Young and Old Generation Essay

One of the biggest challenges that are facing our society today is the relationship between the young and the old generations. There is little agreement between the two groups when it comes to dressing, morals, language, music, dancing, walking styles and social relationship among others. However, they may agree on some issues like the importance of technology and social relationship, though not completely. The worst relationship is that of grandparents to their grandchildren. Some even see their grandchildren as immoral and their character as a sign of end time. But what makes these differences? Why is it that what one generation considers as immoral is considered as moral by the other generation? Both generations had differences in their experiences which makes them consider the other group as immoral or backward.

In 2008, there was a recession that marked a difference in experience between the old and the young millennials. This recession changed the young people's view of the world. When growing up, the older people were raised in an error where they were taught that by following certain rules, they were guaranteed to get employment at their early 20s (Twenge, Jean and Stacy 152-158). Therefore, the older generation believes so much in formal employment because that is what they were taught when they were young. It is because of this idea that many people of the older generation are dominant in the formal employment sector. After this recession, the younger generation who were mostly still in school or entering the job market changed their view about employment. Due to the disappointment they saw in the older generation, they started looking for other forms of employment like entrepreneurship and music among others. As time has passed by, at least the two generations agree that formal employment is not helping at all. They both agree that people should create other forms of employment.

The way the old and the young millennials were raised up is very different. In 1980s children could play without any supervision. Parents allowed their children to play outside with their friends, do whatever they want as long as they will come back home in the evening. Amazingly, kids could come at home with a lot of injuries that they have suffered as they were playing and a parent would beat up the kid for injuring themselves, instead of calling an ambulance. In those days, there was nothing like the play station or a well-organized playground. Kids made their own playgrounds without the help of the government (Stewart et al, 60). To make it more interesting, every child was given specific responsibilities which they were to do before going out to play. For the younger generation, this seems like child negligence. How could parents allow their kids to ride a bicycle without a helmet? How could they beat up their children for suffering injuries instead of hugging them and rushing them to the hospital? Due to this exposure and experiences, the older generation is very social and tough. For the younger generation, their life has been very easy where everything is provided. They have house girls who do all the work; they have Dettol which protect them from germs among others. This easy life has made this group be very lazy and undependable. Their life is dominated by self because they were never taught how to share or be nice to other people.

Due to the nuclear families that now exist a new generation is a group of people who always want more. If you go to the nearest shopping mall you will find young people nagging their parents to buy them what they saw their friends with. They do not care whether the parent has the money or not (Stewart et al, 60). If you try to explain to them about the economic crisis that you are facing as a parent, they will not listen to you. Some children have even developed stress and depression because they could not get a toy they wanted; not that they don't have toys, but they want more toys. One of the reasons for this behavior is that they are the only children in their family and therefore, all attention is drawn to them. for the older generation, people used with their cousins, aunties, and grandchild and therefore, they appreciated whatever little gift they were given because it will take a long time before they see another gift since there are other children in the family.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the older generation is very different from the younger generation when it comes to work, behavior, and experience. As discussed earlier, the older generation is more exposed to the social world than the younger generation who spends all their time on indoor activities like movies and video games. Though separated by a decade, the two groups agree that it is on few issues like technology. They both agree that technology is good and it has made work easier. In addition, they are both victims of technology addiction. Most of the members of the younger generation are self-centered and unreliable. As time passes, this gap between the older and the younger generation will end as many of the older generations starts conforming to the values and norms of the older generation.

Works Cited

Twenge, Jean M., and Stacy M. Campbell. "Who are the Millennials? Empirical evidence for generational differences in work values, attitudes and personality." Managing the new workforce: International perspectives on the millennial generation (2012): 152-180.

Stewart, Jeanine S., et al. "Managing millennials: Embracing generational differences." Business Horizons 60.1 (2017): 45-54.