Subcultures: a list from A to Z and their influence on society. Subcultures of youth: punks, emo, etc. Subcultures of the USA and the USSR

Subcultures of the youth of modern society are characterized by their own special rules and have their own development trend. Adolescents are very different in their outlook, behavior and habits. In the process of self-knowledge, they try to find their place in life, determine their goals and understand themselves. Quite often such searches lead to such rather serious problems as teenage alcoholism and early drug addiction. Therefore, the influence of subcultures on adolescents is one of the most urgent problems that disturb all parents without exception.

Positive and negative aspects of the influence of subcultures

Recent sociological studies have shown that many adolescents identify themselves as representatives of a particular subculture. At the same time, some young people are subject to strong influence of subcultures, which can be both positive and negative. In the first case, adolescents receive the skills necessary for living in a social society, and in the second they acquire qualities with which society tries to fight in all available ways.

Teenage subcultures help young people realize their desires and adapt to adult and independent life. But there are also negative aspects, such as cruelty towards certain groups of people. For example, skinheads are racist and can, according to their ideology, commit criminal acts against people of other nationalities. For them, there is nothing illegal in this behavior, and therefore they do not understand that they are responsible for their actions. In this case, the subcultures of adolescents negatively affect their worldview, setting the younger generation against other members of society.

Species of subcultures

In all teenage communities there are not only own laws of behavior, but also rules that assume a certain appearance. Individual youth currents can shock an adult society with numerous piercings, unusual hair color, strange style in clothes, accessories. Quite often, disagreements between parents and adolescents arise precisely on this basis. Young people do not like to interfere in their personal lives, and parents want their child not to stand out from the crowd.

Subculture of working youth is a teddy boy

The social youth group teddy-boyz was formed in the early 50's due to a relative improvement in the living standard of the working class. This youth subculture, widely spread in the post-war period, consisted of working class people with incomplete higher education and not having a highly paid profession. Their style was copied from the clothes and behavior of members of the upper strata of society. In the classical version, the "tedd" looked like this: trousers-puffs, a loose jacket with a velvet collar, a tie-lace and shoes on a rubber platform. The image was typically masculine, despite its elegance.

Representatives of the Teddy Boyz did their best to support the "high" status they had created, which was the cause of conflicts that arose with representatives of other sectors of society. For example, there were clashes with better-off teenagers, attacks on elite youth clubs. There have also been attacks on immigrants.

Subculture of the skilled strata of the working class - fashion

To the group of mods themselves were enrolled teenagers, who after graduating from school mastered working specialties, requiring a high level of preparedness. In reality, the fashion in an ideal sense had to live luxuriously, visit prestigious and expensive clubs, restaurants and shops, put on extremely expensive things. But for many, such pleasures were not available, so it remained only to try to recreate the ideal image. There are four types of mods:

1. Aggressive type in jeans and coarse shoes.
2. Owners of motor scooters, also in jeans and jackets with a hood.
3. Mods in suits and polished shoes were the majority of representatives of this subculture. The list is complemented by fashion girls, exemplary in appearance and with a short haircut.
4. Pupils of art schools, students and so on.

Subculture - Rockers

Rockers appeared in the mid-60's. This group included mostly teenagers without education or from single-parent families. The main attributes of the descendants of this subculture were a leather jacket, worn jeans, large rough shoes, long combed hair and tattoos. Of course, what a rocker without such an important element as a motorcycle. A special place in the subculture of rockers is music in the style of rock.

Skinheads or skinheads

Members of this group, as well as rockers, mostly left the environment of workers of low skill level. Among them, many were unemployed, poorly educated and with a low cultural level. The skinheads wore jeans turned up from below, large rough shoes and shaved heads. Skinheads are closely adjudged by football hooligans. These types of subcultures are similar in many respects to social composition. Combines them and aggressiveness in behavior, for example, related to football matches.

Subculture punky

This group consisted mainly of young people from unskilled and low-paid sections of the population. The critical situation of youth led to the emergence of this subculture. List of associations, consisting of poorly educated members of society, replenished punks. Stereotypes of this group were closely interwoven with aggressive self-assertion, but, in addition, the style of punk was largely based on views opposing traditional moral principles and values. Initially, the subculture of punk used to provoke society's appearance: unusual hair coloring, strange hairstyles, outrageous behavior and different styles in clothes, but over time, stronger techniques of influence were used through themes of violence and death.

Hippie Movement

This subculture appeared in the USA in the 60s and spread very quickly all over the world. At one time, the hippies evolved from beaters, middle class, who for a long time influenced the descendants of their group. These American subcultures have one common distinctive feature - a pronounced ideology in words. The main elements of the style or worldview of the hippies were:

1. Peace and nonviolence. Pacifism was the basic ideology of the hippies. That is why the representatives of this group differed in ignoring the authorities, apoliticalness, since it is the rulers who are fomenting wars and forcing people to fight.
2. Self-development and individualism. These elements were a reaction to the grayness of a mass society.
3. Conscious simplification, that is, the transition from a secure life to poverty, a rejection of material wealth.
4. Drugs, sexual experiments, travel, festivals, communes - all these are the most striking features of the subculture of the hippy society.
5. Joint living is a distinctive feature of the hippies, since other subcultures did not adhere to this form of behavior.

Dandies

This youth subculture appeared in the USSR in the late 40s of the 20th century. Thus, Soviet youth protested the stereotypes of society. The main direction of the style was a blind copying of the style of the West and the USA. At that time, the styli externally resembled a caricature: broad pants of bright colors, baggy double-breasted jackets, thick-soled shoes and hats with wide margins and necessarily socks of bright tones peeping out from under the trousers. The image was very original and vivid, no one worried about the combination of colors.

But over time, closer to the 50th years, the style has changed its image a little. They began to wear narrow trousers and elegant cut coats with broad shoulders, a thin necktie and, of course, a supercharged "cook". It is worth noting that a certain image was only among the guys, dildo girls wore lush bright dresses or narrowed skirts, sharp-nosed shoes and made bright makeup. The society did not allow the development of this subculture in the USSR and strongly condemned and persecuted representatives of this bright group.

Social subcultures

The process of socialization of adolescents in the subcultures of society is much faster. Such examples of subcultures as "green" or "animal advocates" teach the younger generation to help nature and care for the environment. But one theoretical information is not always enough to teach adolescents responsibility. It is necessary to show in practice the work of "positive subcultures". The younger generation needs not only theorems and axioms, but their fixation by actions and results, otherwise it does not realize the necessity of good deeds.

Subcultures, popular in modern society

The criminal subculture (rockers, punks, emo, skinheads, etc.) in Russia is already losing its position. Negative and aggression are gradually out of fashion. In search of new directions, the younger generation comes up with its own modern image. For example, subculture futering does not carry a negative manifestation, so it is very well perceived by society. Members of this youth group do not wear shoes in any weather.

Due to the wide spread of the Internet, the subculture of gamers is gaining momentum. Modern youth increasingly hide from reality in the virtual world. Many small children are already confidently managing tablets, readers and mobile phones. But this is basically a false replacement of real hobbies that parents impose on them to save their own strength and time. After all, when a child is engaged in computer games, he does not require so much attention and care. In fact, the problem of this subculture is very deep, and parents need to take certain measures, if the child has a game or computer addiction.

Distinctive features of modern youth trends

Subcultures of the youth of the modern world are characterized by an increase in the number of active associations. In addition, modern youth is increasingly immersed in the vastness of the Internet. They search in the network for their like-minded people, organize meetings, hold promotions. Three social and value orientations of modern subcultures can be distinguished:

1. Prosocial directions: the subculture of the bench and the movement of role games.
2. Asocial directions: punks, metalworkers, emo and hippies.
3. Antisocial groupings, similar to the adult criminal subculture: skinheads in their radical form.

It is possible to qualify subcultures of youth and as the group's activity is included in the lifestyle of a young person. There are behavioral groups and activities. In the first case, adolescents adhere to the style characteristic of the chosen group in dress, behavior and communication. Such areas are not characterized by engaging in any activity. Here you can include emo, hipster and ready. In other words, the younger generation will change only the external image and style of behavior.

Active types of subcultures are those communities that are based on enthusiasm for specific activities that require one or another activity. In this group you can include parquets, graffittists, and role-players.

What attracts youth in subcultures

Youthful subcultures at the personal level - a way to achieve self-esteem and compensate for the negative attitude of others around. Dissatisfaction with one's own style of behavior, body, discrepancy with the standards of femininity or masculinity. Subcultures, the list of which is huge and diverse, allows adolescents to give themselves a halo of features, bright individuality.

Socially-psychological reasons consider the attractiveness of the informal way of life, which does not require responsibility, purposefulness and purposefulness, in contrast to the generally accepted requirements in society. There are three possible options for the consequences of the influence of the subculture on the socialization of youth:

1. Positive orientation, which manifests itself in social and cultural self-determination, creative self-realization and experimentation with images, behavioral style and so on.
2. Socially-negative orientation, which is found in adherence to subcultures of criminal, extremist nature, drugs and alcohol.
3. An individually negative trend manifests itself in flight from reality, in justifying its infantile behavior, and avoiding cultural and social self-determination.

What directions prevail in a specific subculture are difficult to define. It is all the more difficult to see how it affects a person's way of life. Modern currents attract young people with their diversity and evoking kind and behavior. But it is worth noting that belonging to a particular social group is a phenomenon, as a rule, a short-term one. Basically, the hobby for subcultures begins at the age of 13 and by 19 years passes. By this age, a person changes his hobbies or rethinks life values. But there are exceptions in the age range, for example, the subculture of rockers does not have time limits. Among the representatives of this community one can meet mature people, and sometimes even the elderly. They stayed true to their teenage hobbies and still listen to rock or play in musical groups. As a rule, the subculture of rockers are those people who are not ready for a responsible and independent life in their adult life.

The peculiarities of the subcultures of adolescents include their inconstancy in behavior. Many adolescents are characterized by an unstable psyche, which largely depends on how their relationships with parents develop. If there is remoteness in relations with close people, the chances of the child falling under external influence are increasing. After all, a teenager needs communication, advice and understanding. If in the family he does not receive all this, he will seek support in the circle of people close in spirit and moral condition. Very often, the divergent behavior of a child in adolescence is associated with a bad example from outside. It can be television, bad deeds of comrades in the company and so on. To prevent negative impact on the child, parents need to establish contact with him or to attract older youth for this purpose.

Sources of the appearance of subcultures in Russia

In the Russian youth environment, the appearance of subcultures is due to a number of reasons. In the last 15-20 years, the daily life of the adult society and children has undergone major changes. The openness of Western and Eastern cultures strongly influenced the world outlook of people, dissolved many traditions, stable relations, values of Russian citizens. The new scientific and technological revolution, which, above all, is connected with the emergence of phenomena such as computers, mobile phones, the Internet, has also affected the lives of people.

Basically, youth subcultures are spread spontaneously. Although often enough such a proliferation is facilitated by the media, parties, fashion legislators and so on. There is one more way - commercial and youth organizations take as a basis forms of youth leisure, existing spontaneously, and create organized directions. As an example, you can bring a straight-dance. But this process also requires a special approach. Experts believe that interaction with potentially positive informal people should be carried out according to three rules: it is necessary to coordinate their actions with the leaders, provide them with everything necessary for carrying out activities and coordinate the restrictions in behavior and activities in the process of conducted actions.

Strategies for Youth Activities

If we consider youth activities from the standpoint of social education, then we can distinguish three basic pedagogical strategies. Do not pay attention, do not rule out spontaneous penetration into social life and only after that work or analyze the potential of youth subcultures in terms of additional educational methods and use them for the personal development of adolescents and children.

The potential of subcultures of youth from the point of view of upbringing is that the types and forms of activity of adolescents and young people that have emerged irrespective of the pedagogical sphere, among the free communication of young people, are socially positive. But at the same time it is necessary to apply the appropriate pedagogical instrumentation.

In reality, modern educational methods practically do not come into contact with such youth and adolescent communities. In addition, this contact is mainly observed in summer camps, in children's public associations and extremely rarely in general education schools.

As a rule, the lifestyle, behavior and external signs of the subcultures of adolescents and young people are highlighted in a negative light, which has contributed to the active imitation of the representatives of these communities by a certain unreached part of the youth. This, in turn, served as an impetus for the spread of these subcultures beyond the borders of one country. Nevertheless, the variability and other characteristics of subcultures were greatly influenced by ethnic and social conditions. For example, Soviet hippies were not much like representatives of this subculture of Western countries. And skinheads of modern Russia are very different from the first skinheads of Great Britain.

The violent protests of youth in Western countries in the 1960s and 1970s and in the Soviet and post-Soviet space in the second half of the 1990s caused not only a decline in public activity among young people, but also served to develop certain trends towards escapism. A distinctive feature of the modern world is the increase in the number of protest youth subcultures, as well as the diversity of forms. Thus, we can say that there are all new subcultures, the list of which is growing.