Marginalised young Scots are being overcome with feelings of “hopelessness” due to a lack of career opportunities, a ground-breaking University of Glasgow study has revealed.

Dr Mark Wong, a lecturer in social and public policy, interviewed 20 Scottish teenagers who had effectively shut themselves off in their bedrooms for months or years at a time, often communicating with friends and family almost exclusively through digital means.

He has called on politicians to help the so-called “hidden youth” overcome feelings of extreme pessimism about future career prospects.

Dr Wong said: “They described experiences of leaving school and not really leaving their bedroom at all, with no real plans of being in employment or going back into school or education.”

“Young people felt that there are no jobs out there for them. They feel there are a lack of genuine opportunities for them in work.

“Hence, they feel there is no point in staying in education because they can’t see a meaningful career path for the future and the only realistic outcome for them is retreating into the bedroom.”

All but four of those interviewed were no longer in full-time education and none had secured consistent employment.

Dr Wong believes that their predicament is not fuelled by antipathy towards work, but is better explained by the current economic climate. Around half of them in short-term council training programmes.

He said: “Their feelings tie in with the prominence of so-called ‘precarious work’, with low-skill, low-paid, short-term jobs exemplified by zero-hour contracts.

“Especially for a lot of these people with low qualifications who left school early, they have a sense of feeling stuck in this very precarious, alienating situation which makes them feel unfulfilled.”

One of the younger participants revealed to Wong that going to the interview was his effectively his first trip outside of the house for an entire year.

However, the researcher was keen to challenge the reclusive depiction of the youngsters and explained that a societal change is required.

He said: “Young people do have ambitions and they are realistic. They talked about being tradespeople, being in retail, childcare and even in the army.

“There’s an assumption, sometimes from the media and policy-makers, that young people are just being lazy, staying in their bedroom which is putting the blame or responsibility on the young people themselves.

“But this research suggests otherwise. Actually, it’s society’s fault. We’re not creating secure, stable and meaningful opportunities for young people to engage in.”

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The wellbeing of our young people is an absolute priority for this government and we continue to take action to provide every young person with the support they need to reach their full potential.”

Newsdesk