Yves here. I hope you have had your coffee before you read this piece, which is awfully thin on actual information about the super-rich. But this is no surprise when you read the conflict statement included at the end. There is an obvious problem with this “research” in that it was intended to be longitudinal. So continuing to have access to the subjects, even before getting to their highly privileged status, would depend on playing nicely with them. The fact that one of the two authors worked at the institution these students attended also meant she was effectively embedded. Most readers know well that government often get journalists to agree to join front or near front line soldiers on an embedded basis because the reporters (almost inevitably) wind up identifying with the troops by virtue of extended close association.
Admittedly, the very well off do regularly have a problem with finding meaning in their lives, hence substance abuse is not uncommon. That’s also the reason some billionaire parents leave their kids only enough to assure they will never have to worry about money if they don’t go the decadent consumption route. If any of these super-rich kids are being groomed for serious roles by their parents save joining the family enterprise (as for instance Joe Kennedy did), there’s not a peep about that below.
By Karen Lillie, Senior Researcher, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies and Claire Maxwell, Professor of Sociology, University of Copenhagen. Originally published at The Conversation
While super-rich kids make for great TV subjects, their real lives, perspectives and ambitions are often shielded from the public. To learn more about them, we interviewed students at one of the most expensive secondary schools in the world, where fees come to 120,000 Swiss Francs (around €125,000) per year – and followed up with them five years later.
We started our research when these young people were studying together in the Swiss Alps, observing and interviewing them over 15 months. We asked about their backgrounds, thoughts on their school environment, and plans for the future. Five years later we asked them about what had happened since they graduated, their daily lives, and their ambitions. At that point, most had finished their university studies and were starting their careers.
Our findings, which we discuss here, have been published over several articles.
Certain features were universal – these young people came from extremely wealthy families in their own countries, and their parents had pushed them to study abroad, learn English and live a global lifestyle. However, their paths to joining the ranks of the global super-rich varied depending on where they were from and what they wanted to do with their lives.
Citizens of the World?
Their exclusive Swiss school promised to turn its students into “citizens of the world”, but these Gen Zers’ friendship groups were in fact usually determined by their national background or language – partly because they shared cultural references and values, and partly because of pressure to conform. As one student told us, “If I wanted to sit with other friends, [my national group] would be like, ‘Are you mad at us?’”
Even when starting careers abroad, these wealthy young people did not entirely break their ties to their home countries. Living abroad could “feel lonely”, they told us, while home offered “more resources and more support … family and also friends”.
However, these young people were also aware that meeting wealthy peers from around the world at school could lead to international business opportunities down the line. As one explained, “There’s definitely benefits of making friends from all over the world, no doubt. The general profile of students here is that of upper-class to high-class families so, regardless, you’d be making powerful and wealthy friends and that’s a plus.”
“I Don’t Fly Commercial”
As teenagers, these Gen Zers embraced conspicuous consumption. They stayed at five-star hotels and shopped for luxury brands, and one even donated a lightly used Louis Vuitton backpack to local refugees. They did not, in the words of one student, “fly commercial”.
Their families’ financial resources made these habits possible, but the habits themselves were a product of boredom: “I’m going after something when I want that thing, you know? I look forward to it. I need it. Like, I’ll move mountains to have it. But when I actually have it … it’s just meaningless to me,” one young woman told us. Buying items and experiences provided short-term relief from boredom, but the ease with which things could be bought just made these young people more bored.
As young adults, however, they found meaning in taking on jobs and living within their income, though often with family money and connections to fall back on if needed. Still, these young people took pride in self-sufficiency, which they connected to “growth”, “character”, and “self-respect”.
Though one of our interview subjects still drove an Aston Martin, the luxurious, stereotypical super-rich lifestyles from their younger years seemed to matter less as they got older.
Racism and Geopolitics: Leaving the Boarding School Bubble
At their boarding school, wealth was the norm – the few scholarship students were largely left out of social cliques – and this defined much of these young people’s social identities. As one young Russian explained, “The type of people who come here, they’re really rich, right? So, people here often see Russians as really rich people. I don’t know – strange but it suits.”
When transitioning to university, however, their privilege was challenged by the realities of geopolitics and racism. This intensified with time.
Geopolitics, for example, meant that one wealthy Ukrainian student had to think about “more important things … than just like, whatever things I want.”
Racism meant that a young Chinese man who had moved to the US was rethinking his decision: “Basically, going back to China is effectively saying like, Oh, I could just be the white person. I could be the white male in the room. And wouldn’t that be nice? … I don’t want to live in a place where people think I have no personality, or … where people tell me … you have a glass ceiling at the top.”
Limitless Possibilities Make for an Uncertain Future
One question for these young people was what they wanted to be. Some knew – artist, entrepreneur or, most often, owner of their family’s business – while others were figuring it out.
Another question was where they wanted to be. These young people were weighing going home versus staying abroad, and whether they would put down roots or keep moving.
Some of these wealthy Gen Zers were aiming to join the global super-rich, while others wanted to remain part of the wealthy in their countries of origin. Some embraced the adventure of the unknown. Others felt anxious about the uncertainty. Despite similar starting points and opportunities, their paths and goals hugely varied.
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Disclosure statement
This research received ESRC funding. Karen Lillie worked at the school that this article’s interview subjects attended while conducting research there.
Claire Maxwell does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
