Generational Research
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Today’s youth have lived through 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the “Great Recession.” This generation also grew up with MTV, iPods, cell phones, and social media. They have been called Generation Y, Generation Next, and the Millennial Generation, and behind these names, a billion dollar cottage industry has emerged proselytizing the fundamental differences of this generation from those before it. Given the money spent by organizations to address generational differences, it is worth exploring the foundation of these claims.
Understanding generational differences and their implications is critical to training, recruitment, management, marketing, selection, and many other areas. This concept has grown in its acceptance over the years and today represents the basis for many important managerial and strategic decisions.
Fors Marsh Group Perspective
While these generational theories have exciting face validity, our research shows that they often have very little empirical support. Assertions of extreme generational differences attract attention due to their sensational nature, but this attention is misplaced because these claims:
- Are frequently based on questionable data and research methods. This includes generalizing findings from distinctly different, nonrepresentative population subgroups or using small samples.
- Often do not investigate all plausible causes for change that does occur. The dialogue of generational differences relies on generational change as the cause. This narrow focus often ignores possible alternative explanations. For example, developmental or aging changes very likely contribute to these differences. It is common for a person to have different values at age 50 than at age 16. However, self-change often goes unrecognized so the common reaction is to attribute the change elsewhere. Older generations view youth as radically different from when they were young rather than recalling their actual temperaments at that age[ii].
- Distract from actual change that is less interesting and thus less frequently discussed.
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Contrary to popular belief, Fors Marsh Group contends that today’s youth are not that different from the youth of generations past. In addition to our research[iii], studies such as Monitoring the Future[iv] and Pew Research Center’s Millennials report[v] agree that little change has occurred among youth in recent decades. The studies show that work and life values among current youth and prior generations largely mirror each other and that the Youth Market has largely remained stable over the years. It is also well founded that core needs and values do not rapidly fluctuate. Therefore, while the manifestations of these needs and values will vary by technology and trends, the basic tenets stay relatively stable.
Although the value changes discussed are not as dramatic as the popular claims of radical generational shifts, they are nevertheless important. Since 1985 these include the increased importance of personal pursuits, local relationships, and community advancement[vi]. Youth increasingly value time for hobbies and leisure and want a job that offers more than two weeks’ vacation time. Youth are more open and want to discover new ways to experience things. Living close to parents and other relatives is more important to youth today than in the past. In contrast, the requirement of having a job where one can make friends is less important. Youth also place importance on developing a strong social role such as being a community leader, contributing to society, and working to correct social and economic inequalities. This heightened social awareness is evident in increased volunteerism and involvement in programs such as AmeriCorps and the Peace Corps[vii].
Fors Marsh Group conducts extensive research on the Youth Market, with a special focus on youth ages 16 to 24. Importantly, this work is anchored in the most professionally sound methods of survey development, sampling, analysis, and interpretation. Adherence to these methods ultimately allows Fors Marsh Group to distinguish trends from myths and group differences from normal statistical variation. This work has collectively provided Fors Marsh Group particular insight into youth attitudes on current events, economic conditions, and future plans.
Roberts, B.W., Edmonds, G., & Grijalva, E. (2010). It is developmental me, not generation me: Developmental changes are more important than generational changes in narcissism—Commentary on Trzesniewski & Donnellan (2010). Perspectives on Psychological Science, 5(1), 97-102. [ii]Eibach, R.P., Libyy, L.K., & Gilovich, T.D. (2003). When change in the self is mistaken for change in the world. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84(5), 917-931. [iii]Carvalho, R., Turner, S., Krulikowski, C., Marsh, S., Zucker, A.B., & Boehmer, M. (2009, December). Youth Poll 18 December 2009 Overview Report. JAMRS Report No. 2010-012. Anderson, A., Poling, T.,Helland, K., Marsh, S., Zucker, A.B., & Boehmer, M. (2010, June). 2010 In-Depth General Population Survey Technical Report. JAMRS Report No. 2010-06. Bader, P., Marsh, S., & Fors, J. (2003, December). Acting responsibly: An examination of generational research. JAMRS Report No. 2003-XXX [iv]Monitoring the Future (http://www.monitoringthefuture.org). [v]Pew Research Center Social & Demographic Trends (2010). Millennials: Confident, connected, open to change. Washington, DC: Pew Research Center. Retrieved July 15, 2010, from http://pewsocialtrends.org/assets/pdf/millennials-confident-connected-open-to-change.pdf. [vi]Monitoring the Future (http://www.monitoringthefuture.org). [vii]Arnett, J.J. (2007). Suffering, selfish, slackers? Myths and reality about emerging adults. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 36, 23-29.