Individualism and its different faces: some cases from post-socialist Estonia

Abstract

This article aims to show the different faces of individualism as a phenomenon among different age groups. Relying on several authors dealing with individualism, it is argued that individualism is a paradoxical phenomenon and can involve controversial characteristics. Drawing on ethnographic study of a youth seminar and in-depth and focus group interviews, it demonstrates that among different age cohorts the traits of individualism can vary, depending on their socialisation experience. The young people participating in the seminar (born between 1985 and 1990) consider self-realisation and individual responsibility as central in planning one's life. At the same time, the need for structural support is voiced. The older respondent group (born between 1971 and 1977) made their transition to adulthood in a situation of weak institutional support and consider it important not to rely on social structures. Yet, even though self-realisation is important for them, ‘selfhood’ has not been central in planning their life's course. Both cohorts can be characterised by different traits based on individualisation theories. Thus, the proportion of structure and agency in individualism can vary among different groups (age or social).

Keywords:

• individualism
• identity
• transition
• post-socialism
• construction of youth

Acknowledgements

The research reported in this article was supported by the European Union through the European Regional Development Fund (Center of Excellence CECT) and Estonian Science Foundation grant number ETF 9130.

Notes

1. I shared the focus group's fieldwork and interviews with Kirsti Jõesalu.

2. The process of analysing and coding took place in Estonia.

3. For example, instructors of political Marxist education, Communist party representatives at work places and many other jobs proved to be unnecessary.

4. The 25–34 age group in 2003–2007 consisted of individuals born between 1969 and 1982, i.e. including the 1970s birth cohort. Income refers to mean income per family member and not owned economic capital. Most of the owners of the accumulated economic capital would be expected to be in older age groups.

5. The transition to the labour market for this birth cohort has not been so smooth in other post-communist countries. For instance in Armenia, Azerbaidjan and Georgia almost 37% of this age group has been unemployed for the majority of their lives after leaving school (Roberts and Pollock 2009).

6. In Estonian language, there is no sex expressed when talking about he/she. In speech, thus, Kaisa did not have to point out both sexes (he/she) but talk about one person (‘ta’ in Estonian).

7. It is important to note, however, that patriotic feelings are not always seen as missing among the young people. Yet, sometimes it is still valued as not the ‘right’ one. Young people are sometimes seen as blindly patriotic without understanding the ‘true’ essence of it (see Nugin 2010, Jõesalu and Nugin 2012).