洲城市青年的政治社会化理论做出贡献；并就津巴布韦城市青年的政治社会化产生具体情况的经验证据。2)使津巴布韦的民间社会和捐助者能够改进青年规划；并向政府行为体和市政当局通报支持青年城市生计的适当战略。3)影响国际捐助方和民间社会为暴力和受冲突影响环境中的青年提供支持的方案编制。现有的关于政治社会化的学术研究主要产生了关于西方背景下“社会化机制”的知识，并强调家庭、学校和公民协会的作用。然而，在非洲的研究主要关注暴力青年融入帮派和暴力极端主义的社会化。拟议的项目将填补一个重要的知识空白，将重点放在未被动员参与暴力的青年身上，并为研究非洲城市青年的政治社会化制定一个新的概念框架。该项目将通过概念化参与非正式经济中的非正式网络如何影响政治学习，为政治社会化理论作出贡献。这一概念框架可用于未来的研究，从而为青年研究领域的理论做出贡献。该项目还将通过分析非洲城市的非正式网络，对国际发展和非洲政治领域作出贡献。这项研究将在津巴布韦进行，在那里，许多城市里的失业青年以非正规小贩的身份工作。一些供应商网络由市议会监管，而其他网络则由执政党非正式地监管。2017年11月政治领导层的变化为探索供应商之间的非正式网络如何促进其政治社会化提供了一个独特的机会。这项研究将比较由市议会监管的二手服装供应商网络与由与党有关的行动者监管的网络。它将研究这些政治行为者如何通过这些网络促进思想和行为，以及这如何影响供应商获得的政治思想和行为。该研究将使用旨在产生可靠数据的定性研究方法；对年轻人来说是令人兴奋和有趣的；并且在津巴布韦的政治背景下是安全可行的：参与式和可视化方法，访谈，焦点小组讨论和观察。该项目将首先侧重于了解非正式售货网络的性质以及如何对其进行监管。然后，该项目将侧重于了解非正式网络如何作为政治社会化的场所发挥作用，以及年轻供应商因此采用的政治思想和行为。该研究关注这些网络中的性别经验，以及教育和经济背景的差异是否对政治社会化有影响。该项目将产生学术产出（发表在高级期刊上的三篇文章和一份出书建议）以及为民间社会和捐助者提供的产出，以改进其方案（民间社会和培训手册、捐助者圆桌会议、在线记录、网络研讨会），这些成果将通过项目伙伴网络广泛推广。IDS与津巴布韦大学、研究与倡导联盟和乐施会合作。该项目以他们对津巴布韦年轻人的长期研究为基础，解决了他们共同的学术兴趣和政策关切。

African youth in urban contexts are often thought to be disruptive and prone to violent behaviour, while the majority remains peaceful. But if young people grow up in violent, non-democratic settings, then which political ideas and behaviours do they acquire, and how? This project has three objectives: 1) To contribute to theory on the political socialization of urban African youth by conceptualising the role of informal, economic networks; and generate context-specific empirical evidence on political socialization of urban youth in Zimbabwe.2) To enable civil society and donors in Zimbabwe to improve youth programming; and inform government actors and municipalities about suitable strategies for supporting urban livelihoods for youth.3) To influence programming by international donors and civil society that support youth in violent, conflict-affected settings. Existing scholarship on political socialization has predominantly generated knowledge on 'socialization mechanisms' in Western settings and emphasizes the role of family, schooling and civic associations. Research in Africa has, however, mainly looked at the socialization of violent youth in/into gangs and violent extremism. The proposed project will fill an important gap in knowledge by focusing on youth that are not mobilized into violence, and by developing a new conceptual framework for studying political socialization of African, urban youth. The project will contribute to theories of political socialization by conceptualising how participation in informal networks in the informal economy shapes political learning. This conceptual framework can be used in future research, thus contributing to theory in the field of youth studies. The project will also contribute to the fields of international development and African politics through the analysis of informal networks in African cities. The study will be carried out in Zimbabwe, where many unemployed youth in cities work as informal vendors. Some networks of vendors are regulated by city councils, while other networks are regulated informally by the ruling party. The recent change in political leadership in November 2017 presents a unique opportunity to explore how informal networks among vendors contribute to their political socialization. This study will compare networks of second-hand clothes vendors that are regulated by the city council with networks that are regulated by actors linked to the party. It will study how these political actors promote ideas and behaviours through these networks, and how this affects the political ideas and behaviours that vendors acquire. The study will use qualitative research methods that have been designed to generate robust data; are exciting and interesting to young people; and are safe and feasible within the political context of Zimbabwe: participatory and visual methods, interviews, focus group discussions, and observation. The project will first focus on understanding the nature of informal vending networks and how they are regulated. The project will then focus on understanding how informal networks function as sites for political socialization, and the kind of political ideas and behaviours young vendors adopt as a result. The study pays attention to the gendered experiences in these networks, and whether differences in educational and economic backgrounds matter for political socialization. The project will produce academic outputs (three articles in high-ranking journals and a book proposal) and outputs for civil society and donors in order to improve their programmes (Handbook for civil society and training, donor roundtable, online scrollify, a webinar) that will be promoted widely through the networks of project partners.IDS collaborates with University of Zimbabwe, the Research & Advocacy Unity and Oxfam. The project builds on their longstanding research on young people in Zimbabwe and addresses their shared academic interests and policy concerns.