To find out more about baby boomers and fellow generations, as well as the generational clash they have with millennials, we spoke with Dr. Audrey Tang, a chartered psychologist and author of multiple books, including "Be A Great Manager Now", "The Leader's Guide to Mindfulness," and "The Leader's Guide to Resilience.”
Dr. Tang explained that "baby boomers" are defined as being born between 1945 and 1964 - the period after World War II saw a spike in babies being born, giving rise to the name.
“Despite their parents having experienced World War II and needing to recover and repair in its aftermath, babies born in this period experienced huge developments in technology with the shaping of computers, developments in space travel, LED panels and even ‘direct dialing’ and they even had a time of relative stability for family employment and home life,” Dr. Tang said.
Apparently, baby boomers were to experience the growth of the Beatles and enjoy some of the most still-revered music today, and they were not distracted by the smartphone. “It is certainly possible that people may look at this generation with envy!”
“As we reach Gen X (born to the baby boomers between 1965-1981), this was a time of greater upheaval, and so the new parents (i.e. the baby boomers), from a place of relative comfort, began to manage competition for jobs, giving rise to more ‘individualism’ - setting the example of working hard (without so much play).
”There were still refinements to be made in technology with computers becoming household appliances, and the TV expanding its channel repertoire, Dr. Tang added.
When it comes to Gen Y/millennials (born between 1982-1994), Dr. Tang argues, they were to use technology on a regular basis, with the world wide web and email giving instant and direct contact with information. “However, it would seem that in some cases, the instant gratification brought through technology may have given some born in this generation an inflated view of what is possible and what they are entitled to in comparison to effort required to achieve it.”
“The most recent generation, Gen Z/post-millennials (born 1995-2010), have grown up with technology as well as the growing dangers of online platforms,” Dr. Tang said, and added that their parents (who may be struggling to move from analogue to digital) may not always recognize the dangers, nor are they in a position of knowledge to stop them.
“For both Gen Z and Gen Y, jobs are not always easy to come by, but at the same time, for Gen X who haven't retrained, they struggle too - leading to a growing mistrust of the styles and work ethics of Gen X and Gen Y/Z.”
“What is notable, however,” Dr. Tang argues, “is that Gen Y and Gen Z will also have experienced greater acceptance of diversity and gender fluidity and chosen partners and the latter also see the value of technology for starting hashtag campaigns and voicing issues such as period poverty.”
When asked about the generational wars between boomers and millennials, Dr. Tang said that Gen X and millennials arguably have the biggest gap in technology. “The changes in technology - analogue to digital, and smart phones was not an evolution but a revolution. Those in Gen X savvy enough and capable of upskilling themselves were able to ride the changes, but others who were not - or perhaps chose not to, found themselves left behind... this further broadened the gap with the Gen X 'dinosaurs' bemoaning the 'inability of millennials to do things the 'hard way,'” she explained.
Dr. Tang continued that millennials also recognize that technology could make some tasks more efficient without compromising quality. Having said that, “even when there are merits for both sides - when there is conflict, it's not about listening and learning, but about winning,” she said.
“It is also arguable that sometimes Gen X are selective in their complaints - they can 'hate new-fangled technology' - but might have been perfectly happy with CDs and DVDs... and what is also notable is that sometimes it is grandchildren who teach grandparents to use technology, so you might even have baby boomers coping with Zoom and Whatsapp in a way that Gen X are still coming to terms with (i.e. 'What's wrong with a phone call?').”
