Lifestyle is the interests,

opinions,

behaviours,

and behavioural orientations of an individual,

group, or culture.

The term was introduced by Austrian psychologist Alfred Adler in his 1929 book, The Case of Miss R.,

with the meaning of "a person's basic character

as established early in childhood".

The broader sense of lifestyle as a "way or style of living"

has been documented since 1961.

Lifestyle is a combination of determining intangible

or tangible factors.

Tangible factors relate specifically to demographic variables, i.e. an individual's demographic profile,

whereas intangible factors concern the psychological aspects

of an individual such as personal values,

preferences, and outlooks.

A rural environment has different lifestyles

compared to an urban metropolis.

Location is important

even within an urban scope.

The nature of the neighborhood

in which a person resides

affects the set of lifestyles

available to that person

due to differences between various neighborhoods'

degrees of affluence

and proximity to natural

and cultural environments.

For example, in areas near the sea,

a surf culture or lifestyle

can often be present.

Individual identity

A lifestyle typically reflects

an individual's attitudes,

way of life,

values, or world view.

Therefore, a lifestyle

is a means of forging a sense of self

and to create cultural symbols

that resonate with personal identity.

Not all aspects of a lifestyle

are voluntary.

Surrounding social and technical systems

can constrain the lifestyle choices available

to the individual

and the symbols they are able to project

to others and themself.

The lines between personal identity

and the everyday doings

that signal a particular lifestyle

become blurred

in modern society.

For example, "green lifestyle"

means holding beliefs and engaging in activities

that consume fewer resources

and produce less harmful waste

(i.e. a smaller ecological footprint),

and deriving a sense of self

from holding these beliefs

and engaging in these activities.

Some commentators argue that, in modernity,

the cornerstone of lifestyle

construction is consumption behavior,

which offers the possibility to create

and further individualize

the self with different products

or services that signal different ways of life.

Lifestyle may include views on politics, religion, health, intimacy, and more.

All of these aspects play a role in shaping someone's lifestyle.

In the magazine and television industries,

"lifestyle" is used to describe a category

of publications or programs.