UNICEF works across Southeast Asia to protect and empower young people, particularly in areas relating to digital literacy, online safety, mental health, and social well-being. Understanding how Gen Z engages with content, platforms, and social behaviors is mission-critical to designing effective youth programs.
UNICEF needed a deep, real-world understanding of how Thai and Southeast Asian Gen Z audiences consume content, navigate digital risks, engage with influencers, respond to campaigns, and interact across platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, LINE, and emerging communities.
Traditional research frameworks were not capturing the nuance of youth behavior. A new approach was required — one that integrated cultural insight, digital anthropology, platform trends, and creator influence
Foundeast designed a multi-phase research program grounded in qualitative and quantitative methodologies, social listening, cultural trend mapping, and platform-specific behavioral analysis. Our goal was to move beyond surface-level data and uncover the why behind youth actions, motivations, risks, and expectations.
We conducted interviews, focus groups, and behavioral mapping with young people across Thailand to understand lived experiences and real challenges.
We analyzed how youth use TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and LINE, focusing on:
Community formation
Influencer trust patterns
Search behavior
Viral content loops
Safety risks and misinformation pathways
We identified how Thai cultural values, humor, aspiration, and social norms shape digital behavior.
We mapped which content types resonate most strongly with Thai youth — including infotainment, narrative content, inspirational stories, micro-tutorials, and creator POV formats.
We examined how trust is built through creators, micro-communities, and peer-to-peer interactions, versus institutional or corporate sources.
Conducted multi-city youth research across diverse demographics
Built a behavioral map of how young people encounter opportunities and risks online
Identified key leverage points for UNICEF campaigns
Provided content frameworks to help UNICEF communicate more effectively on social platforms
Delivered youth personas reflecting attitudes, motivations, vulnerabilities, and aspirations
Outlined a creative and messaging strategy for future digital engagement
Developed recommendations for youth-safe content design and creator partnerships
UNICEF gained a clear, evidence-based understanding of Gen Z digital behavior
Findings informed future policy, program, and communication strategies
Provided UNICEF with actionable guidelines for TikTok-, Instagram-, and YouTube-native content
Strengthened UNICEF’s ability to reach youth in ways that are authentic, safe, and culturally relevant
Positioned UNICEF to address digital risks with greater precision and empathy
Young people today navigate unprecedented digital complexity. Institutions must understand the nuances of their behavior, identity, and online ecosystems in order to protect and empower them.
Foundeast’s insights help UNICEF build programs and content that resonate — not in theory, but in the real digital lives of Gen Z.
