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Generation G

Generational distinctions are usually flawed. It’s comical to take an entire group and define them by select attributes. To some degree, an era can be defined by a vague feel/spirit (the 1960′s, 70′s, 80′s still conjure strong images of music, culture, and spirit…but even then, that spirit varies from country to country. I suspect Cindi Lauper wasn’t huge in Afghanistan). Where generational distinctions are largely futile, trying to define the changing mindset of an entire society is even more challenging. Yet, even with that broad dismissal of generational/trend stereotyping, I found this article on Generation G interesting (language warning in the opening images). Periods of enormous upheaval and change can bring out the best or the worst in humanity. I would like to believe, as this article unscientifically asserts, that the developing mindset of our era is a shift toward “generosity”.

This was written by gsiemens. Posted on Tuesday, January 20, 2009, at 9:48 am. Filed under Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink. Follow comments here with the RSS feed. Both comments and trackbacks are currently closed.

2 Comments

  1. Breanna Hite wrote:

    I think there can be some value in identifying the big events that an entire generation has experienced together. I don’t think those categorizations are meant to be international. In the US, my generation (alternately called Gen Y, Millenials, Generation G, etc) has been shaped by the internet, Sept 11, and now maybe something like the Great Depression (depending on how bad it gets). I think it’s a reasonable approach for sociologists to take in studying a generation. Of course the conclusions that are often made are as inaccurate for an individual as any stereotype, but for a picture of the group it’s not too bad.

    One thing, I think, that will affect where we go is that we have far more information on the trials and errors of generations before us than they did on the generations that came before them. I think maybe that’s where the generosity thing comes from; we can see that everything else has been tried and failed, so let’s just do what’s right and hope for the best.

    Tuesday, January 20, 2009 at 8:14 pm | Permalink
  2. Geoff Cain wrote:

    Classifying people by when they were born does seem kind of arbitrary. I am an Aries and we tend not to believe such things.

    Tuesday, February 17, 2009 at 12:53 pm | Permalink