Some believe that young adults today are more interested in pursuing their passions and making a difference in the world. With the rise of social entrepreneurship and the gig economy, young adults are said to have more opportunities than ever to create their own career paths and pursue their interests.
Additionally, there has been a growing emphasis on work-life balance, mental health, and self-care, which can help young adults feel more engaged and fulfilled in their personal and professional lives. However, there is more and more data that suggest the opposite is happening. In terms of typical activities that one would think young adults are doing, those activities are actually on the decline. See this in the charts below and learn more here.
Young adults today may be reading fewer books than before due to various factors. One major reason is the rise of digital media and other forms of entertainment, which have provided young adults with more options for leisure activities.
Social media, video games, and streaming services offer instant gratification and require less time commitment than reading a book. As a result, young adults may be less likely to turn to books as a form of entertainment or escape. See this decline in reading books in the chart below.
The decline in newspaper and magazine reading among young adults is the shift towards a more visual culture. Young adults today are often consuming images and videos, whether through social media, advertising, or online content.
This has led to a greater emphasis on visual media and a decreased focus on reading. In addition, many young adults may feel that they lack the time or attention span to devote to reading longer-form content, such as books or lengthy magazine articles. As a result, they may opt for shorter, more visual content that can be consumed quickly and easily. See this trend in the chart below.
The following may seem counterintuitive. Though there are more single-parent families and the youth, seem to be more disengaged, parents do seem to know where they are at physically. This is apparently due to their fewer physical activities and the reality that they are spending more time online than ever before due to social media. Where they are going online and what content they are consuming is another matter. See this in the chart below.
What are the takeaways on what the youth are doing today with their lives from this information set? We can say that young adults tend to be physically less active, disengaged with traditional life activities, and increasingly spend a lot of their leisure time on social media. In a sense, more and more social media tells them what to believe and shapes their lives.
In the comment section below, give us your thoughts on what these trends mean in terms of the future for young adults.
By Tom Williams
