Should We Ditch Generation Nicknames?

Should We Ditch Generation Nicknames?

Top of Mind with Julie Rose

COVID-19 Vaccines for Kids, Swimming Microbots, Generational Labels

Episode: COVID-19 Vaccines for Kids, Swimming Microbots, Generational Labels

  • Oct 26, 2021 8:00 pm
  • 19:18 mins

You got baby boomers, Gen X, millennials, and now Gen Z. We all know what they are—you may even know which group you are in. You know some of the stereotypes that go with those generations, right? Boomers are stodgy. Gen Xers are slackers. Millennials are entitled. But none of that is real. The names and definitions are adopted over time when enough people use them. And there are plenty of social science researchers who think they’re not very helpful, and might even be harmful. Philip Cohen is one such social scientist. Based at the University of Maryland, he posted an open letter earlier this year pleading for researchers to stop using the generational labels and received a lot of media for doing so. (Segment produced by Sam Faulconer)