IAC and JWT study reveals new means of expression for China's Tech-Savvy
Youth
NEW YORK, Nov. 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Millions of young Chinese
are embracing the Internet as a discreet space for their thoughts and
emotions, according to a survey of Chinese and American youth released
today by IAC, which operates businesses in sectors being transformed by the
Internet, and JWT, the fourth largest advertising agency network in the
world.
The findings show how readily young Chinese are taking to the Internet
and its possibilities-for example, almost five times as many Chinese as
American respondents said they have a parallel life online (61 percent vs.
13 percent). And while fewer than half of the 1,079 American respondents
agreed that "I live some of my life online" (42 percent), a sizable
majority of the 1,104 Chinese respondents agreed with the statement (86
percent). The two random online surveys polled 16- to 25-year-olds.
The "Young Digital Mavens" study aimed to explore how attitudes toward
digital technology are changing among Chinese and American youth at a time
when people are spending less time with traditional media and more with
interactive technology. China's ballooning online population, estimated at
137 million, is now second only to that of the U.S. (165-210 million
Americans, according to a July 2007 report from the Pew Internet & American
Life Project).
The study found that while a large majority of youth in both countries
now feel dependent on digital technology, this attitude is especially
pronounced in China. As many as 80 percent of Chinese respondents agreed
that "Digital technology is an essential part of how I live," compared with
68 percent of Americans. The Internet is such a vital part of life for
Chinese youth that they are twice as likely as young Americans to say they
would not feel OK going without Internet access for more than a day (25
percent vs. 12 percent). And more than twice as many Chinese youth admitted
they sometimes feel "addicted" to living online: 42 percent vs. 18 percent
of Americans.
"The Chinese people seem to be way ahead of Americans in living a
digital life," noted IAC Chairman and CEO Barry Diller today in Beijing,
where he spoke to more than 350 Chinese students at Peking University.
"More activity online means a more connected and a more evolved workforce -
just what China needs as it makes its move from being the workshop of the
world, to a developed economy in its own right."
"Like many other areas in comparing Americans to the energy and
progress elsewhere in the world, China's speedy evolution in its use of the
internet is fast eclipsing that of the US. I think this is great for China,
not so great for us," Diller added.
The Internet Means Test-Driving Freedom and Identity
"For young Americans, the Internet provides an incremental increase in
the huge range of options they enjoy in life, but for young Chinese it
represents a steep increase in choice-and this is reflected in the strength
of Chinese response to questions about opinions and interactions online,"
says Tom Doctoroff, JWT's CEO of Greater China and Northeast Asia area
director. (JWT is regarded as one of China's top three agencies in both
size and reputation, and was named most creative agency in Shanghai by
Media magazine.)
While most American youth grew up taking for granted both interactive
technology and the "let it all hang out" ethos it has encouraged, these are
new concepts for young Chinese. "Our findings show that Chinese youth
experience this new emotional space-the 'emobytes'-more intensely than
young Americans," explains Doctoroff, author of Billions: Selling to the
New Chinese Consumer (Palgrave Macmillan, 2005).
Chinese respondents were four times as likely as Americans to agree
that things online often feel more intense than things offline (48 percent
vs. 12 percent). This feeling was more prevalent among Chinese men than
women (52 percent vs. 43 percent), likely reflecting the fact that men were
more likely to describe themselves as "dedicated gamers" (27 percent vs. 19
percent of women).
Young Chinese of both genders, however, are likely to find emotional
stimulation and release online: 61 percent of both male and female
respondents agreed that "I have felt strong emotions (e.g., anger,
compassion) prompted by online interactions"; this compares with 47 percent
of young American men and women.
While the Internet provides an outlet for young people everywhere who
are testing out different identities as they seek to discover themselves,
this is especially true in China, where it allows more scope for
experimentation than life offline. More than twice as many Chinese
respondents agreed that "I have experimented with how I present myself
online" (69 percent vs. 28 percent of Americans). And in fact, more than
half the Chinese sample (51 percent) said they have adopted a completely
different persona in some of their online interactions, compared with only
17 percent of Americans.
This experimentation is clearly contributing to the development of
self- awareness among Chinese youth. Far more Chinese than Americans agreed
that "Online interactions have broadened my sense of identity" (66 percent
vs. 26 percent) and that "Online interactions have made me more self-aware"
(60 percent vs. 26 percent).
Finding Real Community Online
The communication and community that interactive technology facilitates
has a stronger appeal for Chinese youth than for young Americans. For
example, more than three-quarters (77 percent) of the Chinese sample agreed
that computer/console games are much more fun when played against others
online, compared with a third of Americans. And while fans of virtual
communities are in the minority in both countries, "second-lifers" (those
who agreed that "I feel more real online than offline") account for just 4
percent of the U.S. sample compared with 24 percent of Chinese respondents.
Indeed, while many Westerners debate whether online experiences and
relationships are "real," far fewer Chinese have doubts. As many as 82
percent of young Chinese agreed that "Interactivity helps create intimacy,
even at a distance," compared with just 36 percent of young Americans. And
almost two- thirds (63 percent) of Chinese respondents agreed that "It's
perfectly possible to have real relationships purely online with no
face-to-face contact," vs. only 21 percent of Americans.
These relationships are fundamentally changing the way Chinese youth
interact with each other. Fewer than a third of Americans (30 percent) said
the Internet helps their social life, but more than three-quarters of
Chinese respondents (77 percent) agreed that "The Internet helps me make
friends."
Expanding the Sexual Universe
Chinese culture may have a reputation for being far more sexually
conservative than American culture, but strikingly, three times as many
Chinese as Americans (32 percent vs. 11 percent) were willing to admit that
the Internet has broadened their sex life. (It's not just the Internet that
sizzles for the Chinese: As many as 54 percent said they had made or heated
up dates using text messages, compared with only 20 percent of Americans.)
"For many decades, the world saw China as a place of traditional and
conservative sexual attitudes and ideals, but after the sex-blogging
sensation Mu Zimei burst onto the scene in 2003, it became clear there was
a lot of pent-up interest in sex," notes world-leading trendspotter Marian
Salzman, JWT executive vice president and chief marketing officer. "Four
years later, our study confirms that the Chinese Internet is buzzing with
virtual pheromones- 'cybermones,' if you will."
Adds Salzman, who managed this study in collaboration with IAC: "While
relationships, dating and sex have been a prominent part of life online in
the United States, the Internet just ramped up what was already happening
offline- in China, however, it's all new."
Indeed, most likely due at least in part to the Internet, premarital
sex in China has become far more common in the past five to 10 years. "In
terms of impact on society and psychology, digital technology could be to
China what the Sixties were to the West-a huge shift in mood and attitudes.
The big difference is that these changes in people's emotional and sexual
lives are happening in the privacy of cyberspace," notes Diller. "With
interactive technology becoming increasingly important, it will be
fascinating to see how those emobytes and techno-emotions affect public
life as young Chinese become more accustomed to expressing themselves
online."
Free Speech Very Free Online
In the United States, the land of guaranteed free speech, fewer than
half of Americans (43 percent) agreed that "I often use the Internet to
find the opinions of others or to share my opinions." By contrast, China's
culture and political environment place less emphasis on personal views-and
almost three- quarters (73 percent) of Chinese respondents said they go
online to share opinions.
Chinese respondents were also more likely than Americans to say they
have expressed personal opinions or written about themselves online (72
percent vs. 56 percent). And they have expressed themselves more strongly
online than they generally do in person (52 percent vs. 43 percent of
Americans).
That's largely because of the anonymity that the Internet offers, a key
attraction for the Chinese. Chinese respondents were almost twice as likely
as Americans to agree that it's good to be able to express honest opinions
anonymously online (79 percent vs. 42 percent) and to agree that online
they are free to do and say things they would not do or say offline (73
percent vs. 32 percent).
"One of the biggest differences between American and Chinese youth is
in attitudes toward anonymity," says Doctoroff. "In the U.S., with its cult
of celebrity, young Americans see the Internet as a way of getting known,
of building their personal brand; many regard the Internet as a kind of
personal broadcasting medium. But whereas publicizing your name, face and
opinions is seen as a step toward success in the U.S., in China it has been
a surefire way of veering into dangerous territory. So for young Chinese,
the Internet is the ideal place to air opinions and hear what others think
without crossing the line."
While a western ideal of individualism may not be in the near future
for Chinese society, these findings show that the Internet is transforming
China in a unique way - towards liberalism with Chinese characteristics.
Methodology
In both China and the U.S., random online surveys polled respondents
aged 16-25. The U.S. portion, which included 1,079 respondents, was
conducted from Nov. 9-14 using SONAR, JWT's proprietary research tool. In
China, Millward Brown surveyed 1,104 respondents from Nov. 9-15; the survey
was conducted in Chinese. The U.S. data set was weighted to balance the
number of males and females surveyed; the China data set was weighted to
balance out age- distribution differences with the U.S. sample.
While the U.S. sample is representative of America's youth, the Chinese
sample is necessarily weighted toward the young elite. Only about 10
percent of the Chinese population is online, largely young, urban and
educated males. All Chinese respondents had a monthly household income of
at least RMB 1,500. (See appendix for more demographic data.)
About IAC
IAC (Nasdaq: IACI) is an interactive conglomerate operating more than
60 diversified brands in sectors being transformed by the internet, online
and offline... our mission is to harness the power of interactivity to make
daily life easier and more productive for people all over the world. To
learn more about IAC please visit http://iac.com.
About JWT
JWT ranks as the largest advertising agency brand in the United States
and the fourth-largest full-service network in the world. Its parent
company is WPP (Nasdaq: WPPGY). JWT's heritage of brand-building excellence
extends back to 1864, making us the world's oldest advertising agency
brand. In 1939, JWT pioneered the first national consumer research panel.
In 1988, we created the first research study of consumer lifestyles, "Life
Stages." We believe in being anthropologists first, advertising people
second.
Appendix
Basic Demos U.S.
Total Male Female 16-18 19-21 22-25
Base total sample
(weighted) 1,079 539 540 374 207 438
% % % % % %
Male 50 100 0 62 45 41
Female 50 0 100 38 55 59
Mean age (years) 20.3 19.8 20.8 16.8 20.2 23.3
Mean annual HHI
$000 - U.S. 64.1 68.9 59.3 87.1 56.0 49.5
Mean monthly
HHI - China NA NA NA NA NA NA
Basic Demos China
Total Male Female 16-18 19-21 22-25
Base total sample
(weighted) 1,104 574 530 405 225 475
% % % % % %
Male 52 100 0 48 46 59
Female 48 0 100 53 54 42
Mean age (years) 20.6 20.9 20.2 17.5 20.1 23.5
Mean annual HHI
$000 - U.S. NA NA NA NA NA NA
Mean monthly
HHI - China 3,460 3,464 3,457 3,429 3,530 3,454
Contacts
IAC Corporate Communications:
Jonathan Sanchez / Leslie Cafferty
(212) 314-7254 / 7326
JWT Worldwide
Eric Robertson(646) 465-3793
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SOURCE IAC; JWT
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Related links:
http://www.iac.com
CONTACT:
Jonathan Sanchez, +1-212-314-7254, Leslie
Cafferty, +1-212-314-7326, both of IAC Corporate Communications;
Eric Robertson of JWT Worldwide, +1-646-465-3793
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