Different Dynamics of Young People's Strategies to Cope with the COVID-19 Pandemic

The aim of the project is to mediate the production of scientific knowledge with comparative analyzes by addressing the different dynamics of the coping strategies of young people aged 18-30 in Turkey with the COVID-19 epidemic in the context of sociological, psychological, cultural, political, economic and gender; it also contributes to the development of policies based on effective and efficient use of resources during epidemics and similar global crisis periods. It has been observed that young people in Turkey have difficulties primarily in mental health, restriction of personal freedoms and education during the epidemic. The findings of the study indicated that women use positive strategies more than men; In addition, it shows that the level of using positive emotional and behavioral strategies is higher. While behavioral negative strategies were used more by men, emotional negative strategies were used more by women. It was found that non-working youth used negative strategies more in the pandemic, while cognitive positive strategies were used more by the working group. Another finding is that young people who are not students benefit more from positive strategies. Significant differences were also found in terms of the social status in which the participants perceived themselves; Being in the upper group seems to be more advantageous in coping with the epidemic in a positive way. It was observed that men, workers, married people, those with higher socio-economic status and non-student participants were more resilient. As the age and income level of the participants increase, the level of resilience also increases. This research reveals that the young people experience the crisis environment created by the global epidemic in a specific way in terms of the difficulties they experience in participating in education life during the epidemic, their fragility in the job market, their dependence on the family and the values ​​attributed to being young. The ability of young people to cope with the vulnerabilities created and/or deepened by this crisis environment varies depending on factors such as gender, socio-economic status, physical environment in which they live, and demographic characteristics. In addition to the unequal distribution of the effects of the epidemic among young people, their ways and capacities to cope with these challenges also differ significantly. It is of great importance to develop youth policies and heal the wounds of the global epidemic, taking into account these specific conditions of the youth.