Life Trajectories of Children and Adolescents Living on the Streets of Rio de Janeiro

Summary

This paper presents some of the research findings from a study of street children in Rio deJaneiro which was undertaken by the authors together with a team of street educators. Thepaper highlights the children’s life trajectories in terms of their own perceptions andrepresentations and addresses key themes, such as the family, the process of going to the street and day to day living on the street. It discusses relationships with regard to the formation of groups and children’s interaction with adults on the street, and the processes of identity formation on the street which includes the perception of self and of others. The children’s perceptions of the positive and negative aspects of the street and their hopes for the future are discussed.