Overseas Youth Expeditions with Raleigh International: A Rite of Passage‪?‬

Abstract This paper examines to what degree a 10-week expedition to Ghana, West Africa may be considered a rite of passage for its British participants. A case study method was adopted to interview 14 British youths two months before leaving on expedition, three times on expedition, and six months post expedition. Thematic analysis was employed to identify positive and negative indicators of van Gennep's (1960) three stage model of rites of passage: separation, transition, and incorporation. The findings indicated that while the structure of the expedition mimics rites of passage on a superficial level, there are some aspects central to rites of passage that are missing from the overseas expedition experience. Expedition providers may consider adopting van Gennep's model as a way to 're-introduce' young people back into their communities with added responsibilities.