Generation Z

Generation Z (often shortened to Gen Z), colloquially known as Zoomers,[1][2][3] is the demographic cohort succeeding Millennials and preceding Generation Alpha. Researchers and popular media use the mid-to-late 1990s as starting birth years and the early 2010s as ending birth years. Most members of Generation Z are the children of Generation X or older Millennials.[4][5]

As the first social generation to have grown up with access to the Internet and portable digital technology from a young age, members of Generation Z, even if not necessarily digitally literate, have been dubbed "digital natives".[6][7][8][9] Moreover, the negative effects of screen time are most pronounced in adolescents, as compared to younger children.[10] Compared to previous generations, members of Generation Z tend to live more slowly than their predecessors when they were their age,[11][12] have lower rates of teenage pregnancies, and consume alcohol (but not necessarily other psychoactive drugs) less often.[13][14][15] Generation Z teenagers are more concerned than older generations with academic performance and job prospects,[16][11] and are better at delaying gratification than their counterparts from the 1960s, despite concerns to the contrary.[17] Sexting among adolescents has grown in prevalence; the consequences of this remain poorly understood.[18] Youth subcultures have not disappeared, but they have been quieter.[19][20] Nostalgia is a major theme of youth culture in the 2010s and 2020s.[21][22][23]

Globally, there is evidence that the average age of pubertal onset among girls has decreased considerably compared to the 20th century, with implications for their welfare and their future.[24][25][26][27][28] Furthermore, the prevalence of allergies among adolescents and young adults in Generation Z is greater than the general population;[29][30] there is greater awareness and diagnosis of mental health conditions,[16][15][31][32] and sleep deprivation is more frequently reported.[7][33][34] In many countries, Gen Z youth are more likely to be diagnosed with intellectual disabilities and psychiatric disorders than older generations.[35][36]

Around the world, members of Generation Z are spending more time on electronic devices and less time reading books than before,[37][38][39] with implications for their attention spans,[40][41] vocabulary,[42][43] academic performance,[44] and future economic contributions.[37] In Asia, educators in the 2000s and 2010s typically sought out and nourished top students; in Western Europe and the United States, the emphasis was on poor performers.[45] Furthermore, East Asian and Singaporean students consistently earned the top spots in international standardized tests in the 2010s.[46][47][48][49]

  1. ^ "Words We're Watching: 'Zoomer'". Merriam-Webster. October 2021. Archived from the original on February 11, 2020. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
  2. ^ "zoomer". Dictionary.com. January 16, 2020. Archived from the original on January 26, 2021. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
  3. ^ "Definition of ZOOMER". www.merriam-webster.com. Retrieved April 28, 2023.
  4. ^ "Who Are the Parents of Gen Z?". Signal Vine. August 26, 2021. Archived from the original on April 7, 2022. Retrieved March 10, 2022.
  5. ^ Kingl, Adam (November 17, 2022). "Gen Y vs. Gen Z: Understanding Similarities, Differences and Leadership Challenges". www.audacy.com. Archived from the original on May 19, 2023. Retrieved May 19, 2023.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference turner was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ a b Twenge, Jean (October 19, 2017). "Teens are sleeping less – but there's a surprisingly easy fix". The Conversation. Archived from the original on November 12, 2020. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
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  11. ^ a b "Teenagers are better behaved and less hedonistic nowadays". International. The Economist. January 10, 2018. Archived from the original on September 19, 2020. Retrieved September 29, 2020.
  12. ^ Twenge, Jean (September 19, 2017). "Why today's teens aren't in any hurry to grow up". The Conversation. Archived from the original on November 15, 2020. Retrieved November 13, 2020.
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  15. ^ a b Chandler-Wilde, Helen (August 6, 2020). "The future of Gen Z's mental health: How to fix the 'unhappiest generation ever'". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Archived from the original on January 10, 2022. Retrieved August 8, 2020.
  16. ^ a b "Generation Z is stressed, depressed and exam-obsessed". The Economist. February 27, 2019. ISSN 0013-0613. Archived from the original on March 28, 2019. Retrieved March 28, 2019.
  17. ^ Protzko, John (May–June 2020). "Kids These Days! Increasing delay of gratification ability over the past 50 years in children". Intelligence. 80 (101451). doi:10.1016/j.intell.2020.101451. S2CID 218789047. Archived from the original on February 3, 2023. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
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  31. ^ American Psychological Association (March 15, 2019). "Mental health issues increased significantly in young adults over last decade". Science Daily. Archived from the original on December 20, 2020. Retrieved December 31, 2020.
  32. ^ Schraer, Rachel (February 11, 2019). "Is young people's mental health getting worse?". Health. BBC. Archived from the original on January 5, 2021. Retrieved December 26, 2020.
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  35. ^ Maulik, Pallab K.; Mascarenhas, Maya N.; Mathers, Colin D.; Dua, Tarun; Saxena, Shekhar (2011). "Prevalence of intellectual disability: A meta-analysis of population-based studies". Research in Developmental Disabilities. 32 (2): 419–436. doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2010.12.018. PMID 21236634. Archived from the original on September 26, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2020.
  36. ^ Buckley, Nicholas; Glasson, Emma J.; et al. (May 30, 2020). "Prevalence estimates of mental health problems in children and adolescents with intellectual disability: A systematic review and meta-analysis". Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry. 54 (10). The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists: 970–984. doi:10.1177/0004867420924101. PMID 32475125. S2CID 219170827.
  37. ^ a b Thomas, Leigh (December 3, 2019). "Education levels stagnating despite higher spending: OECD survey". World News. Reuters. Archived from the original on February 5, 2020. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
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  39. ^ Sliwa, Jim (August 20, 2018). "Teens Today Spend More Time on Digital Media, Less Time Reading". American Psychological Association. Archived from the original on November 1, 2020. Retrieved November 8, 2020.
  40. ^ "How Technology Affects the Attention Span of Children". Your Therapy Source. April 18, 2019. Archived from the original on April 17, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
  41. ^ "Too Much Screen Time?". Penn State University. Archived from the original on April 17, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
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  43. ^ Adams, Richard (April 19, 2018). "Teachers in UK report growing 'vocabulary deficiency'". The Guardian. Archived from the original on November 12, 2020. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  44. ^ Busby, Eleanor (April 19, 2018). "Children's grades at risk because they have narrow vocabulary, finds report". Education. The Independent. Archived from the original on November 9, 2020. Retrieved November 22, 2020.
  45. ^ Clynes, Tom (September 7, 2016). "How to raise a genius: lessons from a 45-year study of super-smart children". Nature. 537 (7619): 152–155. Bibcode:2016Natur.537..152C. doi:10.1038/537152a. PMID 27604932. S2CID 4459557.
  46. ^ Chhor, Khatya (December 8, 2016). "French students rank last in EU for maths, study finds". France24. Archived from the original on November 8, 2020. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  47. ^ Alphonso, Caroline (December 3, 2019). "Canadian high school students among top performers in reading, according to new international ranking". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on December 3, 2019. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  48. ^ DeSilver, Drew (February 15, 2017). "U.S. students' academic achievement still lags that of their peers in many other countries". Pew Research Center. Archived from the original on November 20, 2020. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
  49. ^ Wai, Jonathan; Makel, Matthew C. (September 4, 2015). "How do academic prodigies spend their time and why does that matter?". The Conversation. Archived from the original on January 23, 2021. Retrieved December 19, 2020.