Can The Media Stop Making Sport Of Generation Bashing?
Posted by meredith on 08-26-2009
Every generation gets a bad rap for something. Gen Xers were “slackers”, and, as you’ve probably heard, Gen Yers have been saddled with the label narcissists. Yesterday USA Today cited a study by Jean Twenge that was condensed into a couple of stats pointing towards social networking sites as a contributing factor for Yers’ narcissistic tendencies. [Full disclosure: Dr. Twenge compiled her research with the help of our colleagues at Ypulse Insights [formerly SurveyU] by submitting questions that were asked in the July Ypulse Insights Omnibus. Once the data was delivered, she did her own analysis.]
From the article:
More than half (57%) said their peers used social networking sites such as MySpace, Facebook and Twitter for self-promotion, narcissism and attention-seeking. And 92% said they used MySpace or Facebook regularly. Two-thirds said their generation was more self-promoting, narcissistic, overconfident and attention-seeking than others.
Although Yers who took the survey tended to “agree” with this statement, they also provided context in an additional follow-up question identifying the negative and positive aspects of these qualities as well as in what circumstances they might become necessary, i.e. to stand out in a crowd. As the largest generation by population, the numbers alone create a more competitive environment for us. Plus factors like the economy — everything from college admissions, summer jobs and jobs after graduation – require our generation to be more outspoken. Additionally, the research also reflected that while Yer’s do not generally ascribe to these negative qualities for themselves and their peers, many believe these qualities are necessary in order to succeed in “an increasingly competitive workplace.”
The simplistic media narrative makes Millennials an easy target for generation bashing. Even though the reality is that most young people in their teens and twenties tend to be pretty self involved, i.e. it’s a normal part of adolescent development. A point that leads us to another issue: the finger pointing the article takes towards technology. The reality is that social networking is just Gen Y’s platform of choice. Anastasia pointed out you could argue the photo albums she made with her BFF at age 15 in 20 different outfits was narcissistic. If she could have posted those photos on a social network, of course she would have. New media has given youth (and adults!) an easy way to post thoughts, feelings, photos and videos publicly and receive comments, ratings and most importantly validation. Do young people seek this type of validation more than older adults? Yes — though we all know adults who remain fame/validation seekers — or the Facebook friend who posts 10 status updates a day.
Incidentally, I was going to respond to a comment posted while I was away on vacation that critiqued my post on how to update training practices as picking apart a natural life phase that every generation goes through and implying that Gen Y was somehow lesser than. To clarify, my point was not that we needed any more hand-holding than the generation before. It was that the demands of the workplace are changing and the skills we have been developing naturally by growing up digitally, that could potentially help us perform better, should be more fully attended to by the curriculae in place at the institutions we attend to shape ourselves as future professionals.
As I read the USA Today article, I probably felt a similar frustration as this reader did when she read my post. To me, however, the polarization here is a calculated by-product. It does, after all, end by extending this question to readers: “Do you think young people today are more narcissistic than other generations? Do you think social networking sites are to blame?” The phrasing eliminates the depth of the study and puts the most stigmatizing label on the forefront. Nevermind that if you take away narcissism and define the phrases “self-promoting” and “attention-seeking” as entrepreneurial and ambitious, you would come up with a more attractive picture… and a much more positive article.
Categorized under: Web
August 26th, 2009 at 11:54 am
As a tenured academic in Higher Ed and a practicing professional I can see why HR would look at social media sites when reviewing a candidate for a job. Young people have always wanted to have fun while in college but usually it wasn’t broadcast to the world. Now with everything being available instantly they need to re-consider what they are doing. This new, new economy is not playing around. I tell my students to constantly “work harder” because you are now competing against the world for a job. Companies will outsource in a second if it helps the bottom line. There is no loyalty in business. It all comes done to money. Today with the cost of an education at an all time high it behooves the student to treat it as a privilege and not a rite of passage. They need to realize that these are serious times and every action has a re-action. They need to be focused on achieving their goals. They can have fun but not to excess. And we are living in a time of excess. Mounting debt, credit card, student loan, mortgages…,etc. Is it easy to blame the media, yes. It is right to blame the media, partially. I teach media and a friend of mine who is a psychologist agrees with me. When our heroes are telling this generation that success is all about “getting the money, the cars and the girls” repeatedly in song and video it penetrates very deeply. It is not a single occurrence it is the essence of the media’s message today. It takes a very mature young person to see that hard work brings about success. It is especially difficult when they see “pop icons” being arrested, shooting each other, telling them respect is about “putting a cap in yo’ ass”. All the while the media moguls live behind the scenes in gated communities and sending their children to private schools so they don’t come in contact with this element. A new feudal system is being born, but to quote the “Who” – Here comes the new boss – same as the old boss”. It is very tough to fight a 24/7/365 onslaught of media imagery that has become totally irresponsible. I love media and what it brings but once you put ratings over morales everything falls apart. Cronkite’s death was a turning point – thank goodness for Jon Stewart. A comedian maybe but much more a satirist. We are in difficult times. It is a shame but it is one we brought about on ourselves. We need to refocus and find the way out of this mess, like a hangover from a frat party. The only problem is you got your final exam in five minutes. Better sober up and try to focus on your future.
August 26th, 2009 at 1:54 pm
This is why college courses should skip teaching actual skills and go straight to full technical courses on achieving corporate blackmail.
August 27th, 2009 at 10:30 am
[...] Can The Media Stop Making Sport Of Generation Bashing? | Ypulse [...]
August 5th, 2010 at 11:02 am
[...] should come as no surprise that we made a similar point about developmental factors in our earlier response to the original study. We also pointed out how social media (Facebook photo albums, YouTube stars, [...]