December 2002 - Nr. 12
New Generation Wants Meaning, Not Just Fun
TWIG - Young Germans are inclined to search for meaning in life, rather than seeking fun and pleasure for its own sake, a recent study suggests. According to a survey conducted by the Heidelberg consulting firm Sinus Sociovision, a new generation has arrived in Germany, comprising some 10 million "young, well-educated people who are concentrating on the essentials and enjoying life in a more focused way." The under-35 set is apparently a world apart from the pleasure-oriented generation that went before it. "The good-time era has run its course," researchers claim.
The company’s study is based on a telephone survey in which 731 women and men were asked how their attitudes, values and outlook on life differ from those of previous generations. Responses indicated work and private life are often intertwined for those under 35, and the two are regarded as equally important. Moral values also play a significant role in the lives of younger Germans, researchers maintain. Survey respondents emphasized the importance of sharing common interests with friends, mutual respect between people, and family relationships.
Sociologist Alfred Gebert, who initiated the survey, said the results confirmed his own sense that social trends are shifting away from the so-called Spaßgesellschaft (fun society) that is said to have dominated Germany in recent years, driven by the once-booming stock market and dot-com phenomenon. "People no longer fall for cheap, superficial pleasure," Gebert contends. "They are looking for deep, genuine happiness." Gebert argues a generation shift accompanied by new sociological trends occurs about every seven years. "That time has come," he says.
