Thematic Data
Young People
Search CESSDA Holdings | Multinational Data | Country specific studies | Other Resources
There are profound differences between the experiences of today's young people and those of previous generations. Common survey themes include employment, education, political participation, the media and health. Research into the lives of young Europeans is often interdisciplinary, thematically and geographically diverse. Multinational social surveys provide integrated and harmonised data on young Europeans. The European Social Survey (ESS) focuses on the views of young people aged 15+ years.
Search CESSDA Holdings
The CESSDA Catalogue may be searched by a free text search or browsed:
- Browse by topic: select Social Stratification and Groupings, then select Youth;
- Browse by keyword: select Age Groups, then select the appropriate narrower term.
Not all of the CESSDA archives publish data descriptions in the Catalogue, and some archives publish only part of their holdings. Therefore, if you do not find suitable data, you may find them by searching directly from each archive's own data catalogue.
To each archive's own data catalogue >
Multinational Data
The main European multinational data collections on young people are listed below. The data files are available free of charge either via the relevant data archive or project websites.
Eurobarometers: Young Europeans
Since the early 1970's Eurobarometers have conducted face-to-face surveys on behalf of the European Commission at least twice a year. These surveys occasionally have an oversample of young persons aged between 15-24 years. Eurobarometers asks participants for their views on a wide range of issues, including their opinion on the European Union.
Time period: 1975- (youth samples 1982 - )
Countries: EU members
Access: DBK download or ZACAT data portal. Registration required.
Flash Eurobarometers
Flash Eurobarometers are specially commissioned telephone surveys on single issues. The aim of a Flash Eurobarometer is to provide up-to-date survey information, as and when required by the European Commission. Samples on young persons include, for example: Flash 127: "The opinions of young persons aged 15-25 years" (focusing on the European Union and opinions on Europe); Flash 158: Young People and Drugs, Flash 202: Young Europeans Aged 15-30 (on a range of issues), Flash 239: "Young People and Science" and Flash 273: Youth and their Rights.
Time period: 2002 -
Countries: EU members
Access: DBK download or ZACAT data portal. Registration required.
Longitudinal Three-Nation Study on Relations between Ethnic Minorities and Host Societies among School Students
This study looks at the views of adolescent school students in England, Germany and Belgium. Using the same questionnaire in three languages, and collecting data in waves of measurement with an average interval time of six months, the survey focused on obtaining responses from both members of ethnic minority groups and members of the host societies. Based on social psychological research on intergroup relations, acculturation, prejudice, and relative deprivation, the study was designed to investigate perceptions of and attitudes between both groups.
Time period: 2004-2005
Countries: Belgium, Germany, the United Kingdom
Access: UK Data Archive. Registration required.
The Political Participation of Young People in Europe - Development of Indicators for Comparative Research in the European Union (EUYOUPART)
Interviewing over 800 Europeans between the ages of 18-25, this survey data describes the extent and levels of their political participation. The project was funded under the 5th Framework Programme of the European Commission.
Time period: 2004
Countries: Austria, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Slovakia, the United Kingdom
Access: The German Youth Institute (Deutsches Jugendinstitut DJI) Survey Databank.
Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children (HBSC)
HBSC is a cross-national study conducted in collaboration with the World Health Organisation's (WHO) European office. Survey data is stored in a multinational database hosted by the Norwegian Social Science Data Service (NSD). Surveys examine the context, behaviour and attitude of school students aged 11, 13 and 15 years in relation to issues of health and well-being.
Time period: 1983-2006
European countries: Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom
Access: Data is available for external use following agreement with the International Coordinator and the Principal Investigators. The latest accessible data is from the 2001/02 survey.
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD): Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA)
Every three years the PISA study assesses to what extent 15-year-old students, nearing the end of compulsory education, have acquired some of the knowledge and skills essential for full participation in society.
Time period: 2000, 2003, 2006, 2009, 2012
European countries: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Moldova, Montenegro, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom
Access: PISA. The latest accessible data is from the 2009 survey.
International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA)
Fifty years of IEA research have resulted in a wealth of data on numerous aspects of international education. There are a number of resources available to support researchers interested in secondary analysis of IEA data. The data are managed by the IEA Data Processing and Research Center (DPC) and are available free of charge. The studies include CIVED, ICCS, PIRLS (2001, 2006), the Reading Literacy Study (1991, 2001), SITES (Module 1, 2006), TIMSS (1995, 1999, 2003, 2007), and TIMSS Advanced (1995, 2008).
Time period: 1991 -
European IEA countries: Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom
Access: IEA's Study Data Repository.
"Orientations of Young Men and Women to Citizenship and European Identity"
This European Commission funded project questions young persons aged between 18-24 on their identity, citizenship and attachment to their country of residence, locality and Europe. Data is collected in two phases: the surveying of representative and target samples, and subsequent follow-up interviews with a smaller sample of respondents. The target samples focus on young persons resident in localities with different and varied relationships with the rest of Europe and the European Union.
Time period: 2002
Countries: Austria, Germany, Spain, Czech Republic, Slovakia, the United Kingdom
Access: Data will be deposited in the UK Data Archive.
Country Specific Studies
Finland: View the Finnish Social Science Data Archive's (FSD) datasets on young persons;
Germany: View German Youth Institute (Deutsches Jugendinstitut DJI) survey data;
Norway: View the Norwegian Social Science Data Services (NSD) datasets on "Ungdom" ("Youth");
Sweden: View the Swedish National Data Service's (SND) datasets on "Ungdom" ("Youth");
UK: View the UK Data Archive's (UKDA) datasets on young persons.
Other Resources
The European Commission's "Youth in the EU" figures
A downloadable leaflet provides background information on a forthcoming statistical report on the situation of young Europeans. It is anticipated that this report will be available in the first quarter of 2009.
The MacroDataGuide: Youth
International macro data and statistics on young persons available via the Norwegian Social Science Data Services (NSD).
The European Youth Information and Counselling Agency (ERYICA)
An international, not-for-profit organisation based in Luxembourg.
The International Clearinghouse on Children, Youth & Media
Hosted by The University of Gothenburg (Sweden), the Clearinghouse collects and documents research and other information on children, youth and the media across the world.
Princeton University Data and Statistical Services: Data on Young Adults
A collection of mainly US surveys on young people.
The Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR): Dataset search by term "Youth"
ICPSR maintain and provide access to a vast archive of social science data for research and instruction.
Society for the Study of Emerging Adulthood (SSEA)
SSEA is a network of international, multidisciplinary professionals focused on theoretical, empirical, and policy research issues relating to adulthood between the ages of 18 and 29.
Youth and the United Nations
The United Nations (UN) website provides reports (with statistical annexes) on issues concerning young people worldwide, and a list of youth websites from across the world.