Germany is a modern, cosmopolitan country. Its society is shaped by a multitude of life styles and differing cultures. German society is as vibrant and open as ever, with people from all corners of the world living and working together. Traditional gender roles have been dispensed with. However, despite the social changes, the family remains the most important social reference unit.
Alongside their peers of the same age, whose importance has risen appreciably, the main group to which young people relate is their family. Never before have so many youngsters – 73 percent of 18 to 21-year-olds – lived at home for so long. Almost all 12 to 29-year-olds state that they have a very good, trustworthy relationship with their parents.
One reason for staying at home so long is that more and more young people are staying in the education system for longer and longer. Their standard of qualification has risen considerably. In total, 43.4 percent of each year-group (18 to 20-year-olds) are entitled to study at a university, and 36 percent of each year-group opt for such study in the medium term.
In comparison with earlier generations of young people youngsters have become more pragmatic and not only have a good relationship with their parents’ generation but also with democracy: The pessimistic protests and “can’t be bothered” attitude of the 1980s has for the most part given way to a non-ideological, optimistic pragmatism. Today’s young generation is success-oriented and prepared to work hard. Their maxim of life can be reduced to the formula “getting on instead of getting out”.
With regard to the traditional left-wing/right-wing divide, today’s youth is typically positioned somewhat to the left of the population as a whole; only very occasionally are there instances of political extremism. On the other hand there is a high degree of willingness to get involved with social and political issues. Some three-quarters of all youngsters claim to be actively committed to social and ecological interests. Interest in politics, political parties and trade unions, on the other hand, is on the decline. Only about 30 percent of 12 to 25-year old youngsters claim to be at all interested in politics, whereas among young adults and students the figure is considerable higher, namely 44 and 64 percent respectively.