Character-Based Ethics in Youth Ministry

1. Character-Based Ethics in Youth Ministry An ethnographic study into a new field Peter Hart 3rd year PhD student School of Applied Social Science, Durham University @youthworkerpete Peter.hart@dur.ac.uk www.durham.ac.uk/peter.hart

2. Aim • To discuss day-to-day ethical practices of youth ministries through comparison to their secular colleagues in the UK. • In particular: • To compare rule-based and character-based ethical practices • “Ethical reflection is far broader than the scope of moral quandaries” (Dykstra 2003)

3. Why is this important? • Little overt discussion into ethical practices found in the literature: • Green, M. (1999) 'The Youth Worker as Converter' in Banks, S., (ed.) Ethical Issues in Youth Work • Nash, P. and Hirst, S. (2011) 'Politician of Integrity' in Nash, S., (ed.) Youth Ministry • Root, A. and Dean, K. C. (2011) The Theological Turn in Youth Ministry

4. Ethics in (secular) Youth Work • Literature on secular youth work ethics prioritise the: • Function of the worker • Duty of the worker towards young people’s wellbeing • Code of ethics and safeguarding policies • This has been critiqued by those uncomfortable with rule-based ethical decision making: • …to dehumanise [contact with children and young people], to avoid any touch or speech that might be misinterpreted, and to cling to rules like safety ropes on a stormy deck… the risk to themselves of intervening to help a child outweighs care, compassion or responsibility. Fear outweighs, and crowds out, wisdom (Marshalll and Mellon 2011) See also: Banks, S. (2010) Ethical Issues in Youth Work, 2nd ed Sercombe, H. (2010) Youth Work Ethics

5. Methodology • 8 month ethnographic study of four youth centres: • Local Authority run centre • Community run club • Church based youth ministry • Church based youth café • Methodology based on Wolcott’s (1990) ‘micro-ethnography’

6. Methodology • Over 90 observations • 23 interviews with workers and managers • 6 focus groups with young people. • Inductive analysis, aided by Nvivo.

7. Findings 1: trusting young people • Unsupervised use of space • Bringing consent forms or self-consenting • Self-serving tuck shop • Resources freely available

8. Findings 1: trusting young people • Tonight I noticed that the young people have access to the whole building, whether other workers are present or not – for example three times young people went into the office, where the door was permanently open. The young people were also able to move in and out of the coffee bar, and young people would serve themselves from the tuck shop and leave the money on the top of the blue money tin… [A young person asked about my observations] I explained that in some other clubs young people aren’t allowed in the office without a worker, so it provided an interesting comparison. She suggested that this was because [the workers] trusted them.[YM Field Note #03]

9. Findings 1: trusting young people • Paid Worker: I think we trust them quite a lot actually... they can help themselves and put the money in the tin. By the time they’re 14+ we give them fairly free reign… I think we try to demonstrate quite a lot of trust and I think that goes quite a long way with young people….. And I think just develops a more equal relationship between us and them. And I know sometimes that’s slightly abused, the odd bit of tuck might get nicked, or the odd bit of equipment might get wrecked, but in general terms I think that’s the better way to be than trying to lock everything down and sign for everything. [YM interview}]

10. Findings 1: trusting young people • I started by playing Black Jack with two young people and Brian [worker]. It’s a very simple card game based on luck, but the young people were really engaged. Brian played for about 30 minutes, but he was often interrupted (around 6 times) mid-hand by people who wanted serving at the tuck shop. This spoilt the flow of the game. [LAYC field note #15] • After buying a can [from a vending machine] he went to serve himself at the tuck shop – he made a big thing of buying four giant strawberry sweets with 20p, saying ‘look you can check, I’ve put my money in…’ and then proceed to count in quite an exaggerated way. [LAYC field note #11]

11. Finding 2: Young People’s Personal and Pastoral Needs • Offering lifts (rides home) to young people • Creating a welcoming environment • Working one-to-one • Safeguarding policies used flexibly

12. Finding 2: Young People’s Personal and Pastoral Needs • Interviewer- If a young person asked to meet one-to-one outside the normal youth work time, about something genuinely important, how would you react to that? • Volunteer- Erm… I’d say yes I think. I’d talk about it with [the paid worker] first, or someone at church, but the idea is that if they do want to talk to us because of the relationship they’ve built with us, then we should be able to do that because there might be something they feel they can’t tell anyone else. It’s just, the situation has to be right, if you know what I mean. Somewhere like this [a coffee shop]. [YM interview]

13. Finding 2: Young People’s Personal and Pastoral Needs • Lifts home: Four reactions • Young person immediately offered a lift. • After attempting to phone a manager, a young person was offered a lift. • A distressed young person was offered a lift, with the worker recognising this was against organisation policy (not observed, but explained during interview). • Young person left sat on the doorstep as workers drove away, offering a lift was against the ‘lone worker policy’.

14. Finding 3: Close and Informal Relationships • Building a close relationship a priority. • Use of touch, engaging in activities with workers, and self-disclosures set youth ministries apart. • In one case, incarnational theology was explicitly referred to.

15. Finding 3: Close and Informal Relationships • Building a close relationship a priority. • Use of touch, engaging in activities with workers, use of workers’ homes and families, and self-disclosures set youth ministries apart. • In one case, incarnational theology was explicitly referred to. • Facebook an example of incarnational ministry.

16. Finding 3: Close and Informal Relationships • Interviewer - If a young person were to send you a Facebook friend request, how would you react to that request? • Paid Worker- If they requested that I be their friend then generally I’d just accept that. That would be fine. I’m very aware that I have young people as friends on Facebook. And, so I’m sort of quite careful about what I put on there or, like, … I think it’s part of being transparent and the integrity thing, there’s nothing I need to hide on Facebook or anything like that. [YM interview]

17. Framing Ethical Practice in Youth Ministry: Virtue Ethics • MacIntyrian ethics, based on the character of the worker, best reflects the practices at the Youth Ministries. • Character of the Worker • Practice of Youth Ministry: • Internal goods. • Telos: the flourishing of self and others. • The place where virtues can be practiced.

18. Framing Ethical Practice in Youth Ministry: Virtue Ethics • Tradition of Youth Ministry • “How must a Christian community live in order to be the body of Christ?” • Church as polis, a place for ethical dialogue and reflection.

19. Conclusion • In the organisations observed, the Christian youth ministries were observed promoting a more character-based approach to practice, the secular organisations more deontological. • If virtue ethics is an appropriate foundation for ethical practice in youth ministry, youth ministers and training providers should become more intentional and coherent. • While ethical debates often focus on difficult moral quandaries, an ethical basis for daily practices in youth ministries is under-theorised and researched.

20. Character-Based Ethics in Youth Ministry An ethnographic study into a new field Peter Hart @youthworkerpete Peter.hart@dur.ac.uk www.durham.ac.uk/peter.hart