The mystery behind "Woo-hoo!", a high-frequency word among university students

What kind of conversations do young people have within these comfortably close-knit circles?
This time, let's peek into some of those conversations through surveys and interviews.

 

The way to deepen these moderately close-knit groups is through in-group slang

"That's it" (meaning "Exactly," "Yeah," "You're right")
"Ah, yeah" (meaning "Ah, I see" or "Ah, that's right")
"Wan-chan" (meaning "The possibility is low, but not zero")

These examples show how popular words among young people, especially college students, often strongly convey a sense of exclusivity. Sometimes these trendy words become standard.
Many seem to originate from small, exclusive groups, born as in-group slang (shared language only understood within the group) to deepen that sense of exclusivity.

"As a variation of 'sorenna,' in our club we say 'soremaru'."
(20-year-old male university student)

"Saying 'sorenna' feels embarrassing now. But somehow, 'sore-kun' has caught on as an interjection with the same meaning."
(21-year-old female university student)

In-group slang that becomes standard among young people gets customized to feel even more exclusive within different cliques. By using it with each other, it seems to boost a sense of unity and deepen friendships.

 

Creating In-Group Cohesion Through "Matching Energy Levels"

Not too narrow, not too broad. Not too deep, not too shallow.
Among these young people with such excellent balance, "synchronizing energy levels" becomes just as important as in-group slang.

They seem to have a habit of coordinating with others by controlling the energy level—not letting it get too high—while still conveying that they're hyped up at their own group's level.

It's neither overly high-energy ("Woo-hoo!" "Yesss!" "Yee-ha!") nor completely silent ("... (dead silence)"). The tension-adjusting word born for this purpose is, quite simply... "Wooo-hoo!".
Its uses are endless, but it's primarily used as a reflexive interjection or for egging someone on or poking fun.

Illustration: Yosuke Kojima (Dentsu Inc., Creative Planning Division 4)

 

For example, I've even seen students greet friends with "Woo-hoo!" as a greeting.
Furthermore, it seems the ways to use it are endless, like doubling it up when wanting to do something exciting, as in "Woo-hoo, I wanna woo-hoo!"

 

"Woo-hoo" captures the in-group vibe of young people.

"No, no, the way 'Woo-hey' is expressed differs by group."
In fact, beyond the standard buzzwords used by young people overall, the specific actions, words, and habits vary even more finely by segment, like club categories.

For example, in band clubs, they might say "emo-i (emotional, right!)" or "jam-ru (to jam, improvise)", while in dance clubs, it might be "the act of waving your palms parallel = a gesture to convey 'this is fun to watch!'".

Having words and actions only understood within that specific category creates overlapping small cliques, forming larger group categories.

This shows how group identity significantly influences language and gestures. The sense of "inner circle" spreads to become standard, then gets customized again into new insider slang...
To truly understand today's youth, it's essential to observe their distinct "inner circle sensibilities" in real life.

Recently, Dentsu Inc. Youth Research Department has focused on fashion circles.
On August 1st, the day job interviews officially began, the collaborative project " NIPPON YOUTH STUDIO " by fashion brand WEGO and Dentsu Inc. Youth Research Department hosted " Clothes Hack TOKYO," a hackathon featuring eight fashion circles from the Kanto region.

Under the theme "Break the rules of job-hunting style," we challenged ourselves to remake the now-standard job-hunting suit, create a new job-hunting style, and reexamine the format of job hunting itself.

Beyond fashion circles from universities in the Tokyo metropolitan area, companies who resonated with this theme gathered as judges, making this an event that sent a message to society through fashion.

A common "insular feeling" we noticed while interacting with fashion club students was their tendency to use the phrase "real clothes-like (casual-looking)" when discussing clothing, hairstyles, or styling—whether complimenting or criticizing.

This event became a catalyst for stimulating their "real clothes" – essentially their "yay!" moment – by cutting up job-hunting suits to express individuality and create a new job-hunting style.

Incidentally, before the show, a student remarked, "I always realize how grateful I am for safety pins right before the big moment. (20-year-old female vocational school student)," to which those around her enthusiastically responded, "Totally get it~!" Beyond just matching language and energy, these "circle-specific quirks" also exist, further fostering empathy and solidarity within the group.

As mentioned last time, grasping these shared values and group personalities will become an essential perspective for future marketing.
To grasp that personality, it's important to pay attention to the language and energy levels used within the group.

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【Wakamon Profile】
Dentsu Inc. Youth Research Department (nicknamed Wakamon) is a planning team that engages with the real lives and mindsets of young people, primarily high school and university students. By understanding their "now," we seek hints to brighten and invigorate the near future. We foresee the future from their insights and realize new businesses that foster better relationships between young people and society. Currently, 14 project members are based across our Tokyo headquarters, Kansai branch, and Chubu branch. We also share updates on the Wakamon Facebook page.