Fear of youth

Background
The psychological and social fear of youth is called ephebiphobia.

Coinage
The word ephebiphobia is formed from Greek 'ephebos' έφηβος = teenager, underage adolescent and 'fobos' φόβος = fear, phobia.

Coinage is attributed to a 1994 article by Kirk Astroth published in Phi Delta Kappan. Today, common usage occurs internationally by sociologists, government agencies, and youth advocacy organizations that define ephebiphobia as an abnormal or irrational and persistent fear and/or loathing of teenagers or adolescence.

Similar terms
The term paedophobia has gained popular acceptance in Europe to describe the aforementioned "fear of youth". Pediaphobia is the fear of infants and children. Using this term to categorize fear of youth may dismiss the unique social position that youth occupy. Hebephobia (from Greek 'hebe' (ήβη) = youth) has also been proposed; however, no verifiable evidence is available to support that claim. Similar terms include adultism, which is a predisposition towards adults that is biased against children and youth, and ageism, which describes discrimination against any person because of their age.

Impacts
The effects of ephebiphobia appear to cause damage throughout society. At least one major economist has proposed that the fear of youth can have grave effects on the economic health of nations. A growing number of researchers report that the fear of youth affects the health of democracy, reporting that the consequential vilification of youth has in the past, and continues to presently undermine public, social, political, and cultural participation among current and future generations.

Many social programs and social critics view ephebiphobia as a condemning force against youth throughout society, particularly when coupled with racism as it affects urban law enforcement, schooling, and media around the world  The effects of sexism are similarly reported to be amplified by ephebiphobia.

As it effects young people themselves, ephebiphobia has recognized as a barrier towards successful academic achievement, a barrier to successful social intervention programs, and as an indicator of the ineptitude of many adults to be successful parents.

Academics acknowledge the force of ephebiphobia in the commercial and governmental sectors of society, where this fear of youth has been extensively exploited for financial gain. This is elaborated on by social critics who claim that popular media exacerbated society's fear of youth. That notion is supported by newspaper reports of the fear of youth as a driver of social policy. A number of observers have indicated the deliberate perpetuation of mass social ephebiphobia in order to elicit particular public and social responses.

Examples of the fear of youth in popular culture

 * A Tribe Apart: A Journey into the Heart of American Adolescence by Patricia Hersch
 * Rosemary's Baby (film)
 * The Exorcist (film)
 * Children of the Corn (film)
 * The Parent Trap (film)
 * Battle Royale (film)
 * Many movies about school
 * Many songs about school
 * The Bad Seed (film)
 * "Teenagers", a song by My Chemical Romance

Related publications

 * (n.d.) Youth Liberation, Z magazine online.
 * Three Types of Youth Liberation - by Sven Bonnichsen
 * Pro-Youth - A firm text against ageism towards teenagers, presenting a case of ageism committed by a jury.
 * Everyone deserves to be given a chance - An essay against ageism towards teenagers, written by a Canadian adolescent.
 * "Are We Down On Our Kids?" - A Review of Caught in the Crossfire: Kids, Politics, and America’s Future by Lawrence Grossberg in Endeavours magazine that diagnoses cultural ephebiphobia in the U.S.
 * Ayotte, W. (1986) As Soon as You're Born They Make You Feel Small: Self Determination for Children.
 * Chicago Anarchist Youth Federation (n.d.) Schoolstoppers Textbook.
 * Cullen, S. (1991) Children in Society: a libertarian critique. London: Freedom Press.
 * Goodman, P. (1964) Compulsory Mis-education and The Community of Scholars. New York: Vintage Books.
 * Illich, I. (1970) Deschooling Society. New York: Harrow Books.
 * Holt, J. (1972) Freedom and Beyond. New York: E.P. Dutton & Co.
 * Miller, A. (1990) For Your Own Good: Hidden cruelty in child-rearing and the roots of violence. 3rd edition. New York: Noonday Press.