Growing Up in Post-Conflict Kosovo; Youth’s Insecurities and Their Attitudes Towards Police

Abstract

This study aims to identify insecurities among youth in Kosovo, utilizing insights from the field to advance and deepen the concept of human security, capturing the connection between insecurity and affiliated agency. It also explores attitudes towards police in Kosovo, analysing youth perspectives on performance, procedural justice and distributive justice. Primary data from semi-structured focus group discussions with Kosovar youth are used for the analyses. Four main insecurities were identified: (1) job-related, (2) drug-related, (3) school-related, (4) physical insecurities. Ethnic tensions were a recurrent crosscutting theme. Attitudes towards police are generally perceived as poor and seem to stem mainly from a performance and procedural justice perspective. Recommendations for future research and policy conclude the article.