Food relationship among young people not in employment, education or training
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.23990/sa.113084Keywords:
NEET, food relationship, inequality, well-beingAbstract
Research on the food relationship among young people not in education, employment, or training (NEET) is scarce. The aim of the study was to observe the food relationship of young NEET people by using the pedagogical framework of food relationship and focusing on the experiences of the young people themselves. Face-to-face interviews were conducted with ten individuals after food relationship workshops. Interview transcripts were analysed using a narrative method: first, a narrative or explanatory story was produced for each individual, and then a paradigmatic procedure was conducted, where themes were created based on the narratives. The young people described their eating as irregular interplay between fasting and overeating, eating alone or only with trusted ones, as well as eating ready-made, simple food. Different personal deficiencies, such as lack of money or mental health issues, challenged their everyday food practices. Three shared meaning categories related to food and eating were constructed: food as necessary fuel, food as a shaper of body and emotions, and food as a punisher. Dissatisfaction related to body and self, and the priority of changing the size of the body, were intensively reflected in these meaning categories. The observation of food relationship by using the pedagogical framework of food relationship reveals the multilevel and multifaceted nature of the food relationship and its complex connections with well-being. These should be better noted in all services promoting the well-being of young NEET people.
