Based on research carried out in the Congo, this article reviews ways of studying young people, with reference to specific political categories and groups of participants in the context of the situation in Africa. Some African countries have seen the transition to democracy marked by widespread violence. These changes have given rise to a situation in which all reference to old age must be banned by the process of ‘deparentalisation’. Tension between different generations of political groups has arisen in an environment where the younger participants often have the strongest position. The Congolese attribute several interpretations to the term ‘deparentalisation’. These groups tend to condone precise forms of violent acts. In order to understand these relationships, we have analysed each group according to the rapports they have with all the other groups and according to the way in which these participants represent themselves in their political reality.