Changing attitudes over time

Another important category in this area involved changes and developments in the young people's attitudes over time. Sometimes this was evident within interviews, as the young people's professed opinions altered over the course of the research. One example of this was the attitudes of the participants from the South West towards the way of working they encountered during the Enquire project. Claire's account of her experiences of the project offer an example of this. In early interviews, both she and her fellow participants expressed the view that there was too much freedom involved in the way they worked during the project:

like a mixture of the two would be best, because at school, its kind of too led, but this was kind of too free, cause we often had those silent moments like we had in there a second ago when we're just like, 'erm, yeah, really don't know what to do', cause we're so used to not doing that, that its hard to get into the whole thing. (Claire, South West, interview 1)

I think we probably could have done with maybe at times slightly more guidance in like what we were doing. (Emma, South West, group interview)

However, over time, Claire developed a more positive attitude towards being in situations where there was more freedom, for example because of the lack of an obvious authority figure:

You do experience more [freedom] definitely now because when you were younger you were so used to, 'who's in charge? Who’s the person?' like when you do something naughty, like, 'oh no, they're

looking, quick, pretend you're doing something'...I'd say it's much more kind of enjoyable because you can just sort of like relax and know that everyone's sort of in it together, you're not out there by yourself or you haven't got to answer to someone particularly, you're just allowed to be. (Claire, South West, interview 3)

A similar process occurred with regard to Claire's attitude towards working in an open ended way on the Enquire project. In an early interview, she expressed anxiety over not having an end product to show for their efforts:

I feel like there should be something more, 'This is our art, here it is', not 'oh yeah there's this and there's this little thing here and we did this', but, I know there's the book, but that's kind of more like a collection, its almost as if that should lead somewhere as well, but it kind of hasn't so... (Claire, South West, interview 1)

However, when asked about this in a later interview, it was clear that Claire's attitude had changed:

I think everyone did really enjoy it as well because it was nice not to have to plan everything out...Yeah, it was quite interesting how we could just do that and how – because you've still got an end point and we still did something – and you don't always have to think through everything, it is al right to just sort of spur of the moment kind of thing. (Claire, South West, interview 3)

Claire had revised her opinion about the unpredictability she encountered during the Enquire project and had developed a positive attitude towards working in open ended ways more generally:

I'm not as fussed any more, like with English, we're doing like writing, writing in different styles of people and the first one I did linked really well to this author and so I was just like, 'fine, I'm just going to do that', and just sort of set my mind on that, whereas as we've gone through and looked at different things, I've been inspired by different things and sort of was happy to leave something behind and start on something new and just sort of try different things. It's more interesting than just

sticking with one thing, which does get a bit boring when you haven't experienced the others, you're sort of like making a judgement when you haven't got all the information if you know what I mean. (Claire, South West, interview 3)

Another example of changes in attitudes occurring over the course of the research involved Daniel's opinions of mainstream politics. In early interviews, Daniel expressed a very negative view of politics:

Yeah, I'm not one for politics. I think it’s boring and I think it’s not getting us anywhere because Gordon Brown is not getting us anywhere, he's just going along the same lines as Tony Blair and Tony Blair's on the same side as George Bush and George Bush is just sending his troops out to Iraq and Afghanistan and making the British fight for them and it’s not our fight and I think that it’s pointless that the British are fighting for America when it’s got nothing to do with us. (Daniel, North East, interview 1)

However, in a later interview, Daniel balanced such views with what he saw as more positive examples:

I’m so excited about Obama...I’m happy he’s going to be the first black president, I think it will like change the world. (Daniel, North East, interview 3)

As well as the participants' attitudes evidently changing over the course of the research, there were also examples in the data that demonstrated how the young people themselves felt that they had gone through a change in their attitudes and opinions over time, often following particular experiences. Craig, for example, described how his attitude towards interacting and working with people who were different to him had changed:

I've only started to feel like that since the beginning of last year, because I used to have a lot of problems and now it’s just to the point where I've had so much counselling and stuff that it’s just to the point where you go, 'no everyone's different, you have to allow for other

people', but not to the point where you're just letting everything slip for them. (Craig, South West, interview 2)

Craig's reflection on certain experiences also demonstrated a change in his attitudes, as was evident in his discussion of the boycott of his school canteen:

I mean I'm all for making a scene about something rather than, you know...because talking about it, sitting down and talking about it only works for so long and then you have to take action. I wouldn't go severe, like hold people hostage until they remove certain rules because that's just stupid but definitely taking protest action is more effective than just talking about it. (Craig, South West, interview 3)

For Emma too, the boycott had led to a modification in her attitudes towards taking direct political action. While Craig expressed the development of a positive attitude towards such action as a way of addressing one's political concerns, Emma expressed a view on how particular strategies – including aesthetic strategies – could be put to use in political acts such as the boycott:

In my opinion, it would've been so much more effective if we'd all just like stood or like sat or even like gone into the canteen...it would have been more effective if everyone had brought packed lunch and everyone had gone into the canteen and sat there in silence it would have had the most effect. (Emma, South West, interview 3)