PRESS RELEASE: Chinese Youth in a Global Context
CHINESE YOUTH –
hard working entrepreneurs, anxiously striving to fit in and stick out at the same time
Today’s youth live in an increasingly globalized world, communication channels become wider and distances become shorter, but more and more individuals trust only themselves and their loved ones. That is the conclusion from an international survey on youth values and lifestyles made by Kairos Future, an international futures research and strategy firm with headquarters in Stockholm. With this project, Kairos Future extends its yearly youth values and lifestyle surveys in Sweden and Scandinavia to a truly international level. The aim of the survey is to provide companies, government
agencies and organizations with strategic information concerning future consumers, employees and citizens.
The young middle-class Chinese…
… are aiming for the stars but simultaneously anxious to blend in
Young middle class Chinese want it all: a job with high status, a high salary and good benefits and they know they have to work hard to get it. Values such as hard work, endurance and entrepreneurship are very important for the young in China. They are also much more career oriented than the average young European, aiming at leading others and having a job with a lot of responsibility. They also want to become entrepreneurs! But hard work is not enough, it seems. Chinese youth also seem very concerned about fitting in. They think it is important to look good, be in “style” and to have friends that are similar to themselves!
- The young Chinese want to have prosperous careers and become famous, but at the same time they are anxious to fit in and to live up to the expectations of others, says Anna Kiefer, Director Kairos Future International.
… believe in the future…
The typical young Chinese is satisfied with most aspects in his or her life and looks upon the future with optimism! They look brightly both on their own future and the future of society, to a much larger extent than the average European. Most of them believe they have complete freedom and control over their own future and are confident they will have a good job.
- There is a strong correlation in the international survey between satisfaction in life and
satisfaction with your financial situation; this is also valid on a national level, which is reflected
in the case of China, says Dr. Mats Lindgren, CEO Kairos Future Group.
… and feel at home in China but are eager to travel and work abroad!
Chinese youth feel very close to their fellow countrymen – 82 percent of the young Chinese state that they have a lot in common with their compatriots compared to only 48 percent in the EU average! In spite of this, there is a much larger portion of Chinese youth who would like to live and work abroad for a period of time, compared to young in the EU. Among Chinese youth, almost three out of four would like to get an international experience.
On our way to a global youth culture?
Could you talk about a global youth culture, just because young people buy the same clothes, watch the same TV-programs, share songs with each other, upload pictures at Flickr and share movies on Youtube? Hardly, young people differ, just like older generations, between countries and continents.
– But there are several signs of an emerging global youth culture, because young people in different
countries are more similar than adults, says Mats Lindgren. In addition, youth differ the same way throughout the world. Hence,
when middle-aged Chinese, Americans and Swedes speak of young people as different, they have identical experiences of that “difference”, he adds.
About the survey
Kairos Future has during the period 1990-2006 surveyed and analyzed over 17 000 replies from Swedish and Scandinavian high school students aged 18-20. The latest survey “Global Youth” included over 22 000 replies from 16-29 year olds and 30-50 year olds in Europe, North-America and Asia. They have answered questions about dreams and ambitions, what is important in life and work life, what is their ideal society and what determines their consumption patterns. The older age group is a reference sample that makes it possible to distinguish young people’s values from general contemporary values. The survey was web-based which means that the sample for e.g. India covers only middle-class youth and is not representative of the whole population.
The survey has been conducted in collaboration with the Swedish Institute, Fondation pour
l’Innovation Politique (Fondapol) in France, The Swedish Region of Södermanland and the Nordic
energy company Fortum. The data collection has been made in collaboration with Zapera.
For more information please contact:
Ms. Sofia Johnsson, International Coordinator
Tel: +46 70-531 94 74
