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Social Change. Generation What?. What is demography?. Demography: Study of human populations Two population cycles have affected the Canadian society and many other parts of the world Baby Boom It’s Echo. What is a Generation.
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Social Change Generation What?
What is demography? • Demography: Study of human populations • Two population cycles have affected the Canadian society and many other parts of the world • Baby Boom • It’s Echo
What is a Generation • Cultural generations are cohorts of people who were born in the same date range and share similar cultural experience
The different generations: • Baby boom (born 1946-1966 ) • Boomers, yuppies / dinks • Generation X (1960-1966) • Baby Bust (1967-1979) • Twenty-something's • Echo Boom(1980-1995) • Generation Y • Unnamed (1996-2010) • Generation Z • Millennium Kids
The Baby Boom • Great Depression of 1930s – decline in birth rates in Canada and West (BR=number of live births per 1000 population) 1937=20.1 • Baby Boom: Period of high birth rates, from early 1950s - about 1965. • 1947: BR=27.2 and remained between 27 and 28.5 until 1959.
Cases of the Baby Boom • Millions of soldiers returned home after the Allied victory • Economic conditions improved • Social Forces at work included: • Courtships short- Marriage rates doubled; • Marriage, family and home-personal goals of young adults; • Average age of marriage decreased- more children; • Baby boom included all births postponed during Depression. • http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=3369338n&tag=mncol;lst;1 • 0:00-1:24
What is “Generation X” • “X”- label for a new generation • Born 1960 to 1966 (although no agreed upon date) • Generation starts to be surrounded by MATERIALISM (instant gratification) • Increasing technology • Counter-culture • Political Activism (anti-war; anti-nuclear, environment, women’s lib, Aboriginal) • Lived in suburbia • Grew up in a Child Centred Universe • Sexual Revolution (the Pill)
“The Who” : My Generation Generation X: “self centered crowd of long haired rebels” Popular songs expressed attitudes of a generation that didn’t follow rules or care much about people older than themselves http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_e6_0jvlKik
Lyrics: People try to put us d-down (Talkin' 'bout my generation) Just because we get around (Talkin' 'bout my generation) Things they do look awful c-c-cold (Talkin' 'bout my generation) I hope I die before I get old (Talkin' 'bout my generation) This is my generation This is my generation, baby Why don't you all f-fade away (Talkin' 'bout my generation) And don't try to dig what we all s-s-say (Talkin' 'bout my generation) I'm not trying to cause a big s-s-sensation (Talkin' 'bout my generation) I'm just talkin' 'bout my g-g-g-generation (Talkin' 'bout my generation) This is my generation This is my generation, baby
Gen X • Gen X’ers came to age when the massive baby boom generation dominated the job market • Gen X found it very hard to find work • This contributed to their cynicism. • Felt no connection to the cultural icons of the baby boom generation
Generation Y: The Echo Boom • born- 1980- 1995 • Echo: analogy of waves in the water; separate social and economic influences
IDICATORS • Rampant political apathy • Increase in divorce (institution of marriage) • Increase in mothers in the workplace • The zero population growth movement • Availability of birth control pills ("Children were things you took pills not to have") • "Devil-child films" • Increase in educational variance • Decrease in educational funding and loan availability (simultaneous with increase in advertising for military service) • The end of the Cold War • Invention of Internet
What were we scared of? • On January 20, 1981, Reagan takes office • He believed the world was potentially headed towards a nuclear Armageddon
What Has Gen Y Witnessed? The end of the Cold War
The 90s! • The “Grunge” era enters the music world with bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Sound Garden making it big • Nirvana blows the market wide open with their new style and their dark messages • Pearl Jam and other bands also reflect this message
What were they saying? • Check out the Song Jeremy from Pearl Jam’s first album Ten • "Jeremy" is based on a true story. The song takes its main inspiration from a newspaper article about a 15-year-old boy named Jeremy Wade Delle, born February 10, 1975, from Richardson, Texas who shot himself in front of his English class in Richardson High School on the morning of January 8, 1991 at about 9:45 am. • He was sent to the office to get a late slip, he came back, pulled out a gun to commit suicide
Review: Characteristics of Gen Y’ers • high level of education • Due to this generation’s lack of faith in the employer/employee commitment, Gen Y is convinced real job security lies in their ability to develop the knowledge and skills to advance to their next job • First and foremost, they are individuals • Gen Y has no distinct defining characteristic If you need to classify them as something, try a multicultural version of “The Breakfast Club” – a small band of diverse individuals that do not really fit in anywhere, not even with themselves.
Characteristics Cont. • They were the first generation to be brought up in an “instant gratification” society full of microwaves, ATMs, and remote controls • Gen Y has the mentality of “what’s in it for me.” • Gen Y values work/life balance • They want their careers to be exciting, as well as enjoyable, but they also expect to have plenty of time for their families
Generation Z: • Also known as: Digital Natives, dot.com kids, Generation Media, 9/11 Generation • Born 1995-2010 • Children of Generation X • Characteristics: • Mobile phones, computers, Internet, environmentally conscious, worry about terrorism, worry about climate change, socially conscious, easily adaptable to changes in the modern world, exposed to marketing earlier, shaped to multi-task, place more value on speed and accuracy, open-book world (due to technology). • Defining Facts: • Smallest in numbers in any living generation. • Born during the following social trends: women having fewer than 2 children, smaller families, fewer siblings, older moms, decrease in infant mortality • Will live longer than any generation before them!
Generation Z: What would be a good theme song for this generation?
Exit Discussion: • Generation X Y Z - Nat Geo allows you to think again. • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lt5JTVS4IM8 • 0:00-0:46 • Exit Discussion: Your reaction to the YouTube clip.