PRIVATE MATERIALISM, PERSONAL SELF-FULFILLMENT, FAMILY LIFE, AND PUBLIC INTEREST THE NATURE, EFFECTS, AND CAUSES OF RECENT CHANGES IN THE VALUES OF AMERICAN YOUTH

From the early seventies through 1986–87, private materialismas a life goal increased greatly in importance among Americanyouth, goals relating to family life increased somewhat, publicinterest concerns diminished modestly, and the goal of personalself-fulfillment declined sharply. Accompanying this shift invalues was a change in young people's college majors and careerplans toward those leading to higher paying jobs and a markedincrease in the attractiveness of working in large corporations.Jobs offering money and status became more preferred relativeto those with opportunities for self-fulfillment or public service.Support grew for capitalist institutions such as profit makingand advertising. At the same time, there was a retreat frompolitical involvement, and a conservative shift in politicalbeliefs. Explanations of the shift in values in terms of theimpact on the young of major political and social events orthe emergence of a feeling of economic insecurity among theyoung are not supported by the evidence. Nor are a number ofhypotheses relating to changes in young people's family structureor social ization experience. The shift in values of the youngdoes, how ever, apparently correspond to a similar change inthe values of adults generally and, thus, may reflect changesin the values transmitted to young people as they were growingup. We specu late that the shift in values among adults was,in turn, caused by a growing feeling of economic deprivationin the post-1973 period as real wage rates declined and materialaspirations continued to rise. In the last few years, the shiftin the life goals of the young appears to have ended and mayeven have started to reverse, but young people today are stillmuch different from those 15 years ago.