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Paper short abstract:

The paper examines the academic youth’s everyday life in an uncertain and “overheated” world. The aim of this paper is to disclose the consequences of uncertainty in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine, and current environmental crises to everyday life of young people.

Paper long abstract:

The paper presents the results of ethnographic exploration in 2022 conducted in Lithuania, which draws on the questionnaire form “Everyday Life in the Changing World”. The research focuses on fifty Lithuanian students from Vytautas Magnus University.

The study addresses certain questions: How do young people manage to retain stability in contemporary “overheated” and indeterminate world? What challenges and issues did they face in the period of quarantine and the war in Ukraine? How did they cope with the situation? How did they manage to switch off from the quarantine reality to the former life? What lessons have they learnt during the unstable period?

The research revealed that young people were assisted by their parents and friends, they used to stay outdoors, got involved in sports, physical and cultural activities, reading, practicing religion or philosophical world outlook, used psychotherapy means, social media and got engaged in computer games, cooking, and other leisure activities. The experience of insecurity and uncertainty enabled young people to learn something new thus becoming more positive and resistant psychologically, more responsible choosing social media sites and filtering information in news sites. They have learnt new life strategies: "to live here and now", to manage their time and plan activities, to foresee the problems and ways to escape them. A number of respondents started cherishing the time, discovered new ways of relaxation, learnt to save their finances, observe their daily routine, constantly strive for certain aims, also, nurture a positive attitude.