“I Wanna Be Somebody by the Time I Turn 25”: Narratives of Pathways into Crime and Reentry Expectations Among Young Men in Germany and the United States

Using in-depth interviews with forty-seven German and American young men who have been sentenced for severe criminal offenses, we show how contextual differences shape their reflections on their behavioral choices and their expectations for the future. Taking a comparative approach emphasizes the context dependency of marginalization and criminalization, while also demonstrating the similarities between young people labeled as “outsiders” in their respective societies.