Western values influence teens<\/p>\n
They wear branded clothes and shoes, eat at fast food
\nrestaurants, hang out at shopping malls, listen to rap and rock,
\nspeak in slang and are very pompous. They are what Jakartans call
\nthe ABG, an abbreviation for anak baru gede -- urban pre-teens.
\nTheir lifestyle is an indication of the country's growing wealth
\nand reflect the strong influence of foreign cultures, American in
\nparticular. The following article and three others on Pages 2 and
\n6 discuss the ABG spectacle and what parents and experts have to
\nsay about the group.<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Sasha is only 12 years old, but there's no
\ndoubting her vocabulary of international brand-names.<\/p>\n
\"I like Esprit, it's comfortable and fashionable. I have
\nseveral Benetton sweaters. My favorite is Guess blue-jeans. I
\nalso have a pair of Doc Martins, they're in now.\"<\/p>\n
Ask where she spends her weekends with classmates from a
\nprivate junior high school in southern Jakarta and you get:<\/p>\n
\"It depends. Sometimes we drive around in a friend's car,
\nsometimes we go to Pondok Indah Mall, hang out for hours in a
\nfast food restaurant or just stay at a friend's house, watch a
\nnew video or a basket ball game and have a nice chat. If one of
\nus is celebrating a birthday, we go to the Hard Rock Cafe or
\nPlanet Hollywood to have a party.\"<\/p>\n
Clad in an A-line tartan mini skirt and a tight white T-shirt,
\na pair of black boots with a bag dangling on her back, Sasha is
\nthe epitome of the growing number of middle to upper class urban
\npre-teenagers known as ABG.<\/p>\n
They are easy to identify by their uniform. Girls wear trendy
\nmini skirts or bell-bottomed pants, backpacks, tight T-shirts and
\nthick high-heels. A baseball cap, extra large and unbuttoned
\ntartan or striped flannel shirt, knee-length pants and sneakers
\nis the standard for the boys. They never fail to attract
\nattention whether they are idling inside shopping malls, fast
\nfood restaurants, cafes, movie theaters or being driven around in
\ntheir parents' luxury cars.<\/p>\n
Nunui, 12, in her second year at Sumbangsih junior high school
\nin southern Jakarta, says the ABG are keren -- trendy, stylish
\nand fashionable.<\/p>\n
Subculture<\/p>\n
Aged between 10 and 15 years old, they are sixth grade
\nelementary school to third year junior high school students. Rap
\nand basketball are their passion.<\/p>\n
Their existence has become more and more obvious in the past
\ntwo years because of their relaxed, but self-possessed attachment
\nto their peer group. They don't like being treated as children
\nbut don't follow the older generations' style.<\/p>\n
Paulus Wirutomo, a sociologist and lecturer of the University
\nof Indonesia explained the ABG as an unique subculture which is
\nnot possessed by the generations that came before them.<\/p>\n
\"There are special products made just for them, which push and
\nencourage the creation of this subculture that is not understood
\nby their parents. Consequently, parents loose control over them,\"
\nWirutomo said.<\/p>\n
Rap music, for example, is difficult for the average parent to
\nenjoy. State Minister for Research and Technology B.J. Habibie
\nbluntly expressed his dislike for the music, although he later
\nsaid it was only the lyrics he hates.<\/p>\n
Aware of the teenagers' need for something exclusively their
\nown, businesses rally and market new products at them. Banks have
\nbegun offering special products for this niche, like special
\ncredit cards for teenagers, which will likely pass on to the ABG
\nor pre-teenagers. Fashion designers target them and there is an
\nincrease in the number of special media for pre-teens and
\nteenagers.<\/p>\n
Global phenomenon<\/p>\n
Psychologist Danny Irawan Yatim and deputy chief editor of
\nteenage magazine Hai, Irwan Iskandar, agreed that ABG is a trend.
\nJust like the hippie and punk craze which dominated Indonesian
\nteenagers in the 1960s and 1980s.<\/p>\n
\"It is a global phenomenon. Teenagers all around the world
\nhangout in malls because of the lack of proper places for them.
\nThey are consumptive and only know how to have fun because their
\nparents were like that when they were teenagers. But what is
\nlacking in Indonesia is good education,\" said Yatim.<\/p>\n
Irwan pointed out that the ABG trend is common teenage
\nbehavior which has existed for ages. It has only become more
\nobvious because of the establishment of hangout venues which
\ndidn't exist in Indonesia before.<\/p>\n
However, they both agree that the rapid flow of information
\nhas allowed this lifestyle to quickly gain popularity. In the
\n1980s there was only the state television station, but now five
\nprivate television stations have added to the programs available.
\nThe private TV stations have become a perfect marketing devise.<\/p>\n
Movies and TV influence the kids beyond belief.<\/p>\n
\"Indonesian teenagers translate stuff on TV into reality. I
\nwas shocked to find that most kids in Jakarta use dirty words
\nsuch as f--- you. Even in the United States, the country which
\nproduces most of the TV films we see here, children are taught
\nnot to say such things,\" said Irwanto, a psychologist .<\/p>\n
The number of teenage magazines has also increased.<\/p>\n
\"The favorite sport among teenagers is basket ball, they even
\ncollect basket ball cards. Their sport heroes are Magic Johnson
\nand Michael Jordan because of television,\" Yatim said.<\/p>\n
Indonesian girls defer to American television series like
\nBeverly Hills 90012 and Melrose Place for fashion.<\/p>\n
Nani, a creative-art freelancer who has worked for some
\nproduct advertisements, said Indonesian teenagers are very
\nreceptive to the mass media because they are trying to find their
\nown identity and lifestyle.<\/p>\n
Irwanto, a psychologist and head of the research department of
\nAtmajaya Catholic University, said the influx of information has
\nbrought about \"hurried children\".<\/p>\n
\"In the past, information, especially on global issues, was
\nlimited. Today we get verbal and visual information easily. As a
\nresult, children in fifth grade of elementary school are more
\nmature than children of the same age 10 years ago. Emotionally
\nthey are still children,\" Irwanto explained.<\/p>\n
Today a 10-year-old doesn't want to be considered a child
\nanymore, but are too young to enter the teenage world. The only
\nchoice is to join the ABG.<\/p>\n
Yudo Hery Setyawan, a counselor at the Al Ikhlas Moslem junior
\nhigh school in Cipete, South Jakarta, confirms this notion and
\nadded that members of the ABG are cheeky only in the anonymity of
\nthe group.<\/p>\n
\"Individually, they are crybabies,\" he stated.<\/p>\n
Responsibility<\/p>\n
In the 1980s the youngest drug abuser was 11 years old, now
\nkids as young as 10 are doing drugs.<\/p>\n
\"They are exposed to consumerism, drugs, long hair and
\ndrinking through the mass media. And, frighteningly, with the
\nincreased buying power of Indonesians, they can afford the
\nstuff,\" Irwanto stressed.<\/p>\n
The mass media, therefore, should enhance its role as an
\neducator, said Irwanto.<\/p>\n
\"They must take responsibility for the young generation.
\nInformation allows teenagers to have more self-confidence, obtain
\nmore knowledge and become more open. This is what should be
\nexpanded.\"<\/p>\n
Irwanto said parents should play a more active role.<\/p>\n
\"By talking to their kids, parents can filter the mass media
\nand the influence of the peer group. Don't hesitate to reprimand
\nthem if they are wrong.\"<\/p>\n
Psychologist Sartono Mukadis added that most teenagers still
\nrely on their parents or their siblings as the main source of
\ninformation.<\/p>\n
A recent Kompas survey involving 291 ABG confirms this idea.
\nThe survey found that 68 percent of the respondents stated that
\ntheir parents are their closest friends.<\/p>\n
\"It is clear that parents still play an important role in
\ntheir lives. Be their friends and don't be so suspicious of their
\nactive and sometimes aggressive behavior. It is natural,\" he
\nexplained.<\/p>\n
Both Irwanto and Wirutomo suggest that the city administration
\nparticipate in educating young people.<\/p>\n
\"They hang out in malls because Jakarta lacks libraries, sport
\ncomplexes and art centers. Allocate some money for these places,
\nor order all housing developers to build the facilities in their
\nhousing complexes,\" Wirutomo demanded.(raw\/anr\/als)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/western-values-influence-teens-1447893297",
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