A person’s lifestyle is the set of determining intangible and tangible factors that determine their attitudes, behaviours, and perspectives. The term has become increasingly common in the popular press and is used by media to describe people’s preferences, activities, habits, and even their clothing. It is also a term used in scientific research to describe the specific way that an individual lives their life.
There are a number of different theories of lifestyle, and they are reflected in a wide variety of psychological and sociological research. These theories differ mainly in their interpretation of the concept and in their emphasis on its internal or external dimensions.
The concept of a lifestyle is closely linked to the idea of health. People with a healthy lifestyle are believed to be less susceptible to developing serious diseases such as heart disease and some types of cancer. A healthy lifestyle involves engaging in regular physical activity, eating a balanced diet, and abstaining from smoking and taking nonessential drugs.
This is a complex topic, and there are no clear-cut definitions of the term. In the psychological context, a person’s lifestyle may reflect their views on a wide range of topics such as religion, politics, personal relationships, and health. The concept is also reflected in their consumption patterns and the social networks they form. Moreover, the lifestyle of a person may be affected by their environment and the culture in which they live.
In the social sciences, there are a number of different theories that have been developed to explain lifestyles. The main ones can be divided into three categories: internal, external, and temporal. Internal perspectives focus on the psychological aspects of lifestyle, while the external and temporal perspectives are based on sociological theories.
Psychologically, Alfred Adler was the first to introduce the concept of a lifestyle. His theory was that a person’s personality is formed during their early years and defines the system of judgement they will use throughout their lives. Later, Milton Rokeach connected the concept of a lifestyle with the value system; this approach considers the set of values that people hold and develop over time. This led to the development of the profile-and-trends model, which is a more recent variant on this line of analysis.
Sociologically, the concept of a lifestyle has been linked to the idea of social position in currents such as those of Weber and Bourdieu. This has led to models of a lifestyle that are based on the individual’s social status and consumption patterns. These models are a feature of the sociological discipline, but have also been applied in the fields of consumer psychology and the psychology of values. Despite their different interpretations, the main characteristics that characterise lifestyles appear to be the same across the various approaches. These include the fact that they are made up of a combination of intangible and tangible factors, that the internal aspect is more important than the external one, and that they evolve through a process of individualisation and acculturation.