As someone who recently qualified for AARP membership (I wish it spent less time sending me offers of the latest and greatest things to purchase, but that's another story), it's heartening to hear that a recent survey suggests "older and wiser" will win out over "youthfulness" as a 2013 trend.

The details:

Anthem Worldwide, the brand development practice of Schawk, announced that its most recent consumer insights study has revealed that "Older and Wiser" trumps "Youthfulness" as a trend in 2013.

Anthem identified 10 consumer and shopper trends and counter-trends and fielded a study to get a pulse on these sentiments in the U.S., UK and China. One of these, "Youthfulness vs. Older and Wiser," related to who consumers are. Consumers were asked which they believed would be more prominent in 2013: "a youthful spirit" or "an older, wiser soul." The study conducted by Ipsos from December 17 to 25, 2012, included an international sample of 1,500 people (500 from the U.S., UK and China, respectively) from Ipsos' online panel.

The results of the study support the conclusion that in aggregate, across all three countries, more than half of respondents (59 percent) believe that Older and Wiser will be a more prominent trend than Youthfulness in 2013.

"Boomers around the globe still have great influence,"says Kathy Oneto, vice president of brand strategy at Anthem Worldwide. "Older age isn't what it once was, especially for women who find their next act and really come into their own in this stage of life. Vibrancy and energy are still critical and possible with people in this age group not weighed down by expectations and judgment. The lightheartedness that supposedly is present in youth is actually practiced at an older age, with boomers having more presence to shrug off the unimportant."

"While not considered to be as prominent, youthfulness will still be in force to some degree, as the youth movement has been impacting elections, creating movements, and stopping businesses over the last couple of years. And while youth around the globe are more challenged and stressed than in generations past, they are also more entrepreneurial and motivated to make a difference in the world. The youthful spirit shouldn't be underestimated; in truth, we all want a piece of it," added Oneto.