The company named consumers aged 13 to 24, the mainstreamers of a new era created by digital culture, the “post-digital generation,” analyzing its characteristics in a survey of 800 male and female consumers aged 13 to 49 in the Seoul region between July and September last year.

The report released Sunday defines the post-digital generation as “a generation born in the 1980s who have always lived in a digital culture and experience no inconvenience in expressing their feelings and needs using digital technology." They have a stronger sense of responsibility to their community than their seniors in their 30s who learned digital technology for survival, the report claims.

The company identified six characteristics that -- taking some liberties with sense and the English language -- form the acronym HEARTS: “Human relationship”, “Expressionism”, “Anti-literality”, “Relaxed mindset”, “Trend-independence” and “Speed.”

But in their patterns of consumption behavior, 46.4 percent of the “trend-independent” respondents were afraid to fall behind if they don't buy the latest products, and 44.3 percent bought what they wanted at any cost. They also took advantage of special offers.

Though being less individualistic than the early digital generation, they are faithful to their own desires. While attaching more importance to social norms than their own desires, 60 percent said, "I do what others don't do if I want to”. They are also more relaxed and optimistic than any previous generations, with 62 percent saying, "I can become the person I want."

If yuppies -- highly-educated urban professionals in the high-income bracket -- epitomized the digital generation, depressed urban professionals who plumb for better quality of life over income are emerging as the quintessence of the post-digital generation, the report claims.

(Kim Duck-han, ducky@chosun.com )