Finnish youth consumer identities shaped by narratives

Blackwell Science, LtdOxford, UKIJCInternational Journal of Consumer Studies1470-6423Blackwell Publishing Ltd, 200428Original Article
Finnish young people’s consumer
identityM. Autio

Finnish young people’s narrative construction
of consumer identity
Minna Autio
University of Helsinki, Department of Economics and Management, Consumer Economics, Helsinki, Finland

Abstract
This article examines how young Finns represent their consumer identity through narratives. Young consumers are
easily seen as careless spenders and selfish hedonists in
the contemporary consumer society. However, an empirical
approach is required in order to find out whether this generation of young Finnish consumers is one of ‘raving hedonists’ or ‘ultimate materialists’, as their peers are often
presented in public discussion in many western societies.
The empirical data was collected in five upper secondary
schools between the end of November 2001 and the beginning of January 2002. These schools are located in five
different districts in Finland, varying from metropolitan to
rural areas. The study focused on students aged 16–19 years
and used essay writing as the method for collecting qualitative data. The data thus consists of 159 life stories as a
consumer written by young Finnish people. Qualitative
research methods, such as narrative analysis, were used in
this study. It is argued that Finnish young people are representing their identities as consumers through a combination
of various levels of consumer discourses besides hedonism
and squandering: rationality and economizing are an essential part of their consumer identities. Some youngsters also
present themselves as responsible consumers including
ecological and ethical choices as part of their narrative. The
way these youngsters combine discourses gives evidence
of the various features of the present-day young consumer.
It is also suggested that their consumer identity develops
and changes with age. Young people describe their identity
changing through a hedonist/squanderer discourse to a
rational and economical one or vice versa. They also combine hedonist, rational, economical and responsible discourses simultaneously.
Correspondence
Minna Autio, University of Helsinki, Department of Economics and
Management, Consumer Economics, PO Box 27, 00014 University of
Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland. Tel. +358 9 191 58090; E-mail:
minna.autio@helsinki.fi

388

Keywords Young consumers, consumer identity, Finnish consumer culture, narrative analysis.

Introduction

In the contemporary consumer society, young people
are generally seen as careless spenders and self-seeking
hedonists.1–3 Besides hedonism, according to Wilska4
visibility and open-mindedness are also regarded as
typical of the consumption of young people. Tapscott5
has criticized this emphasis of hedonistic lifestyle
among youth:
Today’s youth are described in ways that make the
‘me’ generation look like a generation of philanthropists and social activists. They are said to be selfcentred and obsessed with short-term gratification.
However, the concern of young people’s values and
consuming habits is a current issue. Journalist Alissa
Quart6 has recently claimed that the world of advertising is playing an increasingly important part in shaping
the way in which teenagers and younger children identify themselves. Children are introduced earlier and earlier to the branded world of goods and services.
Growing up as a consumer is one of the essential roles
in contemporary society. As Miles2 has argued, young
people are socialized into treating money and consumption as a doorway to life. It is arguable that especially
young people – and perhaps children too – base their
identity and lifestyle on consuming more than other age
groups. Young people are still in the process of developing their consumer identities. As an 18-year-old
female respondent commented ‘. . . especially at such a
sensitive stage of your life, when your appearance and
clothes constitute your entire identity, you may spend a
lot more money than you ought to’. Miles2 has suggested
that consumption represents the main arena within
which young people play out their relationship with

International Journal of Consumer Studies, 28, 4, September 2004, pp388–398

© 2004 Blackwell Publishing Ltd

M. Autio • Finnish young people’s consumer identity

structure and agency, while negotiating their role and
position in an ever-changing world. He argues that consumption is a valuable tool and resource in asserting
aspects of young people’s identities.
This article examines the assumption that young consumers in Finland are as portrayed in studies as those
from other cultures,1,2 and questions whether we can
accept even within western-style economies that age is
more important to understanding consumer aspirations
and behaviour than national culture. On the basis of the
qualitative data, it is argued that young Finnish people
are representing their identity as consumers through a
combination of various levels of consumer discourses
besides hedonism and squandering: rationality and
economizing are essential parts of their process of forming identities as consumers. Some youngsters present
themselves as responsible consumers including ecological and ethical choices as part of their narrative. The
way these youngsters combine discourses gives evidence of the various features of the present-day young
consumer. The present study also suggests that their
consumer identity develops and changes with age.
Young people describe their identity changing through
a hedonist/squanderer discourse to a rational and economical one or vice versa. They also combine hedonist,
rational, economical and responsible discourses
simultaneously.
This article discusses whether Finnish young consumers are ‘raving hedonists’ as their peers are easily presented in other western cultures; describes the research
design and empirical data used in this study as well as
method of the analysis; presents the results of an empirical analysis together with previous studies and inspiring
theoretical frameworks; and considers the importance
of studying how young people see themselves as
consumers.
Young Finnish consumers: raving hedonists?

Ever since I was a child, I’ve had a thing about breaking things apart and putting them back together.
Because of this, I used to be fond of Legos and have
spent a fair amount of money on them. When I was
a bit older, and the hockey card fad began, money got
spent on collecting hockey cards in addition to other
hobbies. Then at age 12, I got the snowboard I’d


wished for ages as a Christmas present, and I still
consider it the best present I’ve ever had. After I got
the board, my money spending’s gone down the hill.
Later on, when I was about 13, I got into listening to
music and went and bought myself a decent hi-fi. That
pretty much emptied my account, but I’ve not had
any regrets about my purchase. Most of my money
still gets spent on these two hobbies. My greatest
investment so far has been the all-inclusive snowboarding equipment set, that I funded with a summer
job (A Prodigal Son – 17 years old).
Prodigal Son’s consumer narrative reinforces the
common image of young peoples’ money management
and consumption habits. This young man describes the
pleasures of consumption throughout his life with no
regrets; nor does he indicate that he would have financial problems. Spending money is fun, especially when
you are living with your parents and spending their
money as well. Thus, the Prodigal Son is an illustration
of a juvenile in Finnish society in the 21st century. As
Autio and Heinonen7 have argued, the current youth is
the first generation accustomed to the affluent society
from childhood. They have not suffered from shortages
caused by wars nor from the puritan peasant culture
with its strong propensity to save, like the earlier generations.8 They have not been made to feel guilty by
demanding careful consideration or economizing. The
current youth, born in the 1980s, has been able to enjoy
the pleasures of consumption freely. Only the deep
depression during the early 1990s slowed down the
steadily increasing material well-being. However,
according to Wilska,9 Finland is still behind the United
States and Western Europe in terms of the development
of consumerism and the consumer society. In Finland,
the breakthrough of the consumer society took place in
the post-war decades, and it was not until the 1980s that
Finland could be thought of as a so-called affluent society, as Heinonen10 has argued.
However, current Finnish youth is a branded generation,6 in the sense that their childhood toys were Barbies, My Little Ponies and Turtles figures. Now they are
buying Diesel jeans, Calvin Klein shirts and portable
Sony minidisc players as are other middle class teenagers in western societies.11 Has the Finnish youth really
thrown off the shackles of ‘the puritan ghost’, as


389

Finnish young people’s consumer identity • M. Autio

Scitovsky12 described the Joyless Economy of the western world, and turned into true hedonists? If we look at
the young man cited above, it seems that the puritan
ghost is not disturbing his enjoyment. However, there is
a need for an empirical study in order to find out
whether this generation of young Finnish consumers
are ‘raving hedonists’ or ‘ultimate materialists’.1,2,5 It is
potentially misleading to assume that all young consumers are hedonists or that any diversity is minimal. Perhaps adults’ moralizing perceptions of youngsters’
economic behaviour is based on a generalized fear that
young people do not grow up as rational and reflective
consumers.
Research design

The focus of this study is how young Finnish people
represent their consumer identities in the light of qualitative empirical data. According to Fornäs13 identity is
the keyword for both the youth themselves and for
youth culture research. In youth studies, cultural identity has been classified in terms of, how young individuals – often radicals such as those in hippie, punk,
environmentalist or straight edge movements – identify
themselves.14 This article examines the phenomenon of
being a consumer among ‘mainstream’ young people in
Finland, not in distinctive subcultures, such as antiglobalization activists or hiphoppers. Consumer identity is
understood in the context of consumer discourses and
ideologies that Finnish consumer society provides for
young people, and how these youngsters assimilate
available discourses as part of their personal narrative.
The study discusses the phenomena of being a consumer
in terms of the meaning that young Finnish people give
it.
Empirical data used in this study were collected as
part of a research project ‘Consumer Cultures of
Young People in the Changing Information Society’.a
A survey had been carried out in the spring of 2001 in

a

The project was part of Information Society and Sustainable Development,
a programme financed by the Finnish Ministry of the Environment. The
main themes of the survey (2001) were the consumption and economic
situation of young people, their use of mobile phones, their attitude to
technology and the information society and towards environmental and
ethical issues in Finland (n = 637).

390

eight upper secondary schools, four vocational schools
and other middle-level educational institutes in Finland.4,15 While conducting the survey, the researcher
had an opportunity to discuss with teachers the possibility of collecting qualitative data in the same schools.
Some of these teachers immediately expressed their
willingness to participate. After the summer of 2001,
consultation started with the teachers, and at the end of
the year, the study was performed in five upper secondary schools in five different locations. These varied
from metropolitan to rural areas and the qualitative
data were collected between November 2001 and January 2002.
The focus is on upper secondary pupils aged 16–
19 years, because essay writing was used as the
method for collecting qualitative data. Upper secondary pupils were considered to be more capable of
expressing themselves in writing compared to students
in other types of institutions, such as vocational
schools. Writing essays is an essential part of Finnish
language studies in upper secondary schools and
therefore the young people were experienced in using
the essay format for expression of their opinion and
recounting their experiences.
The teachers participated in the process of formulating the essay topics, which were then given to the pupils
and were written during their Finnish language classes.
This meant that the written instructions were formulated for both teachers and pupils with the teachers
giving my instructions to the pupils and collecting the
essays in the classroom. The teachers did not read or
evaluate the essays.
The pupils were given the choice of writing essays
either on ‘a life story as a consumer’ or on their definitions for ‘environmentally oriented consumer behaviour’. In consumer life stories, the pupils were asked to
sum up their consumer behaviour with one or two
words. Altogether, the data consisted of 203 essays
which were divided as follows: 152 pupils wrote about
their life story as a consumer, 44 pupils wrote about
environmentally oriented consumer behaviour, and 7
pupils combined these topics. The focus of the analysis
in this article is on consumer life stories (n = 152 + 7).
It is notable that Finland changed its currency from
markka to euro at the beginning of 2002. So, young
people were using old currency in their essays but the




old currency is converted to euros for this article (1
euro = approximately 5.9 markka).
Narrative and discourse analysis

Focusing on the main structure of the consumer stories,
that is, concentrating on the dominant discourses found
in the material, there were several interesting themes –
such as emotions in consuming, or gender differences –
which were visible in the text samples presented in this
article. As mentioned above, the pupils had been asked
to describe their consumerism in a few words. These
expressions, which were found in the titles of the stories
or the texts themselves, were the key to constructing the
main discourses of the 159 stories written.
There were a variety of descriptions, but some culturally shared terms were repeated in the stories, especially
expressions traditionally found in Finnish consumer discussion, such as ‘rational’, ‘economical’ and ‘wasteful’.
The youngsters also described the pleasure of consumption, although this was less apparent than traditional
expressions. One reason for this is that there is no common term in the Finnish language for hedonistic consumption. Instead, responsible consumer discourse,
which includes ecological and ethical consumer choices,
was evident in the stories. Based on the descriptions
used by the youngsters, five discourses were established:
•
•
•
•
•

rational/reflective – self-control;
economical – saving;
hedonist – pleasures of consumption;
squanderer – wasting;
responsible – green and ethical choices.

These discourses are grounded on the definitions of
consumption of young people themselves, and my own
interpretations as a researcher. This interpretational
framework, based on the five discourses, was applied to
the whole data, although parts of the texts were not
entirely compatible with the analysis based on manners
of speech. It is notable that 12 of the essays were neutral
or incompetently written, and they could not be categorized into any one of the five discourse types.
The way in which various discourses were used in the
stories was then analysed. Considerations included, for
example, whether a young person writes a consistent
story of either rational or wasteful consumerism, or


combines several discourses in her/his story. Fifty-two
consumer narratives displayed a single type of speech,
which in the majority of cases was a rational and reflective one but most of the narratives were combinations
of two, three or four discourses. A young person’s
description of him/herself can, for example, be as an
economical and reflective – or a wasteful and hedonistic
– young consumer. Sixty-five narratives were combinations of different – and to some extent opposite – discourses. For example, a young person could write a story
describing him/herself simultaneously as green, economical and hedonist, or discourse changes took place
according to age. The latter type of narrative is called
multifaceted consumer narratives.
Thus, it is taken into account that people are not unidimensionally rational.16 On the contrary, this study follows the arguments of postmodern theorists, such as
Bauman17 and Hall18 that the identity is fleeting and
fragmented. As Moisander19 has pointed out, consumer
researchers have typically conceptualized people as
fairly rational or at least cognitively guided, disembodied decision makers, making choices among available
alternatives.20 Perhaps Prodigal Son’s consumerism,
although he represented himself mainly through a pleasure discourse, also comprised fragments of reflective,
economical or green consumer discourses. In any case,
he wanted to emphasize the enjoyable side of being a
consumer while he was writing his essay in the classroom. The story would have been different, if his brand
new snowboard had been broken a few days earlier. It
is also possible that the story is fictional.
Finding the ‘truth’ in stories is irrelevant in narrative
tradition. Consumer life stories are reconstructions of
the past. As Lewis and Susan Hinchman21 have
asked . . . ‘to what extent is memory itself a reliable
guide?’ According to Finnegan,22 in spite of the many
controversies involved in studying narrative, one essential theme recurs. This is the view that human beings are
story-telling animals.23,24 Personal narratives are at the
same time idiosyncratic, unpredictable, diverse and
deeply cultural.22 Thus, young people express something
about their own way of thinking as well as the cultural
norms of society through storytelling. Culture ‘speaks
itself’ through an individual’s story.25
Interpretations of linguistic qualitative material are
always cultural. For that reason, the discourses are


391


firstly presented through consistent stories, even though
these might give an excessively simplified image of
young people’s consumerism. Then, multifaceted consumer narratives reveal a rather more diverse and
reflective young consumer identity. At the end of each
quotation is the title, which each young person has given
to her/his own story (e.g. Consumer Maniac, Prodigal
Son, Eco-Friendly Consumer, Fickle Consumer).
Rational or reflective narrative

Rational or reflective narrative becomes evident from
the way in which young people display their ability to
recognize and control their own needs. They contemplate – often for a long time – whether or not they need
to make a particular purchase. When or if they decide
to buy something, the purchase must be gratifying, durable and beneficial. Concerning this latter characteristic
young people intend that money be spent on, for example, hobbies, CDs, clothes – everything that can be seen
– will provide long-lasting benefit. Moralizing becomes
easily directed at eating out, or the use of alcohol, as
these only bring momentary satisfaction. Although low
cost can be one criterion for making a choice (e.g.
through price comparison), price alone is not sufficient
for making a decision. Young people are prepared to
pay for quality goods. A story by one 17-year-old female
epitomizes the thematic of benefit, price and satisfaction.
Nowadays I think I am a careful consumer. I count
my money carefully and imagine how I can get the
most benefit from it by buying something useful. The
goods and clothes I buy should definitely bring satisfaction and the price must be suitable. Or, not too
dear or cheap, inferior quality. What I hate most is
spending money on goods or clothes that fall to pieces
the first time they are used or that disappoint me (A
Rational Consumer).
Both a general review of consumption, and monitoring of expenditure with the understanding that one can
not live beyond one’s means, are characteristics of rationality. Expressed most simply, rationality in this context
means consuming when there is money and not consuming when there is none. The dominance of rational/
reflective consumer narrative is surprising, considering

392

that there has been a desire to connect impulsiveness,
momentary enjoyment, and the unbridled use of money
to young people’s consumption habits.1–3 On the other
hand, according to Wilska’s26 study, many Finnish consumers do not consciously think of consumption as a
very important part of their identities. Most of the consumption styles or lifestyles that were found in her study
were rather modest, although hedonist and materialist
lifestyles were also found. Against this background,
the dominance of rational/reflective narrative is
understandable.
Economical narrative

The basic dimension of the economical narrative is, naturally, saving money: in childhood money was put into
a piggy bank and as a teenager into a bank account.
Young people relate in their stories how money accrues
when one is not buying something all the time and when
one is ‘reluctant to waste money’. Young people also
save for some purpose or event, such as a car or a rock
festival. In fact, for a thrifty person, there is a certain
pleasure in the accumulation of money in a bank
account, as shown by the following statement by a 16year-old female:
When I was little, there was no money left for socalled unnecessary things. According to my parents’
instructions, I put every mark I owned into the bank
for my future needs. Later on I began to use money
to go to the cinema and on clothes. The sums of
money I spent were never ever sky high . . . I still
haven’t stopped saving my money in a bank account,
even if I do put less money in now than before. Perhaps this is all that prevents me from becoming a
serious spender. Every time I decide to buy something, something in my head tells me that I might
need the money later for something more important
and that it would be best saved up (Money in the
Bank).
To be an economical consumer means nonconsumption and the denial of needs, or the deferral of
their satisfaction. According to Mackay,27 in Protestant
tradition, in which Finland also belongs to, consumption
and leisure are commonly conceived as less worthy, friv-




olous, even wasteful, indulgent and decadent.8 Thus, we
have a long tradition of being economical and careful
consumers in Finland. Heinonen8 describes this tradition through the ethos of peasant culture, where frugality and self-sufficiency were important elements.
However, this discourse also exists in today’s youth consumer culture, even if this generation has not been tormented by the puritan peasant culture. Mentalities are
changing slowly. As Wilska4 has argued, the ‘ideal’ consumer for Finnish young people is still someone who
aims to save money and consumes frugally.26 This ideal
is something that older generations are glad to see
younger ones adopting.4
Rational, reflective and economical narratives can
also be interpreted in the context of ‘self-control’ and
‘self-discipline’, as Campbell28 has argued by means of
modern hedonism. However, the discourse of selfcontrol can be interpreted through the tradition of
household economics,29 which is based on the assumption of rational behaviour. Control is a necessity of life
in order to cope with money management. As Schor30
has argued, ‘needs’ are upscaling in western societies. In
America, ‘the good life’ includes a vacation home, a
swimming pool, a colour TV, a second colour TV, travel
abroad, nice clothes, a car, a second car, a home of one’s
own, a job that pays much more than average, and a lot
of money.30 Many consumers, including children and
young people, face the problem of consumer choice
surrounded by the affluence.

of consuming but also the changes in the objects of
consumption according to age:
Buying something has always been my great passion.
I was a big spender even as a podgy little girl. Money
was spent on Barbies, dolls and My Little Ponies.
There were nearly 20 Barbies, about 10 dolls and at
least a dozen ponies. There was no shortage of toys.
When I grew a little older the money got spent on
other things. Exchanges of all sorts of small items
were made with my classmates: pens, erasers, writing
paper and stickers. The more there were of them and
the more variety there was, the better. . . . Again, as
the number of candles on the cake increased, the
objects that were shopped for changed. Now it
became pets. I had an aquarium and a cat, and every
time I went to the shop I brought something back
for them. . . . Even nowadays I am an enthusiastic
shopper . . . (Consumer Maniac).
After childhood, the objects of consumption change
to become equipment for sports or hobbies, and also
mobile phones, computers and CD players. Young people take a positive attitude to consumer services, too,
such as sitting with friends in cafés and restaurants and
going to the movies. The main difference between the
hedonistic, and rational and economic consumers in the
stories lies in their refusal to take on a moral burden for
the indulgence of consuming. The basic tone of the narratives is pro-consumption.

Hedonistic narrative

Hedonistic narrative represents the opposite to rational/
reflective and economical indulgence in using money
without restraint. Descriptions of gratification contain a
multitude of nuances with almost half of the young subjects relating their own story of what kind of consumption – from Astanga yoga to snowboarding – brought
them happiness. Certain common features could be
found, such as pocket money received as a child which
was immediately spent on sweets, cola or ice cream.
These stories exude pleasure and happiness as the
young describe how they bought, for example, My Little
Pony or Turtles figures, Barbie dolls, remote-controlled
motor vehicles, or collectible cards. The narration of a
16-year-old female illustrates not only the gratification


Squanderer narrative

Likewise, the squanderer narrative is connected to gratification, because the squanderer uses money for ‘everything that is nice’. The difference is that these young
people express themselves as squanderers or as wasters.
The style with which they start their stories is ‘everything was spent immediately’ or ‘as soon as it came, it
went’. Two of the writers expressed a doubt that because
the money vanished so quickly, there must have been a
hole in the bottom of their purse. These narratives do
not exhibit a spirit of moralizing or resentment, even
though the young call themselves squanderers. Money
can been ‘burnt’ by spending 250 euros a day on clothes,
for example. Correspondingly, there is no wish to spend


393


it on necessities such as food, school books or even a
battery for a watch. One 17-year-old male describes
himself as follows:
What kind of consumer am I? I can describe it in one
word: A SQUANDERER. My way is to throw my
money away as soon as I get it. Of course, more
money gets burnt up in the summer, because the
motorbike devours petrol and there’s more to do
when there’s no school. In the summer I make money
by having a summer job (A Squanderer).
It seems that hedonistic and squanderer narrative
involve the ‘pleasures’ of Campbell’s28 traditional hedonism: all human beings in all cultures seem to agree on
a basic list of activities, such as eating, drinking, sexual
intercourse, socializing, singing, dancing and playing
games. All of these activities are essential parts of youth
culture in western societies. It would have been surprising if young Finnish people in the 21st century had not
have offered such a pleasure-oriented discourse. After
all, they were children of an affluent consumer culture,
although young people did not have equal economic
resources and opportunities as consumers. However,
during the deep recession in the 1990s, parents were
cutting back their own consumption in favour of their
children.31 On the basis of these narratives, it seems that
the current youth has thrown off the shackles of ‘the
puritan ghost’12 and engaged in the Joyful Economy.
However, this generation has also faced the problems
of environmental degradation. They are socialized into
a society of high consumption, typical of which is to
want, to get and to own a number of goods, and in which
attempts are made to solve environmental problems at
the same time.
Responsible narrative

Responsible narratives were reflected in the adoption of
green values, such as recycling, composting, and visits
to second-hand shops and flea markets. The latter is a
particularly significant part of the lifestyle of youth,
because second-hand shops are places where clothes,
furniture and other practical utensils can be acquired.
This is also a useful place for recycling one’s own goods.
Green values also encompass attempts to economize on

394

the use of electricity and water and on consumption
in general, such as avoiding unnecessary consuming.
Responsible consumption was also linked to organic
foods and fair trade products, as well as buying locally
produced foodstuffs and environment-friendly products. In what follows, a 17-year-old young male offers
his narrative perception of his rather deep green consumer habits.
As someone who enjoys the great outdoors, I have
done various things in order to preserve our environment. Our family’s dedication to composting calls for
the selection of biodegradable and otherwise ecological products when shopping for groceries – starting
from carrier bags. Hence, I usually buy paper bags
instead of their plastic substitutes, mainly for their
biodegradability. As meat production consumes vast
amounts of energy and environmental resources, I
aim to reduce the burden caused to the environment
by the production and consumption of meat through
vegetarianism. Therefore eco-friendly vegetables
have replaced the old packet of sliced ham on my
daily trip to the grocer’s. I doubt anyone could deny
the harm caused to the environment by private car
use . . . In our family, I have tried to recommend using
public transports instead of a private car for commuting (Eco-Friendly Consumer).
Although the previous narrative is written by a male,
it can be argued on the basis of the research data, that
these ‘soft values’ seem to better fit female perspectives.
The gender division was distinguishable in the data: the
majority of green stories were written by young women.
Many studies have shown a distinction between the genders: girls and women appear to be more environmentally focused than boys and men.19,32,33 There were
differences between green narratives as well. According
to Autio and Heinonen,3 young people’s dedication to
green practices varied from relatively easy choices such
as recycling to rather devoted sustainable lifestyles like
being a vegan. Thus, a green lifestyle can be ‘just a style’.
The responsible consumer narrative is a minor one
compared to other discourses. The responsible narrative
is interpreted as a part of the ‘self-control’ and ‘selfdiscipline’ discourse. The difference compared to the
rational, reflective and economical narratives, is that




responsible narrative is more ideological and requires
even more knowledge and self-discipline than being,
for example, economical. Responsible consumerism
requires a consciousness of environmental problems
and social injustice (e.g. child labour).
Multifaceted consumer narratives

These consumer discourses and text samples depict
ideal narrative types in which the essential dimensions
of the speech style were expressed through a fairly logically constructed narration. Nevertheless, the majority
of young people combine more than one discourse type
in self-descriptions, as mentioned earlier. In these multifaceted consumer narratives, changing from one discourse to another can take place logically according to
age, or there can be swift and surprising developments
as shown by the following description from a 17-yearold female. In her story, she combines a critical attitude
towards the western consumer culture (responsible discourse), which can be seen as part of green discourse,
with pleasures of consumption and economical
discourse:
. . . I own too many things. My room is always a
hopeless mess because of all the stuff in it. The
problem is that I’m unable to throw anything
away . . . I hate shopping for clothes. I never find
clothes that’d suit me. I have no interest in services
for beauty care. Does the world really need facial
steam treatments or acrylic nails? Some of us are
starving! . . . I like to spend money on music,
because it provides a long-term value for your
money and great pleasure. It’s also nice to buy a
new item of clothing, if for once you’re able to find
something suitable. . . . I try to use as little electricity as possible. Whenever I leave a room I switch off
the lights and any electrical equipment . . . I follow
the same principle with my use of water. I shower
every couple of days. No point hanging around in
there (I Consume Everything).
The following description of a 19-year-old male shows
how an attitude change takes place according to age. A
thrifty boy grows into a consumerist teenager, who still
tries to control his expenditure. However, he does not
hold high expectations for improving his self-control, as


the pleasures of consumerism and spending seem to be
taking the upper hand.
As a child, I was able to save up. Out of a measly
allowance of 1.8 euros, I saved a half. The other half
I bought sweets with. Out of extra money from, for
example, my nan and grandad, I saved 100%. When
the piggy bank was full and would take no more, it
was taken to the bank. I simply just felt bad for spending my money and for that ended up with a nice sum
on my account. When I was 14, it all changed. I spent
most of my money on a guitar and an amplifier, that
I still don’t regret buying. Later I bought a snowboard. There wasn’t a lot of money remaining. . . . I’ve
emphasised the pleasures of life, and have yet to
change. My conscience has returned to haunt me, but
hasn’t had much of an effect . . . When I was 19, I
spent my 850 euro summer job wages in 2 weeks
(Conscientious Consumer).
A combination of several discourses in the same narrative provides some evidence showing that consumerism is built of different – to some extent opposite – ways
of relating to consumption and use of money. It would
appear, on the basis of the material, that the consumer
identity of the young develops and changes with age, as
illustrated by the narration above. For example, when
we are children we save, on reaching puberty we awake
to the enjoyment of consuming and as adulthood
approaches we strive for more rationality. Some young
people also begin to perceive the practices of responsible consumption. The process of growing up can also
take place in the opposite direction. As a child, everything one wanted was there and as the age of puberty
came along it was necessary to consider controlling
one’s own desires. A rational discourse confirms that a
life of one’s own is ahead and parental support is diminishing. The narration of 16-year-old female illustrates
the change from hedonist and squanderer discourse to
a rational and economical one:
When I was 4–5 years old, and still didn’t have a little
sister, I got anything I wanted with no more than a
pleading look directed at my father. Everything I
wanted was expensive and unnecessary, such as Barbies, that I already had two dozen of. When I was


395


about 9 and started going downtown, I bought myself
clothes instead of more toys. Until the age of 9 I was
something of a prodigal daughter, but then I got out
of the whole toy habit, that had taken several, if not
tens of thousands to finance. Then, in third grade, I
realised money doesn’t grow on trees and started
spending less on shopping. Since then I have only
bought practical items and clothes when shopping in
town. I’ve managed to maintain the economical principle nearly up to now, as I have made some silly
purchases lately (Fickle Consumer).
Combinations of several discourses, which concern the
present time and are simultaneous, can occur in narratives according to age, providing evidence of multiple
facets in the present consumer.17,18,34 Modern youth lives
within the sphere of influence of many consumer discourses. Even as late as the 1970s, economy and prudence
were the virtues of the Finnish consumer society. Since
the 1980s, the enjoyment of consumption and green
choices has also become integrated into Finnish consumer habits. The newest consumer ideology is the ideal
of the ethical consumer,35 which reinforces the responsible consumer discourse. Against this background, it is
no surprise that young people base their consumption on
a combination of the various consumer orientations –
rationality, hedonism, squandering, economy and
responsibility. Thus, narratives are at the same time idiosyncratic and diverse, but above all deeply cultural.
Conclusion

This article illustrates contemporary Finnish young
people’s narrative representation of their consumer
identities. It is argued that present-day Finnish consumer culture provides adolescents with both traditional consumer ideologies – such as the ethos of thrift
– and prevailing consumer ideologies – such as the
pleasure of consumption, green and ethical consumerism – as components of consumer identity. The way
these youngsters combine provided discourses gives
evidence of the multiple facets of the present-day
young consumer. Their consumer identity can also
develop and change with age. As in the case of Prodigal
Son, cited at the beginning of this article, he represents
himself as an extravagant consumer today, but might

396

well start to spend money more rationally and economically after moving out from his parents’ home –
although not forgetting how enjoyable spending money
can be.
However, the results of this empirical study should be
critically examined. First of all, the respondents were
upper secondary students, who were capable of expressing themselves in writing. Irony, fiction and exaggeration are perceivable elements in their stories. Secondly,
the data were collected in schools and this may have
influenced how the pupils wrote in a different way. Consuming mostly takes place during leisure time, not in
school. If the material had been collected in another
environment, such as shopping malls or youth centres,
the results may have been different. Thus, it might be
that the pupils emphasized the rational and reflective
side of their consumer identity. Some may have felt – in
spite of the essay instructions – that they had to write
of themselves in an idealized way.
According to empirical data, young Finnish people
construct their consumer identity mainly on the basis of
rational, reflective and economical discourse, which signifies that traditional consumer ideologies are still influential in the Finnish consumer culture. As Wilska4 has
stated, saving money and consuming frugally is something that older generations wilfully pass to the younger
ones. However, as presented in this article, the current
generation has also learnt to spend money and enjoy
consumption. Thus, their consumption style arguably
differs from earlier generations, where possession of
items is highly valued. Besides having a lot of ‘stuff’, this
generation also practices a mentality of ‘to be – not to
have’. They are spending their money on hobbies and
they are passing time with friends in cafés and restaurants. Thus, it is important to see that young people
consume to express their sense of self and this is quite
different from labelling their consuming practices as
uniformly hedonistic. However, this lifestyle can be a
phase of life, as a 16-year old male is reasoning below.
. . . I think spending, for myself and probably the
majority of young people, becomes more careful with
age. Maybe it’s just that you don’t fully understand
the value of money when you’re younger, because the
objects of interest aren’t as expensive and hard to
gain as when you’re older. When you’re older, your




saving becomes more focused and better planned (A
Careful Consumer).
This article has demonstrated the problem of assuming homogeneity among the young. Within this sample
of young Finns, there was considerable expressed diversity. Even if there are reasons to believe that economic
integration in Europe, and the western world generally,
produces a convergence in the aspirations and behaviour of specific types of consumers, there remains considerable heterogeneity. Not all young consumers are
the same, nor do they see themselves as being the same.
Their consumer identity seems to be fleeting and fragmented, although young consumers constructed their
identities rather logically as well. This study was
designed to show diversity among young Finnish consumers. The patterns of diversity need to be examined
in other cultures so that we are able to better understand young consumers as they see themselves.

Acknowledgements

I am grateful to Anne Murcott, Visa Heinonen, Jaakko
Autio, Mari Niva, Anu Raijas and anonymous referees
for helpful comments. I will also thank the Jenny and
Antti Wihuri Foundation as well as the Research Funds
of the University of Helsinki and the Ministry of the
Environment for financing the project ‘Young People in
the Vanguard of Modernisation’. Finally, I would like to
thank Riina Autio for checking my English.

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