Gambling constitutes an inherent part of British cultural landscape but due to its potential to cause significant detriments it remains controversial. The Gambling Act 2005 liberalised the UK gambling industry and created an environment where commercial gambling, although regulated, can be offered within a relatively free market setting and its consumption can be stimulated by advertising. The task of the law is to provide a framework where the need for customer choice, a flourishing market, and the respect for private liberties can be adequately balanced with the duty to protect vulnerable individuals such as minors. The Gambling Act has been positioned as containing sufficient protective measures to prevent minors from being harmed by gambling but there is still a relative paucity of research that focuses specifically on how this regime affects this age group. This thesis fills some of the gaps by analysing whether the existing legal and regulatory framework reconciled the conflicting priorities adequately. It uniquely combines legal doctrinal analysis with empirical evidence collected from a sample of British pupils to expose that the liberalisation of gambling has brought severe limitations on protecting minors that are not sufficiently counterbalanced by existing measures. This thesis demonstrates that the legal definition of prohibited gambling does not incorporate all activities that may lead to gambling-related harm. While the age verification measures adopted by online gambling providers appear to be successful, young people continue to have easy access to gambling in land-based venues and are exposed to significant volumes of gambling advertising that appeals to them but these factors are not sufficiently compensated by any holistic regulatory strategy. However, the thesis indicates that the correlation between fun and real gambling games should not be attributed to overlaps in minor's motivations for engaging in either form or to minors' lack of accurate differentiation between them.

The social justice agenda is currently at the foreground of political consciousness and the idea of 'social justice' has penetrated the discipline of psychology, specifically counselling and community psychology. However, there is a wealth of literature which has debated the role of social justice in psychology, and what it can and should look like. A systematic literature review was undertaken to find and synthesise empirical research relevant to the question: 'what is the significance of social justice in educational psychology practice?' It was structured using the PRISMA framework and studies were examined and screened to ensure that they met the inclusion criteria. A Weight of Evidence framework was used to enhance the judgement of the quality and relevance of the identified studies, with regards to the review's research question. Qualitative research studies were assessed for quality using a pre-existing investigative framework, whilst quantitative investigation studies were evaluated using a tailor-made framework, which referenced quantitative research guidelines. The research base was found to give positive support to the significance of the concept of social justice in US school psychology practice. An exploratory piece of qualitative research using semi-structured interviews with qualified UK educational psychologists was conducted to explore their views of social justice. The interviews were transcribed and thematic analysis applied. Results of the research gave definition to the concept of social justice under an educational psychology lens, reasons for its importance to educational psychology practice, examples of what it looked like within educational psychology practice, and thoughts around the role of educational psychology in promoting social justice. The concepts of evidence-based practice and practice-based evidence, and the effective dissemination of research in relation to outcomes and impact were discussed. Policy, practice and research development implications were considered, before a strategy for promoting and evaluating the dissemination and impact of the research findings, was considered. A multi-strand strategy of journal publication, presentations, and workshops will be utilised to encourage further discussion around the topic. The creation of a UK educational psychology special interest group around social justice may be of value, in order to advance interest in social justice, into action.

This thesis explores the alcohol consumption practices and experiences of 40 young people, aged 15-24, living in the suburban case study locations of Wythenshawe and Chorlton, Manchester, UK. By paying attention to how young people's drinking practices and experiences are bound up with relationships with friends, family, and diverse spaces, this research enhances understandings of the relational nature of young people's alcohol-related transitions to adulthood. Theoretically, I work at the intersection of multiple more-than-representational conceptual apparatus: 'doing' friendship; mobilities; and atmospheres. I conducted this research with young people, using a flexible suite of methods, which they could 'opt into', including: interviews; peer interviews; drawing elicitation interviews; diaries; mobile phone methods; and participant observation. Young people detail how alcohol assists with the formation of friendships, tensions between friends and strangers, and the development of 'more-than-friendships'. I thus contribute to the children's geographies literature by affording the role of friendship to many young people's everynight lives greater prominence. Second, by engaging with young people's emotional and embodied walking and vehicular mobilities, I show that young people consume alcohol on the move because it is both economically beneficial, and emotionally important. In doing so, I move beyond the typical academic and policy treatment of drinking spaces as bounded terrains. Third, I engage with young people's atmospheric experiences of darkness and lightness. I argue that atmospheres have the ability to shape drinking practices and experiences; young people are not passive to these atmospheres, they actively co-construct them. Whilst traditional harm-reduction messages focus on the individual drinker, I urge policymakers to turn their attention to intra and intergenerational relationships. For instance, by encouraging the practice of being a 'good friend' on nights in/out involving alcohol; and by providing families with advice on how to construct positive affective drinking atmospheres.

This thesis explores the two year transition period leading towards the end of compulsory schooling. It asks how young people who live in disadvantaged locations make career related choices, and is concerned with why such people often do not choose in ways that are advantageous to them. In order to provide a comprehensive understanding of how young people's career related decision-making is shaped, this study uses an approach that is both theoretically engaged and young person focused. Thirteen young people took part in the research over two years; interviews utilised visual research and analysis methods to engage with the experiences of these young people towards the end of their time studying at a secondary school in the North West of England. Data is analysed using a conceptual framework that incorporates selected 'thinking tools' from Bourdieu (1977) to explore the structural influences shaping career ideas that are typical for this group (i.e. 'field', 'habitus', 'social capital' and 'cultural capital'). The concept of reflexivity is also used to consider the presence of and potential for these young people to exercise agency within the structurally embedded context in which they are situated. The study demonstrates the ways in which the career ideas of these young people are heavily shaped by the environment they inhabit and, therefore, typically reproduce the existing, limited range of occupations already prevalent within the community. The social networks participants engage with when contemplating their ideas are critical in this process of reproduction since they mediate transference of cultural capital to the habitus. Such networks tend to be insular and made up of close family and friends. However, there is also evidence that reflexivity within this context is possible, and this can be vital in promoting social mobility - but this requires the creation of spaces where young people can reflect and discuss their experiences and options with actors who are genuinely seen as trustworthy (I argue that this occurred for some participants through this research process). Finally, the study concludes that although reflexivity is atypical for students from socially disadvantaged backgrounds, in certain circumstances it shows the potential to be transformative.

According to many scholars, schools are the last bastion of permitted homophobia (Beadle, 2009; Grew, 2008; as cited in Formby, 2013). Primarily using the theories of Foucault, Kristeva and Butler, the thesis uses critical theory as a means to both understand and critically analyse the construction of subjectivity within and throughout discourse in the hetero-/cis-normative institution, and how this related to the potential abjection of LGBT+ pupils. Whilst it is agreed in this thesis that LGBT+phobia is still widespread in both schools and wider society, it was found in this research that the impact of direct LGBT+phobic discrimination was less evident. Instead, the discursive spaces where LGBT+phobia had been silenced were filled with hetero-/cis-normative discourse. Concomitantly, the impact of LGBT+ invisibility, the silencing of positive discourse surrounding sexuality and the institutional rejection of performative LGBT+phobia without cultural or organisational change meant there remained a negative impact on LGBT+ young people, despite a reduction in visible LGBT+phobia (DePalma and Atkinson, 2006/2010). Through the use of short vignettes taken from a period of ethnographic research, I have used discursive reflexivity to offer an alternative discourse surrounding the LGBT+ pupil in the school. In a thesis preoccupied with language, the institutional denial of appropriate language, the lack of positive space for LGBT+ young people to construct their identity and the potential risk of abjection from the hetero-/cis-normative institution are all highlighted as points for discussion. Viewed through a critical theory lens, the exemplars used to illustrate these complex theories are chosen from 72 workshops undertaken in schools with Year Nine pupils over a the 2015 to 2016 academic year in the Merseyside region, and also from self-identified LGBT+ young people (also in Year Nine during the academic year 2015 to 2016), who were part of discussions in an LGBT+ Youth drop in based in Liverpool city centre. Intertwining academic analysis and philosophical reflection, the research finds that not only is the LGBT+ pupil abject in the school, but this abjection is threefold. It is enacted by the institution, the peer group and by the internalised LGBT+phobia of the abjected pupil. In the conclusion, it is reflected upon how the impact abjection from school continues to affect LGBT+ people into adulthood.

Schools, and in particular physical education (PE), have been increasingly recognised for the role that they play in promoting healthy, active lifestyles amongst children and young people in light of the public health agenda (Armour and Harris, 2013). However, whilst schools have been recognised for the role that they can play in promoting health to children and young people, concerns have been expressed with regard to the status of health in PE and the approaches and practices used to address health-related learning (Cale et al., 2016). A particular concern in this regard is what children and young people know and understand about health , and how they come to conceive this within PE, with a growing body of literature suggesting that pupils conceptions are relatively superficial and simplistic (see Harris et al. (2016) for an overview). Accordingly, the purpose of this research is to explore pupils conceptions of health within PE. The research was comprised of four phases which took place over an 18-month period within the East Midlands region of England. Phase one involved an online survey being distributed to all state secondary schools (n = 293) and with a total of 52 schools responding. Phase two involved semi-structured interviews being conducted with 13 PE teachers at two case study schools and focus groups with 117 pupils (aged 11-12) at the same schools. A participatory approach underpinned the study and relevant methods/techniques were employed within pupil focus groups to generate discussion and elicit pupils conceptions of health . Examples of the methods/techniques employed included: drawings, concept cartoons and statement sheets. Pupils worked interactively with one another to undertake and discuss tasks/activities in line with the youth voice agenda that underpinned the research. This agenda is often allied with participatory methods (Heath et al., 2009) and seeks to privilege the voices of younger participants, recognising that children and young people are competent social agents, capable of both understanding and articulating their own experiences (Christensen and James, 2008). Phase three involved follow-up focus groups with the same pupils who participated during the preceding phase, and a similar participatory approach was employed. Phase four involved semi-structured focus groups being conducted with the same PE teachers at each school. Data generated were analysed using a Foucauldian-inspired discourse analysis. The findings of the study highlight that the vast majority of pupils conceptions of health were reductive, limited and limiting. These conceptions of health were identified as being underpinned by: corporeal notions, aesthetic orientations and healthist influences. In addition, they aligned with normative conceptions of health , that were evidently influenced by public health discourses, which may well have been promulgated by and through PE. Whilst pupils did not necessarily consider that PE influenced their conceptions of health , there were evident links, which PE teachers themselves acknowledged and problematised. Positively, it was highlighted that there were some pupils who were able to disrupt normative conceptions of health and, in doing so, they demonstrated their capacity for criticality. As such, the challenge for PE is now to consider how it might support pupils to develop their capacities to receive, interpret and be critical of health-related information. If it can do so, it may well be that critically-inclined conceptions of health can be fostered within, through and by the subject.

The school to post-school transition has been identified as a time when young people with Additional Support Needs (ASN) need extra support. This thesis focuses on the school to post-school transition planning and preparation process for young people with ASN in Scotland. In particular, the author scrutinised the collaborative planning and preparation that takes place amongst professionals to support young people with ASN and their families during this transition. The author also examined the influence of the Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004 upon the process. A mixed-methods research design was used to undertake three studies. Study 1 was a national on-line survey of professionals involved in post-school transition planning and preparation. Study 2 was a longitudinal study in which professionals involved in transition planning and preparations from one local authority were interviewed at 2 time periods (2004 before the implementation of the Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004 and 2010). Minutes of transition meetings from both periods were also examined. Study 3 was a case study of a further education college undertaken in the same local authority as Study 2, to understand the experiences of transition planning and preparation from the perspectives of the young people with ASN who had experienced post-school transition and their families, along with school and college professionals. Participants (young people, parents and professionals) were interviewed. Visual resources were developed by the author to support the interviews with the young people. Data in all the studies were analysed using a thematic analysis approach. Finally, the findings of the three studies are presented and discussed. These include the perception that transition planning and preparation has become more young person centred since the Act was introduced. Implications for policy makers, practitioners, and future research are also discussed.

American consumer culture is often depicted as competitive and based on the acquisition of capital and status through goods or experiences. To date, researchers commonly exclude children from this conversation and therefore fail to wholly assess the impact consumer culture has on one’s choices or behavior. This study adds to a growing body of literature exploring the experiences and agency of children within the broader consumer culture by examining how marginalized children from a lower socioeconomic background use food as a resource for belonging among peers. Observation and interview data collected during designated lunch and snack times at a summer program in Tampa, FL reveal that children co(construct) a reality all their own which allows peers a chance to belong and simultaneously acquire capital. This project contributes to the understanding of the role race, class, and emotions play for children within the American consumer culture, especially regarding food consumption.

Aboriginal young people are exposed to the impact of colonisation in Australia. They are at risk of becoming alienated from their homelands, cultures, communities and families. Some have become alienated, joining one of the most marginalised groups in Australian society – homeless people. Aboriginal young people, many of whom are already marginalised because of their indigeneity, join a group that can be described as further marginalised – that is, Aboriginal and homeless. In essence, Aboriginal homelessness can be seen and described as a loss of sovereignty. The Hebersham Aboriginal Youth Service (HAYS) is an organisation that is responding to the phenomenon of Aboriginal youth homelessness. HAYS is funded and operates under a joint Australian Federal, State and Territory government programmatic response that assists people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. This thesis reviews the design and development of HAYS as an Aboriginal service organisation. The central thesis research question is: How should a service for homeless Aboriginal youth be designed and developed? In addressing this question, a case study methodology is utilised which is capable of facilitating research in contemporary organisational settings, such as in HAYS where its design participants operate around specific visions and goals. The research findings indicate that HAYS should become a ‘modern-day tribal ground’ in the form of the Mount Druitt Aboriginal Homeland Centre (MDAHC). In order to progress this model, a substantive theory of coherent dialogue is presented containing five critical design and development propositions educed from the research. The theory contains lessons for the design and development of urban Aboriginal community service organisations. This thesis concludes with a plea for consciousness-raising between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people involved in the design and development of Aboriginal community service organisations – a move towards the development of a critical consciousness for a better world through coherent dialogue. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

This thesis is an examination of the prominent discourse which claims young people are apathetic and disengaged from politics. It is argued that this discourse is based upon two faulty conceptual assumptions, firstly, that youth is a period of linear transition to adulthood, and secondly, that the discourse unreflexively applies an unproblematised notion of politics which has its origin in the eighteenth century Scottish Enlightenment. The research used in-depth qualitative interviews to explore the ways in which young people operating across the political spectrum understand and practice politics. These qualitative findings add to existing studies of young people and politics, which are predominantly quantitative in approach. The findings suggest that the Scottish Enlightenment’s narrow, regulatory, liberal model of politics is the hegemonic model of politics for participants. However, this hegemony is challenged by participants’ own ‘political’ practices, the collapse of liberalism’s public/private divide under conditions of late modernity, and an interconnected sense of self. Moreover, contrary to the discourse of apathetic and disengaged youth, that there are a number of ways of understanding and practicing politics, particularly in light of social processes – such as individualisation, new social movements, and consumerism – driving recent social change.