European Journal of Psychology of Education 1994, Vol. IX, n'' I, 55-67 © 1994, I.S.P.A. Social Insertions and Representations of Oneself and Young People: Apprentices and High School Students Thierry Devos Jean-Claude Deschamps Loraine Comby University oj Lausanne, Switzerland What does the category or the term 'young people' evoke for teenagers who identify themselves in terms of their social group memberships? On the basis of two studies we were able to demonstrate that whereas for apprentices (positioned between school and the world of work) youth is defined in terms of various activities - one is young by virtue of what one is doing, for those pursuing studies in senior high school (the 'lyceens'), one is young by virtue of how one thinks. In addition, whileapprentices tend to value the group, high school students value the individual above all else. Introduction Within the field of research on intergroup relations, work on intergroup and intragroup differentiation has generally focussed upon the processes involved (the greater or lesser effects of differentiation, assimilation or discrimination) to the relative neglect of content'. This priority given to the study of processes, and most often to cognitive processes, is undoubtedly justified. However, it is equally important to emphasise that the content of representations itself conveys a certain view of the differences between groups as much as it does of the homogeneity or heterogeneity of groups. Now it is precisely this role of intergroup images or representations in the relations between and within groups which we intend to examine in this article. Intergroup representations We assume here that intergroup representations are no more than particular instances of social representations: they are therefore generative principles for perspectives linked to specific group memberships within a set of social relationships, and they structure the symbolic processes which intervene in these relationships (Doise, 1986). Intergroup representations are in a sense This investigation has been made possible by a grant from the Fonds National Suisse de la Recherche Scientifique to the second author (n? 11-32219.91). This article was translated from the French by N. Emler.