Dr. Morris S. Whitcup is a vice president/group head at Guideline Research Corporation in New York City . Prior to joining Guideline. he held senior positions at AH F Marketing Research and Lieberman Research. A graduate of Columbia University, he has also served as a consultant to several governmental agencies. His work has been reported in scientific literature as well as in published government monographs.

Lever Brothers Co. and Chesebrough-Pond's Inc. periodically fund research projects for nonprofit organizations to enable them to better understand the public they serve. Below are the results of one such study.

A recent nationwide study conducted by Guideline Research Corp. for the American Home Economics Association indicates that teenagers are optimistic on a personal level about their own future but pessimistic about the world around them.

The study, funded by Lever Brothers Company and Chesebrough- Pond's, Inc., surveyed 510 high school juniors and seniors across the United States from March 25 through April 5, 1988. The study was conducted in 15 geographically dispersed shopping malls.

Interviewing was conducted in two stages. In the first phase, 300 interviews were completed. Quotas were established so that the interviews reflect the distribution of U.S. high school juniors and seniors by sex and race/ethnicity (White, Black, Hispanic). In the second stage, supplemental interviews were completed with Black and Hispanic teens to yield base sizes of 134 and 144 interviews respectively.

The interview included questions on: (1) how teens view themselves and the world around them, and (2) the degree of teen concerns with 32 topics/issues.

Personal optimism and happiness

Teens are basically happy with their lives and expect to assume productive, enjoyable jobs in the future.

Eight in ten (80%) teens say they are basically happy with the way their lives are now and almost all (94%) think that having a job that they enjoy will be an important part of their lives. Relatively few (34%) would accept a boring job to earn more money.

Although most teens (81%) trust their parents, few (39%) want to be like them. The majority of teens (78%) feel in control of their own lives and are looking forward to the future. Only one in five (22%) say they are concerned about their own lives rather than   thinking about the future. Almost eight in ten (78%) have plans of attending college.

Pessimism about social and world problems

While displaying optimism on a personal level, teens have a fair degree of pessimism about social problems and the future of our country and the world.

Six in ten (58%) do not think there will be an end to racial discrimination in the United States in their lifetime and a comparable percent think that life will be harder for them than it was for their parents.

There is fear of nuclear war and apprehension that the world situation is deteriorating. Four in ten (42%) teens believe that there will be a nuclear war in their lifetimes and a comparable percent (45%) think the world is getting worse.

A reflection of social trends

Teen attitudes today reflect society-wide changes in attitudes about sexual roles and women's participation in the work force.

Only 30% feel that a mother should stay home with young children and an even smaller minority of teens (20%) feel that it is embarrassing for a man to make less money than his wife. Interestingly, few teen-age boys (18%) admit that they dislike the way women are taking over jobs held by men.

Probably as a result of greater acceptance of women working outside the home, there is a concomitant acceptance of a more even sharing of home responsibilities. Over eight in ten (82%) teens feel that men and women should share equally in the housework. Even among males, the vast majority (70%) believe in equally sharing housework.

Suicide, drugs and alcohol affect teens' lives'

In many ways, teens' daily lives are far more complex and difficult than for their parents.

Nearly six in ten (58%) teens have a friend who has thought of committing or actually committed suicide.

Over half (53%) see some of their friends ruining their lives because of drugs. In fact, the majority (56%) view drugs and narcotics as the greatest danger facing the U.S. Among lack and Hispanic teens, recognition of the danger of drugs/narcotics is even higher (72%).

Alcohol abuse is also quite prevalent. Nearly one in two teens (46%) indicate they have a   friend who is an alcoholic. Additionally, eating disorders also appear to be common. One in four (27%) teens admit to having a friend who is anorexic or suffers from bulimia.

One in three (32%) teens say they have a friend who has been sexually abused. Among females, the reporting of sexual abuse is higher (44%).

There appears to be a reluctance on the part of many teens to admit suffering from substance abuse or suicide problems or to recognize that in fact they have them. Few teens (8% or less )admit to having a drug or alcohol abuse problem or have thought about committing suicide. Yet when questioned about the behavior of their friends, nearly half report seeing these problems.

Money worries head list of teen concerns

In general, teenagers tend to identify issues relating to money and their financial future as top issues which concern them.

Of the 32 concerns/issues rated by teens, the immediate need of paying for college is the top specific teen concern (39% of teens are "extremely" or "very" concerned about this issue).

Other financial/monetary concerns of high importance to teens include: the fear of a U.S. depression (30%) and worrying about earning enough to enjoy the better things in life (29%).

Health is also one of the top teen concerns, particularly the fear of contracting AIDS (39%).

Other top teen concerns are: making wrong decisions about the future and not being able to change them (34%) and fear that the United States is steadily going downhill (33%).

There appears to be broad consensus as to which issues most concern teenagers. Males and females, as well as White, Black and Hispanic teens generally view the top six specific concerns identified as most important to all teens as also the ones which are most important to them.

AIDS: changing teenage practices

While few teens (11%) actually know of someone who has contracted AIDS, there has been a substantial change in teen sexual behavior as a result of public educational programs about AIDS.

Three in ten (30%) teens report they have changed their sex lives because of fear of contracting AIDS.

Despite concern with AIDS, teens are basically optimistic that someday science will find a cure. Two in three (65%)  teens believe that in their lifetime cures for serious diseases like AIDS and cancer will be found.

To whom do teens turn for advice?

In making important decisions in their lives, teens are most apt to turn to friends (55%) and parents (47%). Relatives other than parents (10%), teachers/advisors at school (5%) and the clergy (1%) are infrequently consulted.

Yet about one in six teens (17%) admit they have no one to talk to about important decisions.