Paper short abstract:

The presentation will report of themes of idioms of distress and commoning from interviews conducted with Icelandic adolescents aged 13-17 about their experiences and status within government public health interventions.

Paper long abstract:

Adolescence is an important period of personal growth, with the establishing of ones sense of self where peer-relationships become increasingly important, this group has needed to come up with imaginative ways to cope and connect with friends. It is already evident that the government public health interventions following the COVID-19 pandemic, such as social distancing, closure of public institutions, and disruption of daily routines, has had a multifaceted impact on all levels of societies worldwide. As a result, adolescents have had to adjust to a new sense of reality whilst negotiating important elements such as peer-relationships, their own individuality, and personhood. This is shown in finding ways to seek support from friends, creating new relationships through common interests online, and redefining what is important to them. Icelandic adolescents are no exception. This presentation is a part of a larger PhD project in medical anthropology which aims to give insight into the experiences of adolescents in Iceland by using mixed methods; participatory research, interviews, and analysis of survey data. The presentation will report on themes, including narratives of coping, and redefining the social with online media, from interviews conducted between September 2021 and June 2022 with adolescents aged 13-17 from the capital area of Iceland. Insights will be brought into their experiences during unprecedented times, and analysis drawn from theories of idioms of distress, and commoning, to build a picture showing how they have gradually co-produced a new ‘normal’ way of being.