McCann Worldgroup - Truth About Youth

The
Truth
about...
YOUTH
1
| The Truth About Youth | McCann Worldgroup | May 2011
The Truth
About Youth
What motivates young people around the world today? Money? Fame? Justice?
What makes them different from every generation that has come before?
We asked 7000 young people around the world and harnessed the collective genius of
McCann Worldgroup to find out. In a world awash with information and misinformation, we
found some TRUTHS.
Quantitative research conducted in US, UK, China, India, Spain, Mexico

and Brazil.
Qualitative research conducted in US, UK, China, India, Spain, Mexico,

Brazil, Singapore, Malaysia, Chile, South Africa, Italy, Germany, Korea, Japan,
Australia and Philippines.
2
Exploring
motivations
If we want to truly understand a group of people (or in this case a generation), then we
need to dig into what really motivates them. We’ve identified and classified 16 human
motivations that range from the more outer-directed (like MUTINY and SURGE) to the
more inner-directed (like COCOON and BECOMING). These motivations provide a
powerful framework for brands that wish to connect with people. Youth were asked to
rate a series of value statements, which allowed us to ascertain the individual importance
of each motivation.
Contact
The need for emotional
Order
and physical closeness.
Justice Flight
or ganise ,
The need to release The need to gorise.
The need for so lis e, ca te
cial or pressure and find rationa
pe rsonal jus tic
e, to tranquillity / peace / quiet in a
what’s right , to do
be fast paced world..
an ac tivist ..
Muscle
Commune Surge The need to exe rt
The need for connec tion

,
Journeying The need for visceral
power or exe rt contro
l.
excitement and raw rush.

relationships and The need fo
community.. ex pe rimenta r ex plor ation,
tion and disc
over y.
Gauntlet
Authenticity
The need to see Mutiny Membership The need to compete
and win, to challenge
your self, to prove your
things as they are. The need to be in-the- capabilities.
The need to rebel
and push against the know, an insider or part
status quo. of the crowd.
Becoming Assurance
The need for personal Props Cocoon The need to avoid mistakes
development, greater and prevent trouble.
independence an The need for personal The need for
recognition, attention safety and a feeling
and admiration. of security.
3
Global citizens
We’ve seen the emergence of a generation with fundamental commonalities that
transcend borders. The same three motivations are ranked highly in every country:
Commune
the need for co
nnec tion, Justice
d communit y.
relationships an the need fo
r social or
per sonal ju
s tice, to do
r ight, to be what’s
an ac tivis t.
Autheen ticity
d to see
the ne
y are.
things as the
Technology, of course, is the great global unifier; it is the glue that binds this generation
together and fuels the three motivations above. Compared in the past to an extra
‘limb’ for young people, we believe technology has become even more fundamental.
4
1. Technology
as a fifth sense
Given a list of things (including cosmetics, their car, their passport, their phone and their
sense of smell) and told they could only save two, 53% of those aged 16-22 and 48% of
those aged 23-30 would give up their own sense of smell if it meant they could keep an
item of technology (most often their phone or laptop). We all know how important
technology is to young people, but a willingness to sacrifice one of their human senses
to keep it shows just how intrinsic it has become.
Perhaps it’s not all that surprising when you consider that technology represents all the
friends you could ever want, all the knowledge you will ever need, and all the entertainment
you could desire. For young people, technology is more than a useful
tool or an enabler. It is truly their fifth sense.
Youth see technology as Plah-Doh – something they use in an utterly malleable and
instinctive way. Older generations start with ‘what will this box allow me to do?’ Whereas
this generation starts with ‘what do I want to do? Where can my imagination take me?’
Technology enables young people to sense the world and make sense of the world. It is this
deep relationship with technology that is shaping their attitudes towards community and
truth and allowing them to re-imagine justice for a new era.
5
2. The Social
Economy
COMMUNE (the need for connection and community) was rated as the most
fundamental motivation by young people. Globally, over 90% agree and 55% strongly
agree with statements related to the COMMUNE motivation.
When asked to draw a picture to sum up their motivations, a young person in Mexico
drew the Infinity symbol, stating that it represented “unlimited possibilities and infinite
connections through all experiences and people.” Young people in South Africa
spoke of the spirit of Ubuntu (a sense of community) and how the true power of
togetherness has finally been unleashed by social networking technology.
If we want to truly grasp the power of connection for this generation, we can look
at how they want to be remembered. It is not for their beauty, their power, or their
influence, but simply for the quality of their human relationships and their ability to
look after those around them.
30% How would you most like to be remembered? A. As a person who was loved by many people
B. As a person who looked after their friends and family
C. As a person who changed the world in a positive way
25% D. As a person who made everyone laugh
E. As a very generous person
F. As a very influential person
20% G. As a very powerful person
H. As a very beautiful or attractive person
15%
10%
5%
0%
A B C D E F G H
6
Experience Economy
versus Social Economy
The term “Experience Economy” was first coined in a 1998 Harvard Business Review article
by James Gilmore and Joseph Pine. The theory goes that in economies of mass affluence,
people become more and more interested in paying to do things, rather than paying to own
things. Our research indicates that our economy is moving into a new phase whereby young
people seek to define themselves not only by what they own or what they do but primarily
by their ability to connect, to share and to broadcast. The term ‘Social Economy’ helps us to
capture not only the thing which consumers are placing more and more emphasis on when
it comes to self-definition but also an insight into hard economic value. Smart new business
ventures like Groupon are exploiting the new Social Economy
to great effect.
The emergence of the Social Economy doesn’t imply that the Material or Experience
Economies have gone away, rather that these Economies should now be viewed through
the lens of the Social Economy.
The influence of friends

As any young person with access to social media will tell you, their friends are increasingly
‘ever-present’. A young person in South Africa related how his mother asked him a perfectly
benign (but to him, seemingly ridiculous) question: “Have you spoken to your friends
today?” His response was ‘like duh!’
Interestingly, in China and India two-thirds of young people admit that their friends have
more influence over their decisions than their family does (higher than all other countries in
the study). It is in these developing markets where young people, truly at the vanguard of
technological change, are most different from their parents.
From belonging to
connecting; redefining
friendship in the Social
Economy
According to young people the world over, a true friend will always be defined in the same
way; whether it’s the person who backs you up in a fight, the person who likes the same
music as you, or the person you can truly be yourself with, the things that make a friend a
true friend don’t change. But at a broader level, the definition of friendship for young people
is being stretched, segmented and reinvented…
7
Once upon a time, teenagers had a small group of friends (typically 4-7 people), and
these were often people met through school. Within this group young people could
express their individuality, but it was vital that they belonged to the group. However,
nowadays things are more complex. Using social media, a typical teenager is likely to manage
and maintain multiple, intersecting groups of friends. In this sense, ‘connecting’ to a broader
network of friends has replaced the singular need to ‘belong’ to a tight-knit group of friends.
The friends arms race

In this new world of infinite connections, one’s quantity of friends becomes an important
indicator. In India we see a virtual ‘arms race’ amongst young people hoping to accumulate
more friends than anyone else. In other markets like the UK, having too many friends can be
seen as an act of desperation, and networks are actively culled. The downside to amassing
so many ‘friends’ is that you’re bound to pick up a rack of fakes along the way. This is truly
a global phenomenon, known as ‘stranger friends’ in India, ‘disposable friends’ in Singapore,
‘obligation friends’ in Australia and ‘recyclable friends’ in Chile.
These non-friends are maintained for a number of reasons…
1. To make you look more popular

2. To ‘spy’ on (i.e. you don’t regard them as a real friend, but you like to check up on
them every now and again to compare their life to yours)
3. To ‘show off’ to (i.e. you might not want to hang out with them, but they still provide
an audience)
4. Because, strategically-speaking, you might need them in the future (you don’t need
them now, but at some point you might want to bolster numbers at a house party or
need them to recommend you for the job you want…)
Of course the downside to maintaining and managing such a large network of so-called
‘friends’ is that sometimes it becomes harder to figure out who your real friends are…
Your audience awaits…

Once you’ve amassed your audience…the challenge is to keep them continuously
interested in and entertained by your life. Even going on a short underground train
journey can cause anxiety because this is like being without one of your senses for
a short period. Youth fear missing out (or ‘out of circulation’ as it was referred to
in Malaysia) because they worry that lack of presence, even temporarily, can impact
their social status. The need for approval is tangible – as a teenager in UK said
“When you’ve put a status up that you’ve put a lot of effort into, you want someone
to comment on it. When you see no comments, you’re like, Damn!” Young people
describe sitting in front of the laptop continuously hitting refresh…waiting for
someone somewhere to hit ‘like’…
8
Pics or it didn’t happen

In the Social Economy it’s not good enough to simply do something…you have to tell
people about it before it becomes real. In other words…”pics or it didn’t happen!” The best
possible result in social media for young people is when someone else uploads a photograph
of you looking cool and then tags you. In this scenario you get all the credit without looking
overly vain or full of yourself.
Creativity and
competition
Asked to draw what motivates them, a young person in Germany draws a depiction of
being creative, a young person in Korea draws an image to represent the fear of being
surpassed by your friends…
In many ways this is a generation who define themselves via their creativity. After all, they
are the first generation in history that had mass democratic access to the tools of creativity:
digital cameras, cheap editing software, design programs and blogging platforms. The flipside
to mass self-expression and connectivity is the ability to continuously measure your own life
achievements against those within your network. Never before have young people found
it easier to benchmark their successes (or lack of…). As the Social Economy increases its
reach, could we find an entire generation impacted by social status anxiety?
9
Being socially useful

Of course there are many brands that aim to thrive in the Social Economy.
The most successful brands have a deep understanding of what being social means to young
people. Socially useful brands will help young people to…
…Broadcast
…Manage their
…Share connections
…Entertain …Beat their friends
…Make new …Narrate their lives
connections
…Be chameleons
There’s been a rush amongst brands to populate social spaces and connect with the young
people who live their lives there. But there’s a danger of brands feeling like just another ‘fake
friend’. In order to achieve a more authentic role, it’s helpful for brands to understand what
young people value in their REAL friends
45%
40%
35% Which of these values do you seek in a best friend?
30%
25%
20%
15%
Approachable
Open Minded
10%
Adventurous
Spontaneous
Affectionate
Charismatic
Motivated
Generous
Energetic
Outgoing
Unselfish
Talkative
Credible
Genuine
Sociable
Truthful
Humble
Helpful
Mature
Unique
5%
0%
10
The top five values young people seek in their friends provide an interesting blueprint for
how a brand should behave in a social context (i.e. social media)
5). HUMBLE – One of the worst mistakes a brand can make is to overplay its importance
in the lives of young people. Young people love brands if they are useful, timely and
allow them to express some element of their personality…young people tire quickly
of brands which clutter up their feeds with useless and inane information
4). MATURE – Young people love having older friends that they can look up to. Similarly,
they value brands that are worthy of their respect and demonstrate a compelling and
consistent point of view.
3). SOCIABLE – Being sociable is about being present at the right time and in the right
way. Friends you love to socialize with share cool things with you, have a dialogue with
you, and have a style that suits their personality.
2) GENUINE – Being genuine is about being worthy of trust. Inviting a brand into your
personal space requires trust, and brands should be mindful of not abusing this trust.
1). TRUTHFUL – Truthfulness is more than twice as important as its nearest competitor.
This is the clear winner in terms of values that young people seek in their friends.
This desire for truthful friends marries up with the desire for AUTHENTICITY, one of the
highest scoring motivations at a global level…meet the Truth-Hunters.
“I’m actually friends with TopShop,

but I want to get rid of it as it does
my head in. I did it a few years ago
and they constantly send you
messages and come up
on your homepage”
UK
11
3. The Truth Hunters

Globally, the brand that young people say they most want to ‘hang out with,’ as well as the
brand they most admire, is Google. Google is part of the fabric and infrastructure of their
lives and is seen as the route to knowledge, to know-how, to problem-solving and ultimately
(they believe) to truth.
Why is the truth so

very important to this
generation?
Truth is more rare and therefore more valued in a world of ‘fake friends’ and curated
identities. Moreover, the democracy of the Internet has brought with it a sea of information,
opinion, talent and ‘facts’. In the cacophony of noise it’s trickier to ascertain whom you
should listen to and whom you should drown out. The young people we met in Chile
placed a lot of emphasis on authenticity as a motivation because, in their view, nothing is
original anymore; everything nowadays is a copy of a copy of a copy.
Idols come down to earth

For young people today, their idols are more ‘real’ and accessible than ever. Twitter and
social networking sites have brought the once ‘untouchable’ celebrities firmly down to earth
as these tools provide access to the intimacies of idols’ everyday lives.
When I grow up I want to

be…not famous
If we give young people three wishes for their future, we see that their aspirations are
actually pretty grounded. Whilst many would assume that young people these days are a
generation of attention-seeking fame obsessives…only 6.3% globally were interested in
being famous. Their top wishes for their futures were to maintain good health (40%), be
successful in their chosen career (40%), meet their soul mate (36%) and look after their
family (34%).
Young people in the US were most interested in finding love (44% versus 36% global
average), and young people in Mexico are most interested in starting their own
businesses (30% versus 18%).
12
45%
Please choose three wishes from the list below
40%
35%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
To always be healthy
To be rich
To make the world a
To have children /
To be successful in my career
To meet my mate/ stay with

my current partner forever
To travel the world
To start my own business
have more children
To have a great sex life
To be famous
To look after my family
better place for others
To have lots of friends
To be more successful
than my parents
To be beautiful
In India, however, we see
a different attitude to fame
Here young people are living their lives in ‘constant audition mode’ because they believe fame is
just around the corner. Youth reality shows have started playing a major role in creating youth
lingo & attitude. 18% of young people in India would use one of their three wishes to be famous
(versus just 6% of young people globally). Similarly, 32% of Indian youngsters would like to be
rich, versus 23% of total sample.
But even in the

ultimate celebrity cultures… McC
ann
Young people purport to prefer stars that are connected to real life and not ‘preachy’. They
claim to seek substance as well as style; preferring celebrities who have a strong POV. Amongst
the celebrities youth admired the most were: Gandhi, Bill Gates, Mother Theresa, Jesus, Martin
Luther King, Nelson Mandela, Barack Obama, Steve Jobs, Marie Curie, Angelina Jolie and
Albert Einstein.
Also of interest is the proportion who named their mother and father (despite being
asked for famous people). Idols don’t come much more down to earth than that!
13
Brands of substance
Just as young people nowadays seek truth and substance from their celebrities, they also
seek it from the brands that populate their world. They reserve their most scathing attacks
for brands that aren’t true to themselves or break promises. We see particular sensitivity
around anything pertaining to environmentalism or corporate social responsibility. Our
young interviewees in Japan described how they skeptically examine a company’s social
activity for any signs of ulterior motives and then decide according to real actions and
evidence rather than (a projected) image.
This is a generation who pride themselves on their ability to distinguish right from
wrong and have a strong commitment to JUSTICE (one of the top three dominant global
motivations). This next chapter explores how young people are using technology to create
their own version of justice and change the world along the way.
“What corporate people want

to do good? They don’t really
care. They are only doing it
to make them look good. It’s
disgusting”
Singapore
14
2011
A year of Social Justice
4. Justice
Re-Imagined
Just behind COMMUNE, JUSTICE was chosen by young people globally as the second
highest rated motivation.
Justice is broadly interpreted here as ‘doing the right thing’, and the concept can be applied
on two different levels…
ce:
1. Social Justi
1. Social Justice: The need to do what’s right for society
do
The need to
2. Personal Justice: The need to do what’s right for me
what’s right
2011: A year of justice for society
In the Middle East we see how social media has been used to great effect as a tool for
change. Communities across borders have harnessed social media to report, to share
information and to build networks of support and encouragement. This isn’t to under-
estimate the significant impact of traditional media (Al Jazeera most notably) or the role
of those individuals on the street who have little or no interaction with social media. The
situation that unfolded in Egypt was a great example of the harmonisation of old and new
media; working side by side, one providing fuel and ‘evidence’ on the ground, the other
providing profile and analysis.
And it isn’t just in the Middle East that we’ve seen the politicization of social media. In every
country around the world we see people joining groups and registering their discontent
on a wide range of topics, everything from corruption in politics to freedom of speech or 2. Person
human rights abuses. al
Justice: T
he
Social media and justice; need to d
what’s rig
o
a complex relationship for me
ht
The relationship between social media and activism isn’t as straightforward as it may sound.
In our research we heard that for some young people, social media can actually make it
harder to put yourself out there. Just as there are hundreds of people ready to ‘like’ your
witty comments or cool photos, there are many people ready to judge you or even bully
you. As a young person in Spain commented, “To be a true rebel you have to not care what
other people think.”
Following on Malcolm Gladwell’s much-debated article in the New York Times “Small
Change: Why the Revolution Will not be Tweeted”, which questioned the effectiveness
of social media as a genuine tool for change, one of our expert interviewees from Mexico
made a similar point. Social media has made armchair activism (or ‘slacktivism’ as it has been
called) all too easy these days;
16
Re-imagining
personal justice
Personal justice is defined by young people as doing the right thing for yourself and being
treated fairly in your everyday life. It is interesting that globally the thing young people are
most likely to say they’re good at is ‘knowing right from wrong’. But do they define ‘right’
and ‘wrong’ in the same way as other generations? We’ve seen evidence that they are eal
developing their own distinctive moral framework, which is heavily influenced by the ‘laws’ “I wouldn’t st uld
o
of the internet rather than the laws of any individual nation state. As our research team a car but I w
in Mexico pointed out, “Young people are looking for their own justice….and that means sure as hell
e
avoiding impositions, rigid rules and structures where they can’t negotiate”. download on
if I could”
roup
Facebook G
Older generations Younger generation

see as wrong…. see as right…
Downloading isn’t stealing. they’ll download
Stealing is taking anything you content ‘illegally ’ but find others ways of
haven’t earned supporting artists they like
It’s not where you take things from

Using someone else’s it’s where you take things to
idea is plagiarism (Jim Jarmusch) - welcome to a world of
rehashing, remashing, remixing.
Acting before you think Ask for forgiveness not permission

is a recipe for trouble (5 minutes late is 5 minutes too late- tweet
now think later)
Staring at a screen Looking away from a screen

in company is rude is rude to your friends
Not working at work Work can be disrupted by play

is a disciplinary issue and play can be disrupted by work
17
The more time young people spend living their lives online the more the culture of
the Internet will influence their moral framework and notion of acceptable and
unacceptable behavior.
Essentially they live in a world where…
Borders won’t be tolerated. More than any other generation this generation doesn’t think in
compartments. If I can have that here, why I can’t I have it there? If this is ‘right’ here, why is
it ‘wrong’ there?
Collaboration is hardwired. The third thing young people pride themselves on is ‘working
in a group or team’, and 8 out of the top 10 things that young people think they’re good at
cover how they relate to other people.
The context is global. It’s getting harder and harder for nation states to maintain their own
moral silo when young people are more aware of how justice is defined elsewhere.
Business beware
It is of this strong sense of ‘personal justice’ that businesses can sometimes upset. The
moment young people feel hemmed in, ignored or personally hard done by, they aren’t
afraid to shout about it or name their perpetrator. A whopping 90% globally would make a
point of telling their friends about unjust behavior from a brand.
From a young person’s point of view, the worst thing a brand can do is make a promise it
doesn’t keep. Given their focus on truth and authenticity, youth want brands to adopt a
form of justice that is a) credible and b) true to the brand. They want brands to do the right
thing in a way that seems right for that brand. Anything that seems cynical or piecemeal will
be quickly dismissed.
What is a justice brand?

When asked to name ‘justice brands’, young people all over the world put forward a rich
and diverse selection of brands. Countless small, local initiatives were mentioned from big
brands and small brands, old brands and new brands, thereby demonstrating that you don’t
have to make some big sweeping change to be recognized. Everyone could recount specific
actions associated with these brands that had caught their attention.
But when asked to choose the brands that have made the most positive difference to our
lives from a list of the biggest global brands, technology brands (Google, Microsoft, Apple,
Facebook) are the clear winners of the day. Young people place a huge amount of faith in
these brands, believing that technology brands will solve most of the problems the world
faces today, from environmental issues to food shortages. Which is just as well given that
it is these brands (that transcend borders like no government can) that will increasingly
influence the shape of global justice, from freedom of speech to privacy and terrorism.
It’s interesting that Microsoft trumps Apple to the number two spot; it may not score quite
so highly as a brand that young people want to ‘hang out with’ today, but young people
everywhere seem to acknowledge that we wouldn’t be where we are today without
Microsoft. If Apple has seen further, it is because it stood on the shoulders of Microsoft, a
true technological giant of our times. The presence of Coca Cola, Disney and Nike in the
top ten demonstrates the importance of optimism and the spirit of carpe diem for
this generation.
18
Summary
1. 2.
Our top three highest rated global motivations (COMMUNE, JUSTICE and
AUTHENTICITY) provide compelling insight into the lives of young people today
Technology
1. The
2.
as a
Technology Social
The
Fifth
as a Sense Economy
Social
Fifth Sense Economy
All three of these motivations are underpinned by, and Young people nowadays exist in a Social Economy
fuelled by, their relationship with technology, now so where they are increasingly defining themselves via who
intrinsic and fundamental that half of young people would they connect with and what they connect people to.
sooner give up one of their human senses than give up Unsurprisingly, we’ve seen a rush of brands into the social
their technology. space. However, to avoid feeling like just another ‘fake
friend’, brands must understand the values young people
seek in their true friends: Humble, Mature, Sociable,
Genuine, Truthful…
3. 4.
The
3. Justice
4.
Truth
The Re-
Justice
Hunters
Truth Imagined
Re-
Hunters
Truthful is the single most sought value in a friend,
and ‘AUTHENTICITY’ is one of the highest rated
motivations. Little wonder young people are obsessed
with the truth when they exist in a world of curated
Imagined
Young people around the world are reinventing the
idea of what justice is and how it works. Social media
is having a powerful (and somewhat paradoxical) role
in the quest for doing the right thing. On a personal
identities, Facebook-worthy lives and infobesity! level young people believe they have a strong notion
Google is their number one ally in the quest for truth, of the difference between right and wrong…but
and they are seeking substance from brands and this is increasingly informed by the values of the
celebrities alike. Internet. Their new moral framework will continue to
transform everything around us from the laws that
govern our lives to our workplaces.
Brought to
you by the
collective
genius of
McCann
Worldgroup 20

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The

Quantitative research conducted in US, UK, China, India, Spain, Mexico

Qualitative research conducted in US, UK, China, India, Spain, Mexico,

The need for connec tion

excitement and raw rush.

The influence of friends

The friends arms race

These non-friends are maintained for a number of reasons…

1. To make you look more popular

Your audience awaits…

Pics or it didn’t happen

Being socially useful

35% Which of these values do you seek in a best friend?

“I’m actually friends with TopShop,

3. The Truth Hunters

Why is the truth so

Idols come down to earth

When I grow up I want to

To make the world a

To meet my mate/ stay with

To travel the world

To start my own business

have more children

To have a great sex life

better place for others

To have lots of friends

But even in the

“What corporate people want

Older generations Younger generation

It’s not where you take things from

Acting before you think Ask for forgiveness not permission

Staring at a screen Looking away from a screen

Not working at work Work can be disrupted by play

What is a justice brand?

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