What Gen Z’ers are Dying to Tell Their Gen X Parents
We are losing the young people of today- the generation Z.
Not that we are not around, but that we never listen. And if we do attend to them, our minds are shut. We are right; they are wrong.
This is scary.
The Gen X (and the baby boomers, too) are top-down people. Used to being told how to live and how to behave, they pass on the same parenting style to their digital native children, who do not want to be dictated.
Gen Z’ers are dying to tell us Gen X and Gen Y parents and bosses a lot about what and how they feel.
We dare not ignore their sentiments if we don’t want to lose them. Ready to hear what the cries of their hearts are?
It’s true that the communication revolution wrought by the internet has accomplished many great feats for the millennials and the gen Z. The great divide that existed before between them and those outside their circles is disappearing if not completely gone.
Australia’s Gidley (2001) has observed that this result of globalization is “empowering” the young people of today due to its “emancipatory potential”. However, while they enjoy connection with the rest of the world, they are being alienated from their parents.
A small group of teen-aged boys and boys and girls, 30 in all, was asked about their observations pertaining to parents’ perceptions and attitudes towards the 21st century young people. In particular, the participants were asked what they thought were the major differences between them and their Gen X parents.
The discussion, though not exhaustive, provides a helpful reference for parents, educators, advocates, and those that deal with teenagers.
Interestingly, the participants’ comments were mostly related to their parents’ attitudes towards media, technology, and information, so let’s take note.
Five major issues were raised, and they all pertained to media, technology, and information in connection with their parents. These are: distrust toward new technology, lack of desire to migrate into digital media, misconceptions about media effects, blaming social media for mental health issues, and gullibility with online information.
The Evil New Media
Gen X dads and moms distrust the digital media. The door is basically close for the pervasive new media. It is an unwelcome intruder. It is either evil or a waste of time. They “tend to think that social media only has rubbish.”
The students were unhappy with such an attitude.
“They think that new media is nonsense, and the younger generation should stick to traditional media.”
For these kids who were born with the internet around, it’s like telling them not to breathe.
“Broken Record?”
Not surprisingly, Gen X’ers don’t want to part ways with the analog media, the only format I knew while in broadcasting until digitalization started to creep in by the 1990's.
Worse, they want their kids to “stick to traditional media,” which is like forcing them to shallow a dish that they can’t stomach.
The respondents resent the pressure. Valkenberg and Piotrowski (2017) refer to this as “restrictive… media monitoring” by many parents.
The negative perception regarding the digital media and Gen Z’s media preferences is also resented. Obviously, these children neither understand what a “broken record” means nor can tell if a “walkman” is a person or a thing.
Moreover, they lament the fact that parents are “less inclined to use digital applications and would prefer traditional media over new media,” furthering the gap between the two generations.
Duck Syndrome
Social media’s effects on teenagers is downplayed, according to the Gen Z’ers.
Post-millennials, according to Twenge (2017), are on the verge of mental crisis because of the onslaught of the digital media that they surround themselves with, attaching their worth on what is seen on the net or pop culture.
On the surface, they look glamorous, but inside they are crumbling, a psychological phenomenon called “duck syndrome” by Stanford University (Jacobson, 2019).
Yet, Gen X parents “are unable to comprehend the impact of social media on their children’s self-image” and are “less aware of the social issues presented through [it]”, referring to the many struggles that youth go through.
It Must Be True!
There is yet another issue with today’s parents that Gen Z’ers are not so proud of. In America, 44% of people in their 60s admit to being duped by fake news (Nash, n.d.).
The same is observed of many parents who “are gullible to online scams since they do not know how the new media works unlike the younger generations.”
Ironically, they know that some things are not good about technology, yet they do not know how to filter information, note the kids.
“Gen X parents are informed of the various ‘dangers’ of technology [and yet] they are more susceptible to these ‘dangers’”.
Just because it is on social media does not make a story true. In short, no fact-checking.
Other Resentments
That social media is a great platform for winning and maintaining friends for the youth has also not dawned on modern-day parents.
“They believe this myth that new media cannot be a useful outlet for learning and can be used for academic purposes.”
Further, they “ do not see that social media is a platform wherein you can make a living”, the participants emphasized.
Online gaming is a taboo to some. They are begging: “Please be open to the potential of online gaming”, adding that “video games can be beneficial”, without elaborating.
Triggered, Suffocated
Gen X parents always “have this conception that social media triggers depression and anxiety.” The youth say they’re aware, but we should avoid rubbing it in. It’s tantamount to nagging.
Gen Z’ers do not dismiss the prevailing “conception that the media affects physical and mental health”, however, they want us to know that they are capable of self-regulation.
Trust is essential to them.
Hearing mom and dad say, “Everyone is prone to be addicted to social media and self-control is needed,” does not seem to help at all.
In short, the present youth feel suffocated.
Yale researchers Valkenberg and Piotrowski (2017) suggest a “proactive” media monitoring, which involves a lot of parental presence but without being restrictive.
Pleading for Acceptance
There’s a tendency to push the concept of hard work down the Gen Z’ers’ throats. To them, they’re just used to the fast and “instant”. To be called lazy is very offensive. They believe they are not.
Finally, post-millenials think they possess the following characteristics:
a) Easy Handle on Technology, “able to utilize technology compared to 21st century parents”
b) Technology-dependent, relying “more on technology compared to the previous generations” and to them this is not necessarily wrong
c) Living in Two Worlds.
They prefer “to use digital technology compared to Generation X and Y, but still use traditional media” like TV.
d) Virtual Communication as the Norm. Because most interaction is virtual, they thrive better in non-face-to-face situations through technology.
e) Lastly, they realize that there is “a gap between the two generations because of the technology Gen Z and millennials grew up with” but are begging parents to embrace Gen Z’ers’ uniqueness and be “more open minded with social issues”.
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Raffy Santos, a former journalist and broadcaster, teaches media and information/technology courses and Purposive Communication at the University of Asia and the Pacific (Pasig City) and is a Ph D. candidate in English Studies, major in Language at the University of the Philippines Diliman.
