Motivating futures - helping young people from low-income backgrounds to thrive in a changing world of work

This report, released in partnership with the EY Foundation, is based on a wide review of literature and workshops with young people, showing how lessons in motivation could be a vital component in helping those from low-income backgrounds get better work in this age of AI labour market disruption.

As evidenced in our Pissarides Review, better technical skills and ‘AI literacy’ alone will not be enough for young people from low-income backgrounds to thrive. Intrinsic and internalised forms of motivation and self-agency are becoming increasingly important for these young people to adapt and succeed in this fast-evolving and technologising labour market.

In this major new report - produced in partnership with the EY Foundation - we explore this unique research gap: the interaction between motivation, access to good jobs, and the impact of coming from a low-income background.