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 New
Study Claims USA
Teens Among the Most Conservative in the World
What ever happened
to good old teenage rebellion? The United States,
the global birthplace of that notion, might have officially
turned a conservative corner in its history.
According to Energy BBDO (www.energyBBDO.com),
which fielded the GenWorld Teen study in 13 countries,
USA teens appear to be more traditional and conservative
than many of their global counterparts, including teenagers
from India, China, Germany and France.
In questions about their values and expectations in
life, American teens overall emphasize morality and
family. The majority list "living by high moral
standards" as a top life expectation 58% of USA
teens versus 33% of teens globally. Forty-five
percent believe it is best to remain a virgin as long
as possible versus 22% globally.
Marriage and kids are among their top life expectations:
83% expect to get married (vs. 58% globally; 74% expect
to be a parent (vs. 52% globally).
American teens are more religious than teens in any
of the other countries studied. They are much
more likely to believe in God, more likely to consider
themselves religious and more likely to have attended
a religious service in the past 30 days than other
teens around the world.
Not all USA teens fit this pattern however.
Instead, a "Blue Teen/Red Teen" phenomenon seems to
be occurring. Chip Walker, study author, teen
expert and executive vice president planning director
at Energy BBDO explains, "The 'Culture Wars' seem to
have been passed down to the next generation. About
half of USA teens qualify as Red Teens with strong
conservative views, while the remaining half, Blue
Teens, emphasize individuality and tend to reject tradition."
Walker continued, "This is not the 1950's all over
again but there is a craving among some teens for a
more wholesome life."
However, "Red Teens" do not fit all of the conservative
stereotypes. While they are more likely to believe
in God (89% vs. 55%), and believe that abortion is
never justified (40% vs. 12%), they are not living
cloistered lives.
Red Teens are as likely as their peers to enjoy shopping,
playing sports and eating in fast food restaurants. They
are avid participants in media and pop culture: 97%
watch TV, 95% listen to music, 95% watch movies at
home, 68% go to movie theatres, 93% spend time on the
Internet, and 68% play video games. Their beliefs reflect
changing cultural norms and gender roles: only
23% believe in following traditional gender roles;
only 4% believe a woman must have a child to be fulfilled;
a third feel as comfortable with gay people as with
straight people. Nearly half say that they are "often
among the first to try something new." In terms
of the cliques they hang with, they self-identify as "athletic," "smart," even "cool" or "popular" kids,
not just part of the "religious" crowd.
Still, does this rise in conservatism mean American
teens are slipping off the trendsetting charts? "Not
necessarily," says Walker. "From WWJD to Jesus is My
Homeboy t-shirts, these teens are starting their own
trends."
"To have this kind of cultural divide requires its
own media, it's own voices, its own trendsetters. So
that brands today will need to consider this cultural
dividing line as they're targeting teens in the United
States."
In fact, evidence suggests that brands are being forced
to one side or another in the culture wars. Based on
positive brand ratings, Blue Teens who are more non-traditional,
tend to gravitate towards innovators such as Sony,
Amazon, Apple, Ebay, Yahoo and AOL. While Red Teens
stick to more wholesome, tried-and-true brands such
as gap Gap, Kellogs, Kraft, Nestle, Disney, and Doublemint.
Walker continued, "Brands that can learn to address
Red Teens in a contemporary way will stand to be big
winners in today's increasingly conservative USA marketplace."
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