Young People and Globalizing Trends in Vietnam

The past 10 years have seen an increasing research emphasis on young people and youth culture. The appearance of this very journal is testimony to a surge in academic interest. However, not much has so far been written in this vein about youth culture phenomena in post-Communist countries undergoing radical change towards a market economy. Yet this is clearly a very interesting investigation as one of the great meta-narratives of history—State Communism—declines. In the complex discursive aftermath of perestroika or doi moi, young people are at the cutting edge of deep social and economic change. Although the generational shift in identity-formation towards greater individualism, and conspicuous consumption, is really only one part of global economy integration, it is an important part, as new kinds of state citizens emerge. This paper examines globalization in relation to cultural shifts in modern youth culture in Vietnam. The focus is primarily on urban life in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.