Generation Z

A Century in the Making

Corey Seemiller, Meghan Grace

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2018
• ISBN:
  9780429809187
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Commerce
• Subtopic: Gestion des ressources humaines

No other generation in history has received as much coverage as the Millennial generation. Books, Google searches, blogs, and news articles are everywhere about them. Yet, Generation Z is comprised of our youth and young adults today and has received very little attention comparatively. Those in Generation Z are among our youngest consumers, students, colleagues, constituents, voters, and neighbors. Being able to better understand who they are and how they see the world can be helpful in effectively working with, teaching, supervising, and leading them.

Generation Z: A Century in the Making offers insight into nearly every aspect of the lives of those in Generation Z, including a focus on their career aspirations, religious beliefs and practices, entertainment and hobbies, social concerns, relationships with friends and family, health and wellness, money management, civic engagement, communication styles, political ideologies, technology use, and educational preferences.

Drawing from an unprecedented number of studies with higher education research institutions, market research firms such as Pew and Census, other generational researchers and industry leaders, this is the authoritative defining work on Generation Z that market researchers, consumer behaviour specialists, and employers sorely need – and it is a fascinating read for anyone interested in the sociology of generations.

Making a difference

19
Societal concerns

Some societal concerns transcend generations – like safety or access to clean water or making a living wage. But, each generation comes of age during a specific era where the issues of the day are so contextually embedded into that time period. Growing up post-Depression and entering adulthood during World War II likely fueled concerns for the G.I. Generation around the economy, employment, and eventually the war; similarly, growing up during the era of 9/11, the Recession, and housing bubble burst has likely brought certain issues to the forefront of the minds of those in Generation Z. And although it might be easy to dismiss young people as not having a great deal of awareness of the world around them, those in Generation Z might surprise you. Nearly 79 percent of Generation Z college seniors believe they have an understanding of the issues facing their communities.¹ With the 24/7 news cycle flooding their phones with updates on nearly any global matter, it makes it possible to learn a lot of information and quickly. And, from what we found in our studies, they certainly care about a lot.

Affordable, quality education

“No nation has ever fallen from becoming too well educated, but nations have succumbed to stagnancy and lack of education.”

– Member of Generation Z

In our Generation Z Goes to College Study, 53 percent of Generation Z students indicated caring or caring a great deal about issues related to education.² That’s not entirely surprising as they had previously been in K–12 schools and were enrolled in college when they completed the survey. So, they had and continue to have a vested interest in education. But, it is more than simply caring about their own educational experience; they expressed concern about the entire American education system. In the study, many commented on how they believe the system of education is declining and that access to quality education is limited.³ Many of their comments were filled with a sense of exasperation in not understanding why there was not support for quality education in the U.S. For many of them, it seems obvious that education is an investment in America’s future, both for personal success and for fostering a better society for all.⁴

In addition to being concerned about the quality of education, more than 80 percent indicated being concerned about the cost of higher education.⁵ So, not only do they believe that the quality of education has been declining, but now it costs more to attend college, which might be the only place they can potentially make up any learning gaps from their previous educational experience. Unlike the G.I. Generation, who returned from war able to use the newly created G.I. Bill to cover higher education costs, Generation Z is seeing tuition rising at exponential rates with little to no assistance on the forefront.⁶

“It’s hard not to constantly think about the tens of thousands of dollars that I already owe, on top of paying day-to-day expenses once I graduate. I’m worried that I won’t be able to get a job that will be able to handle all of the burdens that I already carry and impede me from accomplishing or attaining other things in life.”

– Member of Generation Z

Breaking down walls, not building them

In 1987, Ronald Reagan made the line “Mister Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” famous in his speech about the Berlin Wall.⁷ Fast-forward 30 years later, and the talk of walls as they relate to international relations has re-emerged – this time building them.

The most evident physical wall for those in Generation Z is the anticipated border wall between the U.S. and Mexico. Although this generation only expressed moderate concern about immigration in our initial study in 2014, either expanding access to it or halting illegal immigration,⁸ the border wall is not just about immigration. The wall serves as a symbol of division in a time in which hyper-divisiveness in politics and in communities is commonplace. Albeit for different reasons, 30 years after Reagan pleaded for a border wall to be torn down in Germany, the U.S. is considering constructing their own border wall with Mexico.

However, not all walls are physical barriers. Walls can also be reflections of policies that block the free movement of people, ideas, and products. Take Brexit for example, in which the United Kingdom voted by citizen referendum to leave the European Union.⁹ Despite the overwhelming youth vote to stay in, those in older generations fled to the polls and pushed the withdrawal over the finish line.¹⁰ Brexit has implications that will take years to fully understand, likely creating barriers between the UK and the rest of the EU as well as between those within the UK who were either for or against Brexit.¹¹ Both the U.S. border wall and Brexit are reflective of the growing sense of nationalism emerging worldwide,¹² indicating a broader acceptance of putting up barriers rather than taking them down.

“Our generation will change the world by ‘work[ing] to establish, maintain, and respect a globalized, multicultural community, instead of fostering nationalism and other sorts of supremacist ideologies.’”

– Member of Generation Z

In addition, an overwhelming number of those in Generation Z are witnessing walls emerging involving oppression and discrimination of certain groups of people based on race, gender, class, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, disability, and other identities. The news is filled with talk of travel bans, sanctuary cities, trans bathroom rights, women’s healthcare, police shootings, religious freedom laws, and LGBTQ rights, to name a few. It is not surprising then that we found in our Generation Z Stories Study that many in this generation are concerned about the impact the ideological walls forming between people will have on human rights and the ability to come together to solve the world’s complex problems in the future.¹³

“With all that is going on in the world today, there is nothing that saddens me more than seeing the diverse gap between love and hate. It saddens me not because the gap exists, but rather because there is really no in between here, as this gap dictates how we live our lives, how we treat other people and how we will raise our children to do the same thing.”

– Member of Generation Z

Inclusion and equality

“In this day and age, it is time to stop living in the past and it’s time to start treating each other like human beings.”

– Member of Generation Z

Racial equality and racism are also major concerns for this generation. In our Generation Z Goes to College Study, nearly 68 percent indicated caring or caring a great deal about issues of racial equality.¹⁴ Another study put that number at almost three-quarters.¹⁵ We found that it is more than just racial equality that fuels the fire of Generation Z; 56 percent said they were concerned or very concerned about racism.¹⁶ They believe that equality is the right thing to do and question why racism is still an issue.¹⁷ They aren’t naïve to think that racism has been eradicated and wondering what all the fuss is about. Instead, they are stunned as to how racism is still so prominent in the U.S. after literally having hundreds of years to work towards eliminating it.

Many in Generation Z are also concerned about issues of sexism. In 2017, in an effort to cut short a speech by Senator Elizabeth Warren on the Senate floor, Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell said, “She was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted.”¹⁸ This incident occurred shortly after millions of people worldwide participated in a women’s march in one of 653 cities in the U.S. and 261 cities around the world.¹⁹ The momentum from the women’s marches and the incident with Senator Warren gave rise to the “she persisted” theme, meme, slogan, and even apparel. When it comes to Generation Z, expect to see more “persistence...