Generation Z

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Generation Z (also iGen or Post-Millennials) are the cohort of people born after the Millennial
Generation. There is disagreement on the name and exact range of birth dates. Some sources start
this generation at the mid or late 1990s,[1][2] or from the mid 2000s[3][4] to the present day.

Contents

1 Terminology

2 Demographics in the United States

3 Traits

4 See also

5 References

6 Further reading

Terminology
Authors William Strauss and Neil Howe wrote several books on the subject of generations and
are widely credited with coining the term Millennials.[1] Howe has said "No one knows who will
name the next generation after the Millennials".[1] In 2005, their company sponsored an online
contest in which respondents voted overwhelmingly for the name Homeland Generation. That
was not long after the September 11th terrorist attacks, and one fallout of the disaster was that
Americans may have felt more safe staying at home.[5] Howe has described himself as "not
totally wed" to the name, and cautioned that "names are being invented by people who have a
great press release. Everyone is looking for a hook."[1] Strauss and Howe defined the Homeland
Generation as people born from the year 2005 onwards.[4]
In 2012, USA Today sponsored an online contest for readers to choose the name of the next
generation after the Millennials. The name Generation Z was suggested, although journalist
Bruce Horovitz thought that some might find the term "off-putting".[1][6] According to Horovitz,
the generation begins roughly around 1995.[1]
In 2013, the Nickelodeon channel used the term post-millennials to describe its audience of
"children born after 2005".[3]

iGeneration (or iGen) is a name that several individuals claim to have coined. Psychology
professor and author Jean Twenge claims that the name iGen "just popped into her head" while
she was driving near Silicon Valley, and that she had intended to use it as the title of her 2006
book Generation Me until it was overridden by her publisher. Demographer Cheryl Russell
claims to have first used the term in 2009.[1] In 2014, an NPR news intern noted that iGeneration
"seems to be winning" as the name for the post-Millennials.[7] The name has been described as "a
wink and nod to Apple's iPod and iPhone",[1] with former Ad Age writer Matt Carmichael noting
that the lowercase "i" in iGeneration left room for interpretation, and could also stand for
"interactive" or "international".[7]
The Pluralist Generation (also abbreviated as Plurals) is a name coined in 2012 by marketing
firm Frank N. Magid Associates, who use 1997 to the present day as birth dates. According to
Magid, the name "Plurals" reflects that they are the most diverse of any generation in the United
States.[2]
In Australia, a 2005 report from the McCrindle Research Center used 2001 as the starting point
of this generation's birth years.[8] A later McCrindle report in 2009 gave a range of 1995-2009,
starting with a recorded rise in birth rates, and fitting their newer definition of a generational
span as 15 years.[9] Under this definition McCrindle uses birth rates to determine when a new
generation emerges rather than or in addition to sociological changes and trends. Statistics
Canada defines the generation as starting in 1993.[10]

Demographics in the United States

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2015 Generation Z made up 25% of that country's
population, making them a larger cohort than the baby boomers or millennials.[11]
Frank N. Magid Associates estimates that in the United States, 55% of Generation Z are
Caucasian, 24% are Hispanic, 14% are African-American, 4% are Asian, and 4% are mixed race
or other.[2]

Traits
A 2013 survey by Ameritrade found that 46% of Generation Z in the United States (considered
as those between the ages of 14 and 23) were concerned about about student debt, while 36%
were worried about being able to afford a college education at all.[12]
Statistics Canada has noted that the cohort is sometimes referred to as "the Internet generation",
as it is the first generation to have been born after the invention of the Internet.[13] Forbes
magazine suggested that by the time Generation Z entered the workplace, digital technology
would be an aspect of almost all career paths.[12]
A Frank N. Magid Associates whitepaper stated that the cohort exhibits positive feelings about
the increasing ethnic diversity in the U.S.,[2] and they are more likely than older generations to
have social circles that include people from different ethnic groups, races and religions.[14]

According to Magid, Generation Z are "the least likely to believe that there is such a thing as the
American Dream," while Boomers and their Millennial children are "more likely to believe it".[1]
[14][15]

Speaking at an Australian marketing conference in 2009, Jeff Brookes of the teenage web forum
Habbo thought that after growing up in a "digital playground", Generation Z were "completely
used to advertising as part of life - and they like it". Habbo's research suggested that Generation
Z were more altruistic and traditional than Millennials, and in Australia were proud of their
country's multicultural status.[16]

See also

How Generation Z Works

by Lance Looper

Page
1
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Recognize them? Yep, they're Generation Z.

Thomas Northcut/Photodisc/Thinkstock
Up Next

How Generation X Works

How Generation Y Works

How the Lost Generation Works

Baby Boomers: All You Ever Needed to Know

Are social networking sites addictive?

They are your sons and daughters. They populate your neighborhoods, their thumbs spastically
banging out two-way conversations composed entirely of over-punctuated and under-constructed
sentences. They may even work for you. Eventually, you will work for them.
In this article, we'll take a closer look at who these kids are, why their approach to life is
different from the generations to come before them, and what their impact on society is likely to
be. It's in your best interest to keep reading because this group is only getting larger and more
influential.

Third day at #ESOMAR Summer Camp I attended the workshop Understanding the NextGens
(Generation Y & Z) to create future proof branding and communication strategies. It was an
excellent workshop and this blog post reflects key learnings about Generation Z aka GenZ.
To be able to target GenZ in a creative way we need to understand their general drivers, trends
that surrounds GenZ as well as the mindset of the generation. By having these 4 characteristics in
mind when planing a campaign or communication push towards GenZ your more likely to find
the drivers that will make them engage. Before you do that you might want to catch up on trends
that are strongly related to Generation Z in my previous blog post.
General insights on GenZ

GenZ have a lot of purchase power averaging from 10 euro per week from the age of 4. They
spend 75% on cloths and 15% on food and only save a very small amount if anything. Its the
most conscious generation and they massive influence on their parents. They strongly influence
holiday destinations and on the food that being consumed at home. The old days of the
household hierarki with parents on top dont exists anymore. Today in a modern family everyone
has a voice. GenZ there for have a key influence on their parent which leads to that they are
important to target as secondary target groups in campaign thats originally design against the
parents.
But before heading in to the four insights heres the last four generation and the sentence that
define each of them:

Babyboomers 1946-64 (51-69 years) Im confident

GenX 1964-1979 (36-50 years) Im stressed out

GenY 1980-1996 (19-35 years) Im balancing

GenZ 1997-2011 (4-18 years) Im impatient

Generation gap
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A generation gap or generational gap, is a difference of opinions between one generation and
another regarding beliefs, politics, or values. In today's usage, "generation gap" often refers to a
perceived gap between younger people and their parents and/or grandparents.[1] The sociological
theory of a generation gap first came to light in the 1960s, when the younger generation (later
known as Baby Boomers) seemed to go against everything their parents had previously believed
in terms of music, values, governmental and political views. Sociologists now refer to
generation gap as institutional age segregation. Sociologists have divided the lifespan into
three different levels: childhood, midlife and retirement. Usually, when any of these age groups
is engaged in its primary activity, the individual members are physically isolated from people of
other generations, with little interaction across age barriers except at the nuclear family level.
Sociologist Karl Mannheim noted differences across generations in how the youth transition into
adulthood.[2] Sociologists have observed and studied the ways in which generations separate
themselves from one another, in the home and in social situations and areas (such as churches,
clubs, senior centers, and youth centers).
According to sociologists Gunhild O. Hagestad and Peter Uhlenberg, this generational
segregation is of great concern as it fosters ageism and increases risk of isolation as people
age. Each generation, when interacting with each other, has a wealth of information to pass on to
the others. For instance, the older generations can provide great economic and general
knowledge on the human experience to the younger generations, while the younger generations
can provide input into current music and technology trends.[3] This is, of course, not always the
case: sometimes members of the older generations can be highly familiar with current trends, and
members of younger generations can be fascinated by older music and culture.
Contents

1 Distinguishing generation gaps

o

1.1 Language use

1.1.1 Slang

1.1.2 Technological influences

1.1.3 Language brokering

1.1.4 Workplace Attitudes

1.2 Generational consciousness

1.3 Intergenerational Living

1.4 Demographics

2 See also

3 References

Distinguishing generation gaps

There are several ways to make distinctions between generations. For example, names are given
to major groups (Baby Boomers, Gen X, etc.) and each generation sets its own trends and has its
own cultural impact.
Language use

Generations can be distinguished by the differences in their language use. The generation gap has
created a parallel gap in language that can be difficult to communicate across. This issue is one
visible throughout society, creating complications within day to day communication at home, in
the work place, and within schools. As new generations seek to define themselves as something
apart from the old, they adopt new lingo and slang, allowing a generation to create a sense of
division from the previous one. This is a visible gap between generations we see every day.
Man's most important symbol is his language and through this language he defines his
reality.[4]
Slang

Slang is an ever changing set of colloquial words and phrases that speakers use to establish or
reinforce social identity or cohesiveness within a group or with a trend in society at large.[5] As
each successive generation of society struggles to establish its own unique identity among its
predecessors it can be determined that generational gaps provide a large influence over the
continual change and adaptation of slang. As slang is often regarded as an ephemeral dialect, a
constant supply of new words is required to meet the demands of the rapid change in
characteristics.[5] And while most slang terms maintain a fairly brief duration of popularity, slang
provides a quick and readily available vernacular screen to establish and maintain generational
gaps in a societal context.
Language brokering

Another phenomenon within language that works to define a generation gap occurs within
families in which different generations speak different primary languages. In order to find a
means to communicate within the household environment, many have taken up the practice of
language brokering, which refers to the interpretation and translation performed in everyday
situations by bilinguals who have had no special training.[11] In immigrant families where the
first generation speaks primarily in their native tongue, the second generation primarily in the
language of the country in which they now live while still retaining fluency in their parents

dominant language, and the third generation primarily in the language of the country they were
born in while retaining little to no conversational language in their grandparents native tongue,
the second generation family members serve as interpreters not only to outside persons, but
within the household, further propelling generational differences and divisions by means of
linguistic communication.[12]
Furthermore, in some immigrant families and communities, language brokering is also used to
integrate children into family endeavors and into civil society. Child integration has become very
important to form linkages between new immigrant communities and the predominant culture
and new forms of bureaucratic systems.[13] In addition, it also serves towards child development
by learning and pitching in.
Workplace Attitudes

USA Today reported that younger generations are "entering the workplace in the face of
demographic change and an increasingly multi-generational workplace".[14] Multiple engagement
studies show that the interests shared across the generation gap by members of this increasingly
multi-generational workplace can differ substantially.[15] For example, fifty-seven percent of
Millennials are willing to seriously consider a job offer from another company, and 47% would
actively seek out new employment. By contrast, only 20% of mature workers are willing to
consider switching career, and only 12% are actively seeking new employment. Fifty-nine
percent of Millennials say the recession negatively impacted their career plans, while only 35%
of mature workers feel the same way. However, according to the engagement studies, mature
workers and the new generations of workers share similar thoughts on a number of topics across
the generation gap. Their opinions overlap on flexible working hours/arrangements,
promotions/bonuses, the importance of computer proficiency, and leadership. Additionally, the
majority of Millennials and mature workers enjoy going to work every day, and feel inspired to
do their best.[16]
Intergenerational Living

Both social isolation and loneliness in older men and women are associated with increased
mortality, according to a 2012 Report by the National Academy of Sciences of the United States
of America.[18] Intergenerational living is one method being used currently worldwide as a
means of combating such feelings. A nursing home in Deventer, The Netherlands developed a
program wherein students from a local university are provided small, rent-free apartments within
the nursing home facility. In exchange, the students volunteer a minimum of 30 hours per month
to spend time with the seniors. The students will watch sports with the seniors, celebrate
birthdays, and simply keep them company during illnesses and times of distress.[18] Programs
similar to the Netherlands program were developed as far back as the mid 1990s in Barcelona,
Spain. In Spains program, students were placed in seniors homes, with a similar goal of
free/cheap housing in exchange for companionship for the elderly. That program quickly spread

to 27 other cities throughout Spain, and similar programs can be found in Lyons, France and
Cleveland, Ohio.[19]
Demographics

In order for Sociologists to understand the transition into adulthood of children in different
generation gaps, they compare the current generation to both older and earlier generations at the
same time. Not only does each generation experience their own ways of mental and physical
maturation, but they also create new aspects of attending school, forming new households,
starting families and even creating new demographics. The difference in demographics regarding
values, attitudes and behaviors between the two generations are used to create a profile for the
emerging generation of young adults.[9]
Following the thriving economic success that was a product of the Second World War, Americas
population skyrocketed between the years 1946-1964, to which the new American generation
was called the Baby Boomers. Today, these Baby Boomers are celebrating their 65th birthdays
and in the next two decades Americas senior citizen population will boost exponentially due to
the population of people who were born during the years 1946 and 1964.[20] The generation gap,
however, between the Baby Boomers and earlier generations is growing due to the Boomers
population post-war. There is a large demographic difference between the Baby Boomers
generation and earlier generations, where earlier generations are less racially and ethnically
diverse than the Baby Boomers population. Where this drastic racial demographic difference
occurs also holds to a continually growing cultural gap as well; baby boomers have had generally
higher education, with a higher percentage of women in the labor force and more often
occupying professional and managerial positions.[20] These drastic culture and generation gaps
create issues of community preferences as well as spending.

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in Generation Y
Jul 3, 2013 2:33pm
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