The Generations: Baby Boomers, Generation X, Generation Y/ Millennials

1. The Generations: Baby Boomers, Generation X, Generation Y/Millennials Aaron DeupreeKirsty Gillies Heike Koester Feriha Ramadan

2. Subgroups • Subgroup (not subculture) according to Jandt (2007): psychologists label this as a membership group based on vocation, hobby, or special skills, that, like cultures, provide patterns of behavior and values: these can be generational, occupational, expatriate, etc. These may pose communication problems with other subgroups just as the dominant culture they exist within and depend on may clash with other cultures.

3. Examples of Subgroups • Examples include: Generation X’ers, college freshmen, prostitutes, vegetarians, doctors, teachers, Disney Corp. employees, punks, bikers and lesbian culture. Sometimes they are also know as deviant culture, which has no negative connotation, but simply reflects divergence from the greater culture they exist within. Membership can be longlasting or temporary but it is not exclusive. Like the larger cultures they exist within, members behave and think according to norms the subgroup endorses or espouses.

4. Argot (jargon, cant, slang) • They can also be identified by argot, which is the vocabulary of a subgroup, and is an important aspect of a subgroup’s identity and establishes the boundary of the subgroup. Indeed, terms applied pejoratively to a subgroup can help establish that culture. In some cases, the subgroups adopt such terms and give them new meanings and establish pride based on the identity whereas the word might have been a source of shame before.

5. Activity For your date range, in your group, in the next 2-3 minutes, think of as many events, products, or other important items you can think of for that ‘era’, and record it on the paper. Can you identify any tendencies of that ‘generation’ from your own experiences or interaction with them?

6. The Generations

7. Demographers have not reached a consensus on dates • Date ranges are guidelines and are not clearly defined. • Virtually every article read had different date ranges. At times, terms were used for radically different date ranges.

8. The Baby Boomer Experience • Sputnik; walk on the moon • New technology: transistor radios, television, space race • Sexual freedom, Roe vs. Wade, drug experimentation • Movements: civil rights, women, environment • Assassinations: JFK, Robert Kennedy, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King • Music: Rock and Roll, Beatlemania, Motown • US (Woodstock, Vietnam War), India (independence), Canada (Trudeau) Source: Wikipedia

9. Baby Boomer Characteristic Tendencies • Experimental • Individualism • Free spirited • Social cause oriented Source: Wikipedia

10. Experiences of Generation X • The Chinese government killed protesters in Tiananmen Square. • The U.S. stock market crashed. • The Chernobyl nuclear accident occurred. • The Exxon Valdez caused an oil spill. • The Challenger space shuttle exploded. • The first computer disk was sold. Diana Oblinger

11. Generation X • The generation X (1961-1984) Generation X is consistently characterized by being the first American generation to grow up as ‘latchkey kids’ having a set of parents working outside of the home. Generation X grew up with: • cold war • a high divorce rate • MTV • the first wave of computers and modern technology • socially acceptable and media-driven casual sex.

12. Generation X in the workplace Gen X requires flexible schedules, democratic leadership, variety in work duties, the ability to grow skill sets and recognition.. It has come of age in the information age, an era of constant activity, change and ever developing global marketplace. After growing up with absent parents, they understand the importance of being available to their families. X-ers are also innovative thinkers who crave variety of projects in their positions and they like different experiences.

13. Experiences of Generation Y “Y2Curious: America's Generation Y has grown up around various phenomena including the Internet with online chatting, Wikipedia, YouTube and its numerous informational resources, digital video and music, Tickle Me Elmos, continued abuse of underage drinking and iPods.” Sophia Yan Yan, S. (2006, December 8). Understanding generation Y. The Oberlin Review.

14. Tendencies of Generation Y • They are generally more financially savvy: saving for retirement, and retirement benefits are very important • Employee and employer loyalty have disappeared. • Are less likely to be obsessed with work; • They are more interested in preserving their quality of life, even if it means staying at the same position in the labor hierarchy. • Dress more casually • Members of Generation Y are characterized as being more racially and culturally tolerant than past generations. • Gay rights and non-traditional gender roles have also become more widely accepted. Yan, S. (2006, December 8). Understanding generation Y. The Oberlin Review.

15. European Millennials in the Workplace Characteristics • Mobile • Multilingual professionals • Work and play in Europe without borders What do they want out of their work? •         Money is not the most important thing. •         Maintaining balance •         Cultivate personal relationships •         Leisure •         They want to make a difference and feel they can.  •         They’re not afraid to leave a job if it’s not what they want.  Young Europeans for the most part are most concerned with; •         Environment •         Global warning •         Pollution Ratnesar, R. Generation Europe. (2001, April 12). Time.

16. Generations and Education

17. Changes to Post-Secondary Education • Higher enrollment • More students attend college part-time than in previous years • More women are attending • More students are over the age of twenty-five • Several ‘generations’ in one class at a time; professors are still mostly Baby Boomers (50+), some older Gen-Xers (40+)

18. The ‘new’ Student Population • Delayed enrollment (did not enter postsecondary education in the student graduated from high school) • Part-time attendance • Work full-time, thirty-five hours or more, while going to school • Are financially independent (Financial aid definition) • Have dependents • Are single parents • Are ‘mature students’, who have no high school diploma

19. Tendencies of Millennials • “gravitate toward group activity • identify with their parents' values and feel close to their parents • spend more time doing homework and housework and less time watching TV • believe "it's cool to be smart" • are fascinated by new technologies • are racially and ethnically diverse • often (one in five) have at least one immigrant parent.”

20. Attitudes of Millennials • Computers aren't technology • Typing is preferred to handwriting. • Staying connected is essential. • There is zero tolerance for delays. • Consumer and creator are blurring. • Reality is no longer real. (Perspectives) • Doing is more important than knowing. • Learning more closely resembles games than logic. • Multitasking is a way of life.

21. Millennial Generation Learning Preference Tendencies • Teamwork • Experiential activities • Structure • Use of technology (students believe they are more tech savvy than their teachers or professors) • Strengths: multitasking, goal orientation, positive attitudes‘ and a collaborative style.

22. Implications for Educators and School Cultures • Schools, colleges and universities are providing a various options to meet students' expectations for service, immediacy, interactivity. • There is no one ‘correct’ formula’. • Students often range in ages/generations, learning styles, and preferences in communication. • Administrators and educators must adapt their facility, curriculum, classes, etc. to meet the needs of such a varied range of students, taking into consideration the tendencies of certain generations, their preferences and learning styles.

23. Bibliography Belhassen, S. (2009). Generation X: In defiance of the box. Understanding generation X and workplace application. Blandford, S. & Shaw, M. (2001). Managing international schools. London: RoutledgeFalmer. Jandt, F. (2007). An introduction to intercultural communication: Identities in a global community. Thousand Oaks, USA: Sage Publications. Lang. S. (2001). CU sociologist’s book claims Generation X’ers adopt ‘chameleon’ personalities to cope with anxiety, fears. Retrieved March 6, 2005, from Cornell Chronicle: http://www.news.cornell.edu/chronicle/01/10.11.01/Rosen_book.html McGlyn, A.  (2005, December). Teaching millenials, Our newest cultural cohort.   Retrieved June 29, 2009 from www.eddigest.com

24. Bibliography Continued No author. (2006, April 26) Older workers underappreciated in workplace, says survey. Seniorjournal.com . Retrrieved April 13, 2009 from http://seniorjournal.com/NEWS/Retrirement/6-04-26-OlderWorkersUnderappreciated.htm Oblinger, D. (2003). Boomers, Gen-Xers and Millennials: Understanding “new students”. Educause . Retrieved June 30, 2009 from http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/erm0342.pdf Pikul. C. (2005). Back to school at 52. Retrieved May 6, 2009, from Salon.com: www.salon.com/mwt/feature/2005/09/13/freshman_year Thompson, E.  (2009, June 3). Dumbest generation? Professor blames technology.  USA Today. Yan, S. (2006, December 8). Understanding generation Y. The Oberlin Review. Retrieved on June 30, 2009 from http://www.oberlin.edu/stupub/ocreview/2006/12/08/features/Understanding_Generation_Y.html

25. Cultural Borders and Mental Barriers: The Relationship Between Living Abroad and Creativity William W. Maddux and Adam D. Galinsky Abstract: Despite abundant anecdotal evidence that creativity is associated with living in foreign countries, there is currently little empirical evidence for this relationship.Five studies employingamultimethodapproach systematically explored the link between living abroad and creativity. Using both individual and dyadic creativity tasks, Studies 1 and 2 provided initial demonstrations that time spent living abroad (but not time spent traveling abroad) showed a positive relationship with creativity. Study 3 demonstrated that priming foreign living experiences temporarily enhanced creative tendencies for participants who had previously lived abroad. In Study 4, the degree to which individuals had adapted to different cultures while living abroad mediated the link between foreign living experience and creativity. Study 5 found that priming the experience of adapting to a foreign culture temporarily enhanced creativity for participants who had previously lived abroad. The relationship between living abroad and creativity was consistent across a number of creativity measures (including those measuring insight, association, and generation), as well as with masters of business administration and undergraduate samples, both in the United States and Europe, demonstrating the robustness of this phenomenon. Maddux, G. and Galinsky, A. (2009). Cultural borders and mental barriers: The relationship between living abroad and Creativity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 96/5.

26. Candle Box Experiment

27. Creative Results