| Abstract [eng] |
This thesis aims to reveal how young people living under different socioeconomic conditions understand the concept of a successful person in a post-Fordist society. Today’s youth in Western countries live under conditions vastly different from those of their parents or grandparents – increasing globalization, shifting work models and structures, technological advancement, and a prolonged transition from adolescence to adulthood all contribute to changing perceptions of success among contemporary youth. The work seeks to examine the idea of a successful person through the lens of a post-Fordist society – a society in which success is closely tied to the notion of “freedom to become anything,” self-realization through work, and the neoliberal subject. The expectations of post-Fordist society do not account for the formation of success across different socioeconomic backgrounds, instead placing the responsibility on the individual. Drawing on theorists such as Michel Foucault, Zygmunt Bauman, David Farrugia, Pierre Bourdieu, and others, this thesis constructs a theoretical approach and presents an empirical study exploring whether and how young people's understandings of a successful person in Lithuania differ, what shapes these views, and how they relate to the expectations of post-Fordist society. The research involved young people aged 21–28 from various socioeconomic backgrounds and utilized a visual mapping method. The analysis revealed four main directions: the concept of a successful person, the factors important for the formation of a successful person, the societal standard of success, and the relationship between individual notions of a successful person and the expectations of a post-Fordist society. The research findings showed that, despite socioeconomic differences, the participants tended to reject post-Fordist expectations in their understanding of a successful person rather than embrace them as the foundation of their concept. Young people described the successful person as a complex and individual notion, often grounded in a search for balance between internal values and external factors. Nevertheless, they more strongly associated post-Fordist expectations with the societal standard of success – an image shaped by society. The differences that emerged between socioeconomic groups were linked to issues of meaning and freedom, work and career, and the influences shaping one's image of a successful person. |
