If the "Tribe Vibe" phenomenon is catching on with our youths, then it contributes positively to community building as it forces youths to learn to work as a team.
In its Sept. 14, 2007 edition, The Star reported a research done by BBDO Asia and Proximity Malaysia (leading players in marketing and advertising) on urban youths that "having a best friend is now deemed as an "uncool" thing among youth…(who now) prefer to hang out with a core peer group."
Under the research, entitled "Project After Sunset", a research team followed a group of six youths for six consecutive days to study their clique dynamics. The team found out that the youths’ night life was ruled by "Tribe Vibe" and unanimity in decision making. This study was important enough to be referred to again in The Star on Sept. 15 and 19, 2007.
I had thought that the study would be mainly reflective of urban youths but my last experience in working with 18 youths in a six-week mentoring and learning experience in January and February indicated that the "Tribe Vibe" phenomenon may not be merely an urban thing. What I experienced was like encountering a new culture of youth altogether, compared with the last five years of a similar programme
The elements of the "Tribe Vibe" phenomenon include: unanimity (agreeing to do things together); sacrifice of individual needs/wants in preference for group needs/wants; being cautious with assertiveness or shying away from standing out in the group; and peer group identity being more important than individual identity.
These are both positive and negative implications for youth work.
If the "Tribe Vibe" phenomenon is catching on with our youths, then it contributes positively to community building as it forces youths to learn to work as a team. It also provides a positive peer pressure, assuming the core values of the youth group is something positive. "Tribe Vibe" also lends itself naturally in enhancing the "one another" (common phrase in the New Testament) ministry.
On the other hand, "Tribe Vibe" may negatively affect a youth by contributing to personal psychological stress especially in those who have to frequently sacrifice their preferences for others’.
Leadership development of youth may also be compromised due to fear or misunderstanding associated with being assertive, and procrastinated decision-making due to a general laid-back culture, which is a result of shying away from being assertive.
Also, the fear of offending a fellow tribe mate may result in the inability to deal with difficult personalities within the group.
What actually is "Tribe Vibe"? Is it an expression of a desire for family ideals superimposed on a peer group context? To what extent will "Tribe Vibe" affect the development of youth work, particularly the development of youth leaders? How do youth workers effectively connect with youths belonging to the "Tribe Vibe" generation? How do we apply the incarnational approach to this group without sacrificing the necessity to provide direction in youth work, especially in the more assertive prophetic aspects of youth work and mentoring youth?
These are questions we need to reflect and research to enable us to more effectively connect with another culture, perhaps another generation.
Rev. Dr Herbert Tan serves as the FamilyLife Consultant with Malaysian Campus Crusade for Christ. Besides being a consultant and trainer on youth ministries, he also conducts training for families and youth leaders throughout the country.
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