Participation of Young People in Legislative Processes: A case study of the General Upper Secondary Schools Act in Finland - a school bullying narrative

Abstract

Laws have a major influence on the daily lives of young people. However, their role in legislative processes has been less studied. This research focuses on youth participation in the legislative processes and bullying narratives in the bills and statements related to the Finnish General Upper Secondary Schools Act. According to a qualitative content analysis of two bills and the consultation processes of 2016 and 2018, young people were consulted and participated more broadly in 2018, but the threshold to participate in legislative processes is high. The results show that young people’s views on bullying at school were not incorporated into the bills. The empirical results show a correlation to the theoretical framework, which illustrated how through their narratives various actors participate or try to participate in policymaking as agenda setters and framers, but the gatekeepers’ views function mainly as a basis in the legislative processes.