If colleagues ride their bikes to work, it doesn't mean they can't afford a car. Like German Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel, who picks up his daughter from daycare on Wednesdays, the cycling colleague is a representative of a certain lifestyle.
The trend researchers of the Zukunftsinstitut hang their current study "Lifestyles for tomorrow - the new model for society, marketing and consumption" on "Lifestyles". For unlike the milieus to which numerous sociological studies refer, lifestyles are self-selected and nevertheless create communities in a society of ultra-individualists. Roughly speaking, these can be described by a mixture of values, attitudes and consumer preferences.
For this form of "integrated individualism," as the authors of the study call it, very classic demographic criteria are of little relevance. According to the futurologists, sociologists Stefan Hradil and Annette Spellerberg, lifestyles thus have the function of "providing orientation and common ground for individualized people in the midst of rapid social change.
Lifestyle creates conformity, approval, and allegiance, they say. Last but not least, lifestyles also have a considerable influence on work styles and the choice of jobs and employers. In total, the Zukunftsinstitut surveyed 30,274 randomly selected people about their attitudes and behaviors. What they all have in common is their high understanding of autonomy. Ten innovative lifestyles are presented in the study.
Creativiteens. The group of 14- to 25-year-olds is part of "a new generation of teenagers that thrives less on separation than on the integrative power of the technologized digital society." The successors of the Facebook generation also like to socialize privately via the Internet. Creativiteens have long since integrated the virtual into their real lives. Participation is a matter of course for these people - this attitude is described as "from participation on the Web to participation in life. These boys are ambitious and want to achieve something in life. They are conservative, "classic building savers," according to the authors. Values like family and friends are at the top.
Business freestylersare highly qualified, self-confident and permanently looking for themselves, for a greater challenge and for more responsibility - above all for more happiness and a better life. This group is found among 20 to 35 year olds. They are those people who plan their "ping-pong biographies" professionally, he said. This group doesn't think much of average, they say. Stagnation and boredom are alien to them. Clear goals in life are interrupted by phases of self-actualization and hunger for experience. Business Freestylers have internalized the values of meritocracy, but refuse to measure themselves against others. Motto: You only have to meet your own requirements.
Proll professionals are most common in the 20-40 age group, and they may not be smart, but they are smart, they say. Here, it's all about the fun of self-dramatization - with fat cars and as much bling-bling as possible. Critical self-distance and professional habitus defined this group, which was thoroughly aware that nothing can be achieved in life without effort. The economy of money is radically linked here with the economy of attention - keyword docu-soap stars.
Gutbürgerlove good food and drink - they cultivate "eco-pragmatism with style," according to the authors. These people reconcile family orientation and self-fulfillment, they take responsibility and actively initiate change. Good citizens - they are between 25 and 45 years old - value their health and pay attention to sustainability when shopping. They are family and experience oriented, socially engaged and well connected. This group likes to work - from anywhere and at any time, they say. Baby crying in the background of a phone call is common, they say. The main thing is that the job provides a sense of purpose and room for creativity.
According to the authors, Tiger Women define the modern role model of women - independent, self-reliant, professional, but not a lone wolf. Their goal is a new model of life and society based on parity. These women are "performance- and success-oriented, put their careers at the center of their lives, but at the same time they are no less keen to have a functioning partnership and family, including children. Both/and is their motto in life. Tiger Women have leadership aspirations, and the proportion of self-employed is above average. Motto: "Don't talk long, do it.
Superdaddies are expected to make the most lasting changes to society in the coming years, the authors say. With the role of the active father, a massive change in the role image of the sexes is expected. However, superdaddies - who can be found among the 30- to 55-year-olds - do not mean those who "stand out less" in the statistics - such as parental leave fathers (who are slowly becoming more numerous), single parents or even househusbands. It is their attitude that stands out: not only the job comes first, but also family/children, they say. For this group, leisure time and work can no longer be clearly separated, and old identity models could be shaken up - overrepresentation in management or better pay.
Mainstream stars are no longer among the youngest. The 40- to 60-year-olds pass for the norm in this list: They enjoy unspectacular hobbies such as watching TV and like to live in a terraced house. One of the few extravagances this group seems to indulge in is fashion - there they also like to dare to experiment and try out new things. The center of their life is the apartment or house. However, these people do not take great pleasure in their jobs. The profession is there to make money, he said.
According to the study, meaningful careerists are those people who place particularly high value on a good and varied education. They are those for whom lethargy in midlife is out of the question: These people dare to make a new start. They leave routines behind and get out. The goal of the Sinn careerists (between 45 and 60 years old) is above all to find themselves, he said. That counts more than a recognized position in society or a secure job.
Silverpreneurs are still working at retirement age. Work is fun for this group, and along the way they set important impulses for a new image of old age in society, according to the authors. The important thing is the satisfaction of passing on experience and knowledge in a meaningful way. Motto: Work on a voluntary basis and with a new lightness.
Forever Youngsters, he said, are those people who have regained puberty. Motto of the 55- to 80-year-olds: Real life is finally starting! Explore new horizons, realize dreams, live out old passions properly. Self-realization, individuality and openness to new developments are central values. A group that likes to be socially engaged.
Source: (DER STANDARD, 02./03.08.2014)