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Forums: Generational Traits, Sociology, Society, Generations, Perfect Storm Of Generations
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Generational issues have come up a couple times lately. First, when I was trying to find a new housemate to move in with me (gen x) and the other (gen y). Next when I was speaking with a middle management friend about some of her new employees. And always the topic is present at school. It's hard to find a hard and fast set of traits for these generations, especially the most recent one which is still growing up. I see generational traits running on a pendulum. While the world environment clearly influences the mood of a generation, so do the traits of the parent generation. Everyone wants to correct the errors of their parents' lives (Ex. my boomer parents worked too much, so I want to spend more time with my family).

The first three sets of traits below are from about.com, so maybe not all that accurate..... The last set of traits may end up being completely off, as these kids aren't done growing up yet.

Key traits of Baby Boomers:
Work-Centric
Independent
Goal-Oriented
Competitive

Key traits of GenXers:
Individualistic
Technologically Adept
Flexible
Value Work/Life Balance

Key traits of the Y Generation (or Millennial Generation):
Tech-Savvy
Family-Centric
Achievement-Oriented
Team-Oriented
Attention-Craving

And finally, Generation Z (still quite young):
Beyond tech savvy, they are (always have been) fused to social networks and technology in general
Post 9/11, they know not the Cold War, but do know the Iraq War
Stressed out (over booked and potential terror attacks)
Medicated
Emotionally needy

The Boomers are generally the parents of the GenYers and the GenXers are generally the parents of the GenZers. It's interesting to me to think about how the parents, en mass, have influenced the traits of their children (that pendulum thing).

What conflicts come up between the generations due to their over all traits in the community?

In school?

In the workplace?

What happens when the Boomers finally retire and Gen X starts to run companies full of Gen Ys and Gen Zs? When there is conflict - what must be done? (one article recommended training Boomer bosses on how to accommodate GenYers).

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My family or sort of off-set from the classic generational lines. My parents are slightly older than the first baby-boomers (born 1940 and 1941) and my eldest sister is at the tail end of the Boomers while me and my other two siblings are early genexers. This is mostly an aside, I suppose, but I see my parents and my older sister as bi-generational in their lifestyles.

I've been browsing articles which describe Xers as the middle child between the gregarious Boomers and the spoiled baby sibling of the Yers. We are "The Latchkey Generation". How frustrating will it be for Xer bosses to deal with emotionally needy younger generations? I know it'd be difficult for me.

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Ah, I found a source for traits of Gen Z, The NEW Silent Generation.
Facility Planning: Trait-Based Design
Jan 1, 2008 12:00 PM, By James E. Rydeen

Quote:

The “New Silent Generation” is a proposed name used by Howe and Strauss in Generations to describe people born in the late 1990s, or in the early 2000s. Their traits include:

* Growing up using computers, the Internet and cell phones.
* Wanting all senses to be stimulated with colors, movement and music.
* Multi-tasking as they chat with friends via the Internet while doing homework and watching TV.
* Being impatient " they want immediate results and action.
* Willing to be team players.
* Trusting authority figures at school to monitor their comings and goings as a means of protection.
* Possessing confidence and expecting challenges and opportunities.
* Growing up with instant feedback and praise from parents, teachers and interactive games.

The article is about how to design new academic facility structures for this generation. http://asumag.com/Construction/planning/traitbased_design_learning_environments/

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@littlek,

I'm not that socially interactive these days to be able to predict any potential conflicts between my generation and the latest sequels but I don't dispute the following attributes to my generation:
Key traits of GenXers:
Individualistic
Technologically Adept
Flexible
Value Work/Life Balance

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@littlek,

Quote:

My parents are slightly older than the first baby-boomers (born 1940 and 1941

actually K there are quite a few of us, we came out of WWII, Israel, Korea, suburbs, bomb shelters, sputnik, patriotism and the great depression. A unique generation, we came of age between Eisenhower, JFK, teleivision and rocknroll radio and THE PILL.

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@dyslexia,

I thought the Boomer generation started at the conclusion of WWII.

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@littlek,

yes I suppose so however I see a remarkable difference between "boobers" and preboomers. I may be wrong and it's only my perspective. kinda like I came from the Beat generation and the boomers were Hippies which (in my mind is a HUGE difference.)

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@dyslexia,

The definitions and the age/year ranges seem to be in a constant state of flux.

When I was growing up, Boomers were considered to be the group born from 1946 - 1955.

The general standard for a generation when I was in university was a decade.

By the time I'd graduated from university, my year of birth had been absorbed into the Boomer group, though I'd still argue that "my" generation doesn't meet the definitions I've seen of Boomers.

Definitely a lot of flux in the whole thing. I'd say it's more of a media art than a social science.

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@littlek,

I'm not sure these "generational traits" are any better than the racial, ethnic, and religious stereotypes we have overcome in the last Century. Or if they are better than astrological stereotypes, for that matter.

But even if there's something to "generational traits", I think the individual traits within each generation differ much more from each other than from another generation's collective traits.

But what do I know. I'm just a member of Adam Smith's and David Hume's generation whom incompetent angels have misplaced by two centuries.

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I agree that the classification of generations are in flux. I do think, however, that there are marked differences in the character of groups of people set apart by generations. I do see similar traits in the people of the Boomer generation, though I also see subdivisions. I see the blend that is my sister, though I see her more of a Boomer than an Xer. She was born in 1965. Of course, it could just be her personality, but my other two siblings and I are definitely more GenX in our character. My brother was born just a little over a year after my sister, in 1966.

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Interesting blog, but it’s missing an important part of the equation: Generation Jones (between the Boomers and Generation X). Google Generation Jones, and you’ll see it’s gotten a ton of media attention, and many top commentators from many top publications and networks (Washington Post, Time magazine, NBC, Newsweek, ABC, etc.) now specifically use this term. In fact, the Associated Press' annual Trend Report chose the Rise of Generation Jones as the #1 trend of 2009. Here's a page with a good overview of recent media interest in GenJones: http://generationjones.com/2009latest.html

It is important to distinguish between the post-WWII demographic boom in births vs. the cultural generations born during that era. Generations are a function of the common formative experiences of its members, not the fertility rates of its parents. And most analysts now see generations as getting shorter (usually 10-15 years now), partly because of the acceleration of culture. Many experts now believe it breaks down more or less this way:

DEMOGRAPHIC boom in babies: 1946-1964
Baby Boom GENERATION: 1942-1953
Generation Jones: 1954-1965
Generation X: 1966-1978

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@TrendsWatching,

Interesting. So. Who is this Jonathan Pontell?

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Peeking in. Interesting, k.

Should the "war babies" be included here, too?
Huge change in circumstances in attitudes between the war babies & the following generation, the post-war boomers.

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@msolga,

War babies belong to the Baby Boomer Generation.

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@tsarstepan,

No they don't, tsar.
Big divide between the two, trust me! Smile

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@TrendsWatching,

I'd been reading a bit more about this generation thing this afternoon and ran into the Generation Jones terminology. The year split in wiki lined up with my original understanding of it - the first cohort of boomers being born between 1946 - 1954. What is now being called Generation Jones running from 1955 - 1964. The experiences of the two groups were so different from each other. Can't really imagine lumping them together with any success.

Overall though, I'm more in line with Thomas' thinking - the individual differences outweigh the group similarities.

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