Posted by In an earlier post I discussed the issue of “Passing the Torch,” the fact that the behaviors of children are increasingly diverging from those of their parents. This is not something new in the history of the world. Moses, in the Book of Deuteronomy orders the people to teach their children about God: “Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates, so that your days and the days of your children may be many in the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors, as many as the days that the heavens are above the earth.” (Deuteronomy 11:18-21) But he also complains about the present generation contrasting it to their fathers. He says: “They are corrupt and not his children; to their shame they are a warped and crooked generation.” (Deuteronomy 32:5)
In our rapidly changing world, each new generation grows up in a very different environment and the influences of parents, schools and churches are waning. This is particularly true of beliefs though much less true of values. There is substantial research that suggests that a child’s values are formed by the way in which he is raised. This may be much less true about his beliefs.
Ellen Miley Perry offers some interesting insights on the issue of inter-generational value formation:
- Values are caught, not taught (Children watch what we do to see if our deeds are consistent with what we preach).
- Values are different from beliefs, preferences, choices, and principles. (Values are the compass that each of us uses to direct our behavior, often unconsciously. They are the core defining elements of our being, without which we are not ourselves. They are the organizing principles of our lives).
- Leading a life that is consistent with one’s values is the greatest predictor of happiness.
- Storytelling is a powerful means of sharing values (Telling stories is an opportunity to see your own life more clearly in terms of what’s most important to you, what your values are, and to live your life more fully according to and in alignment with these values).
The Pew Research Center has been studying the differences among U.S. “generations” for decades; the chart below defines the five main generations (each spans about 15 years) that comprise the American population today (there is no name yet for today’s young children). Fifteen years is much shorter than the traditional idea of a generation, which is the number of years, on average, between the time a parent is born, and his/her first child is born (traditionally taken to be between 25 and 30 years).
How do these generations, these cohorts differ? The table below presents data on some of the differences among the four oldest generations listed above. The data are mainly derived from the Pew Research Center, but some of the data come from other sources such as the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The bottom half of the table presents data for a key year (the year that the majority of the generation turned fifteen).
The table shows that the most important differences among the generations are in the areas of economic security, demographics, family structure, education and technology.
Economic security. The “silent generation” came of age during the post-war boom when the economy was prospering, and homes and education were provided cheaply. It was the age of Levittown and the GI bill.
The “boomers” also came of age in a prosperous time, but by the time they began to have children, the economic situation had taken a turn for the worse. “Stagflation” and “oil crisis” dominated the economic news.
“Gen X” came of age in a time of tremendous economic change. Automation and globalization meant disruption in manufacturing, loss of traditional blue- collar jobs and the rapid injection of women into the work force. In 1952 33% of all women participated in the labor force; by 2003, women’s participation rate had increased to 60.5%.
“Millennials” entered an economy that was growing much more slowly, with most jobs in the service sector. Workers were no longer expected to stay with the same employer; the “gig” economy was born; and pensions became much less secure.
Demographics. The population has become much more diverse over the past 70 years; 2040 is predicted as the date when non-Hispanic whites become a minority. Population growth is declining and is now only 0.7% per year (in 1971 it was 1.3%). Immigration increased dramatically between 1970, when they were 9.7 million immigrants in the United States and today when the number reached 45 million. Immigrants made up 4.7% of the U.S. population in 1970; by 2018 they made up 13.7%.
Family structure. The Silent Generation largely grew up in a nuclear family (although many of us had grandparents and other family members living with us). Thus, they could be called the “Leave it to Beaver” generation. Boomers saw an increase in divorces. In 1960 the divorce rate was 2 per thousand marriages; by 1980 it had peaked (after the widespread enactment of no-fault divorces) to 5 per thousand before beginning to fall. With women entering the labor force in unprecedented numbers, Gen X is called the “latch-key” generation.
Many Millennials were raised in blended families, and, as a generation, they are delaying family formation and having children.
Education. For the “silent generation,” the returning veterans, college was provided free because of the GI bill. In fact, the price of college for most others was relatively cheap. As shown in the figure below college tuition has increased faster than any other item we buy; in 2014 (when millennials were matriculating) college tuition was three and a half times what it had been in 1978 (when boomers were graduating).
However, much of this cost has been reduced by various forms of grants. In fact, between 2011-12 and 2017-28 student debt per capita at graduation remained constant at around $30,000. The stories told about crushing student debt are a bit overblown. As the table below shows the percent of bachelor’s degree recipients who are saddled with excessive debt has actually declined between 1993/94 and 2007/08. However, some boomers are approaching retirement with excessive debt taken on for their children’s education.
Source: Nark Kantrowitz, Trends in Student Debt, https://www.onefpa.org/journal/Pages/FEB19-Trends-in-Student-Loan-Debt.aspx
Technology. Of course, the younger generations are more comfortable with social media and new communication technology. According to Mark Schaefer, citing a study by the University of London, there are 10 important ways social media have changed the world (this research was conducted in nine communities around the world, including poor countries):
- Social media is making us more individualistic.
- It is providing education to more people (through media like YouTube).
- Users create social media, not those who run platforms.
- Public social media is conservative in the sense that people are careful not to reveal too much about what they believe; by contrast, private platforms like WhatsApp may be used to promote more radical social change.
- Social media are a new way to express cultural differences rather than a technology which is making the world more homogenous.
- Social media promotes personal commerce.
- Social media promotes communication by groups.
- Memes have become our moral police. Memes are often used to assert one set of values and criticize others. People who might be shy about expressing their own values and opinions use memes instead.
- Social media is a threat to privacy but can also provide privacy.
Values. Generational experiences have been changing in terms of economic security, cultural diversity, educational attainment and channels of information. Not surprisingly, both beliefs and behaviors are also changing rapidly in the areas of family formation, religiosity, attitudes toward sexual behavior and political affiliation. It is unclear whether these behavioral changes mean that core values are changing as well. For example, Weitzel et.al. found no evidence of increasing narcissism in college students from the 1990s, 2000s and 2010s (although others have).
On the other hand, Twenge, Campbell and Freeman, in probably the largest inter-generational study conducted, summed up their research as follows:
“Three studies examined generational differences in life goals, concern for others, and civic orientation among American high school seniors and entering college students. Compared to Baby Boomers (born 1946 –1961) at the same age, GenX’ers (born 1962–1981) and Millennials (born after 1982) considered goals related to extrinsic values (money, image, fame) more important and those related to intrinsic values (self-acceptance, affiliation, community) less important. Concern for others (e.g., empathy for outgroups, charity donations, the importance of having a job worthwhile to society) declined slightly. Community service rose but this could be because it was increasingly required for high school graduation over the same time period. Civic orientation (e.g., interest in social problems, political participation, trust in government, taking action to help the environment and save energy) declined,…with about half the decline occurring between GenX and the Millennials. Some of the largest declines appeared in taking action to help the environment. In most cases, Millennials slowed, though did not reverse, trends toward reduced community feeling begun by GenX.”
Conclusions. We live in a period of rapid cultural change, defining generations of affinity as only fifteen years in duration. We believe that someone reaching adulthood in 1990 has a substantially different set of experiences than someone reaching adulthood in 2005. Since individual beliefs and behaviors are formed both by the beliefs and behaviors of our generational peers as well as those of the preceding generation, it is not surprising that it is very difficult to pass on our beliefs to our children.
