Taking the knocks

Unemployment is, without doubt, one of the prevalent themes in more recent sociological debate. The sociological problems that develop because of unemployment are quite clear it frequently causes dramatic changes in everyday habits and the habits of a lifetime; social reference points become easily disrupted; loss of identity, mental depression, inability to act or learn, and even physical illness are obvious symptoms among those affected.This extremely engaging book is based on the exploration phase of a long-term research programme dealing with the social problems generated by youth unemployment in Germany. The study has yielded what are undoubtedly surprising and important sociological results.The first chapter deals with the theoretical and methodological foundations of the study; the second chapter contains the empirical complex of the study, with an attempt at a careful differentiation of dominant 'patterns of coping' with the unemployment experience; finally, the author discusses some theoretical consequences of the study.