The Concept of Lifestyle

A lifestyle is a personal and cultural framework of values, guiding principles, choices, habits, routines, and other aspects that make up an individual’s everyday life. The lifestyle concept is an ongoing research topic in several disciplines, including sociology, psychology, medicine, public health and marketing. The lifestyle concept has been interpreted as a combination of physical, mental and emotional factors. Oftentimes, the term is also used to refer to one’s eating, drinking, exercise and leisure activities.

The first approach to interpreting lifestyles was based on psychological analysis. It started with Alfred Adler who understood the term as a style of personality, in which each person builds their vision of the world in their early years, resulting in a set of guiding principles and values that govern reactions and behaviour throughout their lives [1].

At the turn of the twentieth century, sociologists Georg Simmel, Milton Rokeach and Arnold Mitchell developed lifestyles as systems of value, where each social group had a different system of valuation. Later, sociologist Pierre Bourdieu renewed this concept of lifestyles, describing them as a complex field of social practices, with both horizontal and vertical dimensions, operating within society.

Lifestyle is an important research topic in medicine and epidemiology, primarily due to its influence on the onset and progression of disease. A common tendency in the literature is to focus on individual behavioural patterns and the way these influence health status, with the aim of decreasing their frequency or occurrence, for example through targeted educational campaigns. This approach is problematic as it neglects the fact that a number of diseases are caused by genetic predisposition, for example consanguinity in some ethnicities, and that the pursuit of a healthy lifestyle is an important preventing factor in this context.

Similarly, the scope of the concept of lifestyle has been broadened in some sectors to encompass a range of environmental and social issues, such as sustainability, affluence, family relationships, intimacy, sexuality, health, nutrition, and so on. Lifestyles are formed in the specific geographical, economic, political and cultural context in which a person lives.

There are several types of lifestyles, ranging from the luxurious and glamorous to more simple and modest ways of living. These are defined by different facets, such as geographic location, the type of housing, and access to culture, natural and recreational activities. Moreover, the lifestyle is influenced by a range of socio-economic and demographic variables, such as education, income, gender and age. There are many other influencing factors, such as the media, that affect the development of a particular lifestyle. However, in the final analysis, a person’s lifestyle is the result of their personal choice and preferences. They decide which aspects of their daily life they want to focus on, and which ones they prefer to ignore. This decision is usually made on a personal basis, although it may be guided by external influences and pressures. The prevailing lifestyles in a society are also shaped by its economy, politics and religion.