I believe it is not unique to the youth and younger generation in Singapore.
In Toronto, Canada, we used to joke that many people are spending what they earned, what they can charge on their credit cards, and whatever that they can borrow. May be they do not understand the burden of the 18% per annum (some are as high as 28%) on credit card debts.
Worse, the consumer/spending lifestyle is not restricted to the middle class, the rich and the not so rich. There are many professionals who spent what they earned, before income taxes, which have made quite a number insolvent, when their oncome taxes pile up after several years.
The key is to spend less that what we earned, after taxes, so that we will not be in debts, except for the mortgage on the house. Over spending is the cause of the present problems amongst human beings, as well as many countries.