What is a Lifestyle? Is Lifestyle Leisurely Living Healthy?
The Lifespan and Study of LIFESTYLE: A Comparison Study of Cultures, Key Indicators and Communities. By: Amy Bass. Pages 118-120 in paperback. Routledge: New York.
LIFESTYLE derives from the word Lifestyler, which in turn means life course. The origin of this word may be derived from the German word Leistung, which meant journey or progress. The book may be related to the concept of a journey through life. It has been used in research studies and social studies about individual’s life styles, values, beliefs, attitudes, social network, communication and influence. The book has been used as a reference guide for various types of studies on the associations between dimensions of life styles and associations with other variables such as health, wealth and relationships.
The book was developed as a tool to identify the elements of a lifestyle, an individual’s choices, interpersonal interactions and environment in which LIFESTYLE was based upon. The book has been used as a reference guide for various types of studies on the associations between dimensions of life styles and other variables such as health, wealth and relationships. In the glossary of LIFESTYLE the word Lifestyle was replaced by the word MINORITY. This move was motivated by the fact that there were not enough positive images and words to describe the minimalist lifestyle. The minimalist lifestyle was identified as being a search for the intrinsic values and components in a meaningful way, rather than having an image or a label suggesting what a person looked like.
The author’s description of the minimalist approach to life has been described as being “altered”, as it is viewed by some as being a form of mental alteration. In reference to the media, the author has stated that there are elements of truth in this particular social media and reference to the word lifestyle being widely used in relation to the internet. However, Alfred A. Deutsch, who is a professor of marketing at the University of Maryland, has challenged this notion. He has stated that LIFESTYLE is more than a social media website and that it offers something far more valuable to the individual psychologist. Deutsch states that, “LIFESTYLE provides a means for psychologists to examine different aspects of the life styles of different people, which is a much richer experience than just absorbing information about how the lifestyle of one group is different from another.”
In addition to studying the association between the dimensions of life styles and health and relationship issues, LIFESTYLE also examines the environment surrounding the individuals and families that are being studied. In this regard, the environment was divided into four categories which included the primary dimensions of lifestyle i.e., being active, being satisfied, having high levels of education, and having low levels of education. The study then looked at the differences in these lifestyle aspects and their effects on the environment around them as well as the individual who chose to live such a lifestyle.
Although, when it comes to the question of what being healthy and having a high level of education mean to an individual, the results were quite clear. As the name suggests, the healthier lifestyle choices led to a greater number of happy, healthy and physically active individuals. It is interesting to note that, the only dimension of the lifestyle model which was found to be negatively impacted upon was the low level of education. This finding is interesting due to the fact that a greater number of individuals were found to be living unhealthy lifestyles when they had completed tertiary education. It also serves to highlight the importance of the environment surrounding an individual when it comes to their personal wellness and in choosing a healthier lifestyle.