Situating ‘Subculture’: On the Origins and Limits of the Term for Understanding Youth Cultures

Abstract

After critically evaluating research on subcultures since the 1970s, this chapter questions the validity and analytical potential of the term ‘subculture’. Speaking of the academic ‘myth of subcultures’, first the limits of subcultural research are fleshed out, before an explanation is proposed for the longevity and continued prominence of the term. The chapter concludes that although the concept may not be adequate to analyze the development of leisure-based youth cultures, the myth of subcultures itself is an important starting point for critically engaging with subculture research.