Researchers from different areas have warned of recurrent and problematic aspects of knowledge production related to adolescents and their social conditions. Research indicates that studies usually deal with the theme based on the "problems" that youth presents, and do not approach its comprehension of ways of life and daily experiences. The aim of this article is to discuss how the Brazilian researchers think about the adolescent nowadays, in a dialogue with other states-of-the-art on this issue. We decided to survey Master's theses and doctoral dissertations in two areas of knowledge - psychology and health - in the period from 1998 to 2008. Initially, we present the reasons for this choice and the procedures adopted for this survey. Then, we approach some characteristics of the context of production of the analyzed texts and their general topics, and provide a more specific discussion on those that focus on violence and vulnerabilities. This survey revealed some dilemmas and/or political forces that are connected and materialize in the production of contemporary young subjects, sometimes fixing them in a conceptual category and sometimes analyzing them according to the surrounding territories of vulnerabilities and violence. Assuming other ways of thinking about the youth, focusing on its social significance, its "deterritorialization/territorialization" processes, contributes to identify different logics, to produce new knowledge, and to reflect on distinct action strategies in a dialogue with the experiences and singularities of this young individual.
Youth; Vulnerability; Violence; State-of-the-Art