You've probably heard by now that teens are not immune to the recession. Concerned about their families' security and their own joblessness, many are spending less and more selectively. Ad Age reports on the recent Piper Jaffray survey:

According to Piper Jaffray, [teens] are cutting back on apparel, beauty and food, and excursions to movies, concerts and sporting events… Teens are not willing to live without things such as music, DVDs, video games and video-game systems, and spending in those areas has been less affected.

On the one hand, the idea of teens choosing not to spend their disposable incomes on fun activities like movies and concerts may seem surprising. But on the other, it's.. well, not. Because as much fun as it is to go to the movies with a bunch of friends, the movie itself is probably the least important part of the equation. It's much more about who you run into at the mall or who you get to sit next to in the theater. Just look at the plot of the recent teen book-turned-film "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist." The entirety of the film is spent leading up to a concert that ends up being beside the point. In short, while teens may enjoy live music and moviegoing (and obviously still love the products themselves), it's the freedom to hang out together without parents around that they really appreciate.

That's not to say that they won't dole out $10 — or however much tickets cost — for a movie they really want to see or even a whole lot more than that for an awesome concert they want to attend (see Coachella). But if the choice is between a mediocre film and just standing around at the mall? Or between seeing a semi-decent band and just driving around aimlessly for a while? For teens, especially those sensitive to their parents' situations, the decision is not that hard to make.

And while in a perfect world this would inspire studios to strive and make more quality teen movies, movie theaters to reinstate student discounts, and teens to discover cool, alternative hang out spots like, gasp, the library (fingers crossed on that last one), I think it's important to recognize that this development isn't necessarily a bad thing. I know some parents can't exactly grasp what there is to do hanging out at a mall not shopping or standing around in a parking lot for hours on end, but usually — not always — it's nothing that reprehensible and certainly nothing that wouldn't happen if you thought your teen was at a movie, but they weren't. I should know. Back in ninth grade, well before the economy even factored into this decision, I lied about seeing a movie at the mall just for the two uninterrupted hours of hang out time. Sorry, Mom. 

Sorta Related
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See Also
Youth Advisory Board member Nina L.'s post on how the recession is affecting youth.

Categorized under: Movies & Music, Teens

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