There has probably
always been a "youth culture" in every society, in every age. However, it could hardly ever have been more pronounced, more promoted, and more exploited than it has been in the US and Western society over the past 40
years or so.Beginning with the radicals of the 60's, suddenly and piercingly separated from a relatively linear 200 year social progression, "youth" have been a major fixture of American and European cultures. Our
young people are the subject of intense study, scrutiny, and postulating, not to mention consternation.
Perhaps because they are such an irresistible target for advertisers (in a recent survey, marketers indicated
that they consider it acceptable to market to children as young as seven), our young people are also the subject of intense media attention. In a youth-absorbed culture, there is an undeniably symbiotic relationship
between the marketers creating products for "youth culture" and the youths who consume said products while living "youth culture."
The lines begin to blur…
None the less, there is a certain "Hawthorne Effect" at
play, by which that which is studied eventually becomes an increasingly relevant topic of study. That which is watched becomes important to observe.
Add in the media effect—the idea that we all love to see ourselves
on TV—and the subject under scrutiny acquires an obligation to remain worthy of observation. That is, in an era characterized by a self-absorbed attention-starved populace, attention is the most valuable commodity in
the world. Give me your attention and you validate me.
So it is with our "youth culture." They are a focus of significant interest because they are a huge market. They bask in the interest as a source of attention. In
order to continue to receive attention, they have to be interesting. In order to remain interesting, they have to change. Fast.
They seem to change quickly, in a cycle fed by the attention that started the cycle to begin with!
Or at least, as Einstein would say, "it's a good theory."
However, what is much more than theory is the notion that
"youth culture" has become a sociological subset of Western culture in the US, Europe and, arguably, Asia.
Riding the accelerating pace of youth revolution begun in the 60's, young people in Western society have
created a unique identity for themselves, apart from their parents, apart from their predecessors, and apart from any normative, linear expectations for them.
It is almost innate to their natures to change in
fundamentally radical (read: "extreme"), unique (read: "edgy"), and profoundly chaotic (read: "you can't predict me") ways.
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