Villarreal
Samuel Villarreal
Professor Orozco
ENG-103
15 August 2021
The Change in Adult Behavior Across Generations
Over the decades, it has been evident that there has been a significant change in how both the young and the old behave and internalize various concepts. The main contributor to this difference has been reported as being the introduction of technology or its dynamic change and improvement over the years (Stapleton, Peta, Gabriella and Chatwin, 143). Various scholars and psychologists have attempted to conduct study on how the Generation Y, the Millennials and the Generation Z are different with some identifying significant differences whereas others describe these groups as being almost similar. Dr. Jane Twenge, a psychologist demystifies this reasoning in her book titled “IGen: Why Today’s Super-Connected Kids are Growing up less Rebellious, More Tolerant, Less Happy and Completely Unprepared for Adulthood.” The author draws her facts from the three different generations of young people and conducts a genuine comparison thus being able to isolate general traits that could have been frequently identified with the specific generation and to which some help in debunking myths. The content of the book is compelling as it taps into the reality of the matter at hand and focuses less on the cliché that most scholars have been discussing over time. Throughout the book, she strives towards ensuring that the readers are able to relate to the different groups of youths especially for the Generation Z thus understanding their mindset better. Besides, the fact that the author focuses on various accounts such as religion, marriage, work-life balance, relationships and their interconnectedness of the Generation Z among several other aspects, reflects an in-depth study and not a fictitious imagination that lacks proper basis. The issues brought up in the book only enlighten the readers into the understanding of how technology and social media has dynamically changed how the young people are growing and interacting over time. Generation Z has over time proven to be different from its predecessor generation in various aspects which have resultantly changed how people interact as well as the growth process of young people and their transition into adulthood.
Generation Z have proven to be quite unfriendly in their interactions with others and even themselves. According to most studies, it has been recorded that more young people prefer to be alone and glued to their devices as that is the best means of communication and connection they could relate with (Stapleton, Peta, Gabriella and Chatwin, 144). Unlike other generations where the young were seen to enjoy going out more, having sex at an early age as well as learn how to drive early, the youth in Generation Z are different. With the available social media platforms, it has been easier for them to connect more with each other, but virtually. The young spend hours on end online and have since created friendships with some even dating people they have never met. Twenge quotes that “In the 1990s among the 8th and 10th graders, one out of five rarely went out but the numbers have significantly dropped as recent as 2015 with the statistics standing at one out of three.” It could be argued that social media has allowed for teenagers to interact with more people from diverse places in the world. However, this is in-fact not true as human beings are a social creature and depend on that physical touch and interact to form long lasting and stable relationships. Perhaps this explains why their statistics of divorce cases among the Generation Z is higher as compared to that in other generations. Generation Z’s have grown being fully dependent on their parents with more of them being unable to go out without their guardians or even worse, most of them being able to strike an actual conversation with a stranger.
Mental health is a very critical aspect in any community. Having both the young and old having a stable mental state should be an element of pride for the people. The discussion on mental health has been one of the most common topics in the recent past. People have become more aware of the need to embrace mental health as well as work towards ensuring that both at an individual level as well as communally, everyone’s mental state is well addressed (Stapleton, Peta, Gabriella and Chatwin, 147). The need has been something that has been discussed since the 1980s and beyond as people still suffered from depression and anxiety among several other conditions. However, being born after 9/11 and the world being a global village through technology, there has been a new Mental health crisis recorded (Twenge, 95). Twenge states that, “IGen’ers often look so happy online making goofy faces and smiling in pictures on the different social media sites but the reality is not so comforting.” She further mentions that IGen experiences the most severe mental health crisis. According to her statistics, Teens in the 1990s were reported to be happier as compared to teens in the 2000s (Twenge, 95). These revelations are not shocking as this is expected of a generation that depends on seeing what people post on social media. Unlike earlier decades where people would interact and share both their happy and sad moments, IGen’ers have been made to believe that everyone around them is happy except them. It has thus been evident that among the young, especially teenagers, the need to strive to attain or acquire things that are beyond that has been on the rise. The results of this is constant depression and anxiety which has since seen the number of drug abuse cases going up as well as the cases of suicide increasing among the youth globally.
Curving out an identity for oneself is a huge milestone for teenagers and the youth to achieve. As a matter of fact, in the 1980s and 1990s, it was evident that a majority of young people still trusted what their parents or the government would say. It was almost impossible to sway one teen into believing anything contrary. As a matter of fact, the few that tried to challenge the government were deemed to be rebellious and some were assassinated. However, Twenge identifies that the young today have been able to develop an independence in politics. She states that, “No matter what their party identification, iGen’ers often cite individualistic reasons for their choice.” (Twenge, 262). This is a positive thing that has been overly attributed to the use of social media among the youth. Today, voters between the ages of 18 to 29 years of age have ditched party affiliations and are more inclined towards achieving liberation, conservative and moderation. The result of this has been the change in the trend of politics as politicians are now more tasked into striving to achieve these pointers as the young make up for the larger percentage of voters especially in the United States of America. As a matter of fact, it is more common to see young people expressing their interests in politics with some even winning political seats. Most federal governments in the United States of America can attribute the change they may have experienced to the presence of the youth in the decision making process.
To conclude, therefore, Generation Z has proven to be different from all the previous generations. The trend in growth has changed over the decades and the impact of that difference has been felt more during this generation. Unlike in the 1980s and 1990s, where the adult behaviors would start prevailing in teenagers, Generation Z has exhibited soli reason to believe that the growth process especially among the young adults has significantly changed. The social aspect of human beings has been abandoned as people interact more virtually thus having solid and long lasting relationships has been an uphill task for a majority of the young adults. Today we see more young people still staying and relying on their parents for decision making, less youths taking up jobs and being responsible in marriages. Nonetheless, the change which has been inevitable has also contributed to how politics are conducted today which is very timely and much needed. The exposure that the young have on social media has enabled them to curve out a more independent, liberal and conservative stance when it comes to politics. It is safe to say that there has definitely been a significant change in adult behavior and this has both positively and negatively affected communities.
Stapleton, Peta, Gabriella and Chatwin
Work Cited
Stapleton, Peta, Gabriella Luiz, and Hannah Chatwin. “Generation validation: The role of social comparison in use of Instagram among emerging adults.” Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking 20.3 (2017): 142-149.
Twenge, Jean M. iGen: Why today’s super-connected kids are growing up less rebellious, more tolerant, less happy–and completely unprepared for adulthood–and what that means for the rest of us. Simon and Schuster, 2017.
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