Shaping Youth Ministry: Exploring Influences on Youth Pastors’ Approaches to Programme Design

The literature on youth ministry practices is mostly anecdotal, and empirical research into the practices, goals, and meanings of youth ministry to youth pastors is rare, especially in Australia. In this study, 20 youth pastors in Perth, Western Australia, were interviewed about their goals, priorities, practices, training, and what influenced them. This study forms part of a larger doctoral research project. The interview data were analysed utilising a phenomenological approach, drawing upon Goffman’s framing analysis to examine the link between ‘meaning making’ and explicit and tacit motivations for youth ministry practice. The research found that youth pastors were most often motivated by their personal experiences, influenced by mentors and peers, and sometimes their formal studies. Goffman’s framing was useful for explaining how motivations, influences, and goals shape ‘what’ is happening. The research contributes to knowledge about cross-denominational youth ministry practices with young people and has implications for youth ministry training and the need to support youth pastors’ informal learning through their networks.