Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Security is a hot button issue almost anywhere in the world, but when people discuss security do they all understand the issue the same way? Conceptions of security have changed over the past several decades and continue to evolve all the time. But the changing security discourse also highlights the notion that security, or at least the ways that each of us perceive it, is a construct of our socialization processes and the security environment in which we live. Individuals in war-torn regions are more likely to list physical safety as a higher priority than economic prosperity. Those in developing societies are more likely to emphasize basic human needs; and citizens of developed countries may emphasize ?luxury? conceptions of security, such as economic prosperity, in their own views of what is important for feeling secure. In all instances, people?s perceptions of security are conditioned by the physical, social, economic, and even emotional setting of the world around them. This paper focuses on understanding whether or not the evolving security discourse in our field reflects the reality of security perceptions held by people. We begin by briefly reviewing some of the scholarly literature on evolving conceptions of security and then turn to an examination of conceptions of security held by today?s youth (and tomorrow?s leaders) in two countries, the USA and Israel using data generated by the GlobalEd Project (www.globaled.uconn.edu) at the University of Connecticut. We then compare the younger generation?s attitudes with the attitudes held by their parents? generation allowing an additional layer of analysis.