The book reveals the latest research on China's post-1980 generation. Photo provided to China Daily

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A new book detailing the latest research on the post-1980 generation has given a snapshot of a group under huge financial and social pressures, but who remain optimistic about their future.

Experience, Attitudes and Social Transition - A Sociological Study of the Post-'80s Generation, from the Institute of Sociology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, looks at hotly debated topics. These include education, consumption and values among university students and graduates, the new generation of migrant workers, the ant tribe (low-income university graduates living in tiny cells in suburban areas in big cities) and the only-child generation.

"It's the first time we used online surveys with scientific sampling in our research rather than communicate with the subjects face-to-face," says Li Chunling, head of the department of youth studies at the institute. Li was the chief researcher of the study.

Since 2010, Li and her colleagues have been tracking the same group of young people, some of whom graduated from university over the course of the study.

She says the aging society means there has been great emphasis placed on the well-being of the elderly, but young people also deserve concern.