Many people believe society has become more materialistic and more selfish and that despite new wealth we were much the poorer, according to the Taoiseach.
In a speech this morning to the new Task Force on Active Citizenship, Bertie Ahern will say he has a sense "that many people are bothered about changes in social and cultural attitudes and behaviour".
This is not just about the practical, day-to-day pressures which shape how we live, he says. "There is a concern that we have become more materialist, maybe even more selfish, and if we have, I believe many people would conclude that for all our new wealth, we are much the poorer."
There is a sense that our changing society is affecting how we relate to each other and to the wider community, he says.
In a supplied script to be delivered this morning at the task force's first public consultation meeting in Croke Park, Mr Ahern also refers to the challenge of getting used to the relatively recent multiculturalism in Ireland.
"There are now approximately 160 different nationalities living in Ireland," he says. "This shift from a relatively homogenous to a very diverse society is set to continue. This is a time of transition. How we manage that transition is critical to the way in which we mature as a nation. It is time to decide our vision of what it means to be a citizen in this changing Ireland."
He says he had established the task force "to inform the Government on ways in which it can encourage greater participation, locally and nationally, and to advise us on measures that contribute to the development of strong, civic-minded independent citizens".
He said citizenship in the broadest sense was a powerful concept. "It captures the concept of both rights and obligations."
A healthy democracy depended on the extent to which citizens were engaged in the issues that affected them.
"Our job in government is to ensure that communities are supported in that process. Active citizenship is not a substitute for State responsibility, but neither is it enough to totally rely on the State. The important role that active citizenship can play is in helping to connect citizens, to ensure a more effective decision-making process through partnership with the State."
Today's meeting, which 250 people are expected to attend, is also to be addressed by the chairwoman of the taskforce Mary Davis, the chief executive of Special Olympics Ireland.
Mr Ahern will encourage the public to make their views known on the issue of active citizenship by attending other public consultation seminars to be held in Monaghan, Sligo, Galway, Cork and Tullamore this month and next month.