Social exclusion experiences of young people in the context of poverty: The example of Mardin

Many groups are affected by the risks posed by poverty. One of the most affected groups among these groups is the youth. In order to reveal the social exclusion experienced by young people in the context of poverty, it is necessary to identify and reveal the problems experienced by young people. In this context, in this study, it was aimed to reveal the social exclusion experiences of young people residing in Mardin, and in order to achieve this goal, sub-objectives such as security, health, education, housing, community resources, employment, financial resources and social resources were determined. The methodology of the research was revealed within the framework of the interpretative paradigm, using the qualitative research method and the phenomenology design. In-depth interviews were conducted with poor young people who were determined by snowball sampling, which is one of the purposive sampling techniques in the Mardin universe. The answers given by the young people to the semistructured interview form were turned into sub-themes and coded in the text. In the first part, theoretical information about poverty, youth poverty and social exclusion; secondly, youth policies in Turkey; Finally, the methodology and analysis of the findings are discussed. As a result, young people; They feel uneasy because of the prevalence of substance use and violence in the places they live, their economic conditions negatively affect their social relations, they are employed in insecure jobs with low wages, they feel excluded due to the physical appearance of the house they live in and the inadequacy of resources such as banks, sports venues, and public transport in these places. They are excluded from their friend circles due to inadequacies and finally they have problems in accessing resources such as libraries and the internet. It is only possible with multidimensional policies to understand the intense and multi-layered exclusion experienced by young people who are trying to exist under the harsh conditions of poverty and to break this cycle. In this sense, it is thought that this study will guide the policies to be developed, and it is recommended that future studies be carried out on the areas that are found to be lacking.