T

here is a well-known saying that children are the future of a nation. It teaches us that youngsters grow up to become the leaders who will shape the nation’s destiny.

Naturally, as the saying goes, we need a great young generation to build a great nation. The question is how can we achieve that great generation? The fundamental component is through character development of each young individual. With young individuals with good attitudes reflected in their character, we surely will arrive at that desired great young generation.

The book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey states that the development of character ethics of an individual depends on three factors: genetic determinism, psychic determinism and environment.

Genetic determinism is an internal factor because it relates to one’s DNA inheritance. Meanwhile, psychic determinism is related to the upbringing of an individual. Finally, there are the environmental factors, in which the development of character ethics is influenced by surroundings.

In particular, psychic determinism and environment must be taken seriously in shaping character ethics because they are external factors that can be controlled.

The young generation, especially in Indonesia, has been a cause for concern in recent years because it seems overly apathetic and consumptive, with little or no regard for substantial matters. Expounding on the saying stated at the beginning of the article, it would follow that having a “careless” young generation would lead to a “careless” country. That is of course something nobody wants.

It would be unfair to generalize that all members of the young generation are careless and unconcerned beyond their own personal concerns, but we also must pay extra attention to the task of building better character ethics in our future leaders.

And it needs the participation of many stakeholders to create a young generation of strong character. Besides the crucial role of parents themselves, corporations also must take responsibility because they also play a large role in the development of character ethics globally.

Let us look at the daily lives of our young Indonesian generation, from kids to teenagers. This generation is intensely familiar with media, ranging from traditional media to electronic media, from television to the Internet. We also notice that they cannot be separated from everyday communication gadgets such as the BlackBerry or iPhone.

Capitalist corporations caught on to these habits before the rest of us did. They have utilized them to get closer to the young generation. Why? Because the young generation provides a new lease on life for their business. They use their brands as the bullets to target the younger generation.

Positive influence

Sometimes, unwittingly, the marketing of brands has been done without concern for the norms that actually need to be instilled in the young generation. Here is where corporations, through their brands, need to be responsible for what they do. If brand marketing does not touch on positive values, it will also affect the development of the young generation’s ethics.

Toy brand LEGO recently found itself dealing with such an issue amid a swirl of controversy. It released a special product line for girls, LEGO Friends, designed with a very feminine look and feel. The company devised the concept after considering that its brand was too masculine for girls.

Concerned parents countered the initiative was a blunder because it ultimately fueled gender stereotypes through the implicit message that the iconic LEGO brand is only suitable for boys, and LEGO Friends only for girls. Parents are concerned that children will grow up with sexist values and learn to discriminate based on stereotypical gender roles.

The controversy continues, and perhaps there is no right or wrong in this case. But it is an example how a corporation through its brands can really affect the development of character ethics of its consumers, particularly when they are children or the young generation.

The lesson that must be learned from corporations is that marketing of brands must always carry educative and normative messages. It must be remembered that consumers, especially the young generation, are easily influenced. If a brand conveys a negative message, even unintentionally, the character of consumers will be affected by the negativity.

That would run counter to the effort to nurture the new and ethically responsibly generation of leaders, which can be achieved through emphasizing positive marketing messages.

Primo Rizky is a consultant at DM IDHOLLAND and Daniel Surya is its chairman and president for South East Asia.