4/1/2013
Teens are most reluctant to live without an Internet connection, according to JWT Intelligence. They also value their cell phone, texting with friends, and cable TV. One notable difference between U.S. and U.K. teens is their dining preferences. U.S. teens are nearly twice as likely as their U.K. peers to say they would be upset if they couldn’t visit restaurants (64% versus 39%).
Teen girls, in general, express stronger feelings about giving up things. Almost all girls (95%) would be upset if they had no Internet access, 10 percentage points higher than teen boys. The only two activities that boys express more dismay about giving up than girls do are video games and sporting events.
Slightly more than one in four youths ages 8-17 (26%) say they need an airplane to visit most or all of their social network friends. Tweens and teens don’t see a division between their online and offline friends. In fact, often they prefer online interactions. Seven in 10 teens living in the U.S. and U.K. (70%) feel it’s more convenient to talk with friends online than in real life, and 48% believe it’s more fun. Boys are slightly more likely than girls to prefer digital communication.
Both tweens (76%) and teens (76%) like to spend their money on things for themselves. After that, there are some differences based on age. Tweens are more likely than teens to save their money (65% versus 59%) and donate it to charity (15% versus 7%). Teens, on the other hand, are more likely than tweens to spend their money buying gifts for others (40% versus 35%).
U.S. teens are considerate of their family finances. More than nine in 10 (93%) say they want to help their parents save money, 85% check with them before purchasing an item to make sure they can afford it, and 61% believe they know “a lot” about their family’s financial situation. U.S. teens are less likely than U.K. teens to believe they can buy whatever they want regardless of what their parents say since they have their own money (47% versus 67%).
Source: JWT, Ann Mack, Director of Trendspotting, 466 Lexington Ave., 3rd Fl., New York, NY 10017; 212-210-7378; ann.mack@jwt.com; www.jwt.com.
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