The Digital Natives of the Millennial Generation: Stereotype and Reality

• In Event: Techno-Social Generations and Communication Research

Abstract

The concept of “generation” has a turbulent history in social research, in part because of the cohort stereotypes that it implicitly constructs. This paper examines the theoretical and methodological challenges that the generation concept poses for social scientists and assesses the strengths and weaknesses of current research on the “millennial generation.” Mannheim’s generational theory, defined by its four different generation concepts, provides the foundation for systematic analysis using both quantitative and qualitative methods. To demonstrate social generational change, researchers must not only disaggregate age, period, and cohort effects in longitudinal data, but also account for intra-cohort variation to distinguish the cohort from the “actual generation.” Moreover, scholars must use qualitative, historical, and interpretive methods to document the social generational processes by which young cohorts adopt distinct worldviews. Technology and social media, as markers of distinction, extend generational theory by establishing networks and practices as key mechanisms of social generational change.

Author

• Peter Hart-Brinson, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire