Posts Tagged "Social Trends"

Twins are the new trend when it comes to U.S. births. As of 2009, the last figure available, 1 in every 30 babies born here was a twin, compared to 1 in 53 in 1980, according to a recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report.

The twin birth rate rose by more than 2% a year, on average, from 1980 through 2004, leveling off briefly that year to less than 1% annually then rising nearly 2% again from 2008 to 2009.

In 2009, twin rates increased in all 50 states, with the most significant jumps in lower New England, New Jersey and Hawaii. In Connecticut, twins now account for nearly 5% of births.

Nationally, 3.3% of all births were twins in 2009, up from 2% in 1980.

The greatest increase in twin rates was for women 40 and older. They are more likely to use fertility treatments and to have two embryos implanted during in vitro fertilization, whereas younger women are more likely to get just one.

About 7% of all births for women 40 and older were twins, compared to 5% of women in their late 30s and 2% of women age 24 or younger.

Rates doubled for whites, rose by half for blacks and by about a third for Hispanics. Historically, black moms have twins most often, but white moms have almost caught up.

Are you a mom of twins? In what way has that influenced your purchasing decisions? Marketers, are any of you focusing on this growing market?

We’ve all heard the terms bridezilla, ecotourism, and juvenescent (right?)…but what about brattle? Dictionary.com gives brattle the unbiased definition “to scamper noisily.” Lizzie Skurnick’s “That Should Be A Word” column in last week’s New York Times Magazine gives brattling a new definition: “to discuss one’s children, often at length.” We somehow didn’t think she was giving the word a positive connotation and our suspicions were confirmed after reading her definitions for spamily (Facebook or Twitter updates about kids) and spawntourage (a group of approaching strollers).

Do you agree that incessant chatter about kids is annoying or should Ms. Skurnick lighten up? And do you ever brattle about your own kids?

Apparently, the days when a woman would look forward to hearing the word “grandma” for the first time are now behind us.

Some folks feel that being called grandma or grandpa is the equivaelnt of being labeled old — and old is not how many of today’s active grandparents feel.

This seems to be especially true in the celebrity world. According to a recent New York Times article, actress Goldie Hawn, a grandmother herself, referred to the term as having “so many connotations of old age and decrepitude.” Actress Blythe Danner, Gwyneth Paltrow’s mother, wanted her grandchildren to call her “Woof.” Paltrow says, “My mom’s hot and she didnt want to be called Grandma.”

A celebrity-worthy new term — GlamMa — now appears in UrbanDictionary.com, defined as a “woman with a sense of self and style.” Sources such as Grandparents.com offer other modern alternatives from which to choose.

Although I’ve got, in theory,  a long way to go, I have no idea how I’ll react when the time comes for me to assume a name to go along with the grandparenting role. I also can’t imagine what new term would have the same special meaning as the traditional one. Although GlamMa does have its appeal…

Has the “g” word been an issue with your parents? What do your children call them?

Lately it seems impossible to go more than a week without reading some new article about students being bullied or sexually harassed by their peers. The secret videotaping of a Rutgers student’s sexual encounter with another man is probably the most widely known story. Yale University was most recently in the news, when it announced today that it was banning a fraternity “in which members led pledges in chants offensive to women” from on-campus activities.

Some colleges are addressing this ongoing epidemic of incivility by introducing classes on the subject. One I found most interesting was the elective offered at George Mason University called “Professionalism and Civility.” According to the university’s Web site, this one-credit course teaches students how to manage their “professional image, conduct at work, telephone, written, oral, and electronic etiquette, table manners, and social networking with an emphasis on the cultural needs for honoring commitments and obligations.” (http://cehd.gmu.edu/courses/courseinfo/?id=1898).

Not a bad idea. Of course, as great as this elective sounds, I can’t help but wonder if the students who actually need this course would sign up for it.

Tip to marketers: There’s probably an entire industry that could be developed around teaching appropriate behavior for young people.

Yet, shouldn’t children be educated on the proper way to behave among their peers well before the college years — by their parents? Today, high school, middle school and even grade school incivility–better known at those stages as bullying–is almost a given. Are these the same children who never learned to share a toy on the playground or who hit and punched when they didn’t get their way? This leads to the questions: Moms, in your experience, how widespread is this kind of behavior among young children? Have your youngsters been the perpetrators or recipients of this rude and unkind behavior? What’s the solution?

As some of you may know, my son, CollegeBoy, is currently studying and working in China. In a previous post, I noted that while visiting him there earlier this year, I was struck by the paucity of children on the street — and that, to my mind, this illustrated the results of the country’s one-child policy. At the time, it was something of a jolt to realize that it was still very much in force in the 21st century. The policy, which has led to some forced abortions and sterilizations, has also resulted in millions of dollars in fines annually from those who violate the rule.

It turns out, according to the just-released Chinese census, that while the strictly enforced policy has proved highly effective in reducing China’s exploding population and helping to pull it out of poverty, it has had a potentially negative effect on the country’s future: There are now too many old people and not enough young ones to assure the country’s continued economic growth.  China’s traditional preference for boys also means the country now has about 120 males for every 100 females, and that by 2020 there could be as many as 24 million single young men with little opportunity to marry or have their own children.

Why is that relevant in the context of this blog?  Certainly, the subject fits within the first half of what this blog is all about — the social and marketing trends that impact moms. And as a mother living in a country that puts no restrictions on the number of children we are allowed to bear, I feel for those who don’t have that choice. It also, perhaps, says something about government interference in family planning. Lastly — and appropriately enough — I can’t helped but be reminded of, yes, that old Chinese saying: Be careful what you wish for.