Generation

== Social generation ==
Social generations are cohorts of people born in the same date range and who share similar cultural experiences.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Mannheim |first1=k |title=Essays on the Sociology of Knowledge |date=1952 |publisher=RKP |location=London}}</ref> The idea of a social generation has a long history and can be found in ancient literature,<ref name="Biggs 2007 695–711">{{cite journal |last=Biggs |first=Simon|title=Thinking about generations: Conceptual positions and policy implications.|journal=Journal of Social Issues |year=2007 |volume=63|issue=4|pages=695–711 |doi=10.1111/j.1540-4560.2007.00531.x}}</ref> but did not gain currency in the sense that it is used today until the 19th century. Prior to that the concept "generation" had generally referred to family relationships and not broader social groupings. In 1863 the French [[lexicographer]] [[Emile Littré]] had defined a generation as "all people coexisting in society at any given time."<ref name=Wohl203>{{Cite book | last=Wohl | first=Robert | title=The generation of 1914 | year=1979 | publisher=Harvard University Press | location=Cambridge, Massachusetts | isbn=9780674344662 | pages=203–209 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YLe3e3FDXQkC&q=wohl%201914&pg=PA1 | access-date=31 October 2020 | archive-date=18 June 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210618144448/https://books.google.com/books?id=YLe3e3FDXQkC&q=wohl+1914&pg=PA1 | url-status=live }}</ref>{{rp|19}}

Several trends promoted a new idea of generations, as the 19th century wore on, of a society divided into different categories of people based on age. These trends were all related to the processes of [[modernisation]], [[industrialisation]], or [[westernisation]], which had been changing the face of Europe since the mid-18th century. One was a change in mentality about time and social change. The increasing prevalence of [[Age of Enlightenment|enlightenment]] ideas encouraged the idea that society and life were changeable, and that civilization could [[Social progress|progress]]. This encouraged the equation of youth with social renewal and change. Political rhetoric in the 19th century often focused on the renewing power of youth influenced by movements such as [[Young Italy]], [[Young Germany]], [[Sturm und Drang]], the [[German Youth Movement]], and other [[romantic movement]]s. By the end of the 19th century, European intellectuals were disposed toward thinking of the world in generational terms—in terms of youth rebellion and emancipation.<ref name=Wohl203 />

One important contributing factor to the change in mentality was the change in the economic structure of society. Because of the rapid social and economic change, young men particularly were less beholden to their fathers and family authority than they had been. Greater social and economic mobility allowed them to flout their authority to a much greater extent than had traditionally been possible. Additionally, the skills and wisdom of fathers were often less valuable than they had been due to technological and social change.<ref name=Wohl203 /> During this time, the period between [[childhood]] and [[adulthood]], usually spent at university or in military service, was also increased for many [[white-collar worker]]s. This category of people was very influential in spreading the ideas of youthful renewal.<ref name=Wohl203 />

Another important factor was the breakdown of traditional social and regional identifications. The spread of [[nationalism]] and many of the factors that created it (a national press, linguistic homogenisation, [[public education]], suppression of local particularities) encouraged a broader sense of belonging beyond local affiliations. People thought of themselves increasingly as part of a society, and this encouraged identification with groups beyond the local.<ref name=Wohl203 /> [[Auguste Comte]] was the first philosopher to make a serious attempt to systematically study generations. In ''Cours de philosophie positive'', Comte suggested that social change is determined by generational change and in particular conflict between successive generations.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.history.ucsb.edu/faculty/marcuse/classes/201/articles/85JaegerGenInHistHISTTHEO.pdf |title=Hans Jaeger. Generations in History: Reflections on a Controversy. Translation of "Generationen in der Geschichte: Überlegungen zu einer umstrittenen Konzeption," originally published in Geschichte und Gesellschaft 3 (1977), 429–452. p 275. |access-date=10 October 2010 |archive-date=17 November 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101117003017/http://www.history.ucsb.edu/faculty/marcuse/classes/201/articles/85JaegerGenInHistHISTTHEO.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> As the members of a given generation age, their "instinct of social conservation" becomes stronger, which inevitably and necessarily brings them into conflict with the "normal attribute of youth"—innovation. Other important theorists of the 19th century were [[John Stuart Mill]] and [[Wilhelm Dilthey]].

=== Generational theory ===
The sociologist [[Karl Mannheim]] was a seminal figure in the study of generations. He elaborated a [[theory of generations]] in his 1923 essay ''The Problem of Generations''.<ref name="Pilcher" /> He suggested that there had been a division into two primary schools of study of generations until that time. Firstly, positivists such as Comte measured social change in designated life spans. Mannheim argued that this reduced history to "a chronological table". The other school, the "romantic-historical" was represented by Dilthey and [[Martin Heidegger]]. This school focused on the individual qualitative experience at the expense of social context. Mannheim emphasised that the rapidity of social change in youth was crucial to the formation of generations, and that not every generation would come to see itself as distinct. In periods of rapid social change a generation would be much more likely to develop a cohesive character. He also believed that a number of distinct sub-generations could exist.<ref name="Pilcher" /> According to Gilleard and Higgs, Mannheim identified three commonalities that a generation shares:<ref>{{cite journal| last1=Gilleard| first1=Chris| last2=Higgs| first2=Paul| title=The third age: Class, cohort or generation?|journal=Ageing and Society| year=2002| volume=22| issue=3| pages=369–382| doi=10.1017/s0144686x0200870x| s2cid=145549764}}</ref>

* Shared temporal location: generational site or birth cohort
* Shared historical location: generation as actuality or exposure to a common era
* Shared sociocultural location: generational consciousness or [[entelechy]]

Authors [[William Strauss]] and [[Neil Howe]] developed the [[Strauss–Howe generational theory]] outlining what they saw as a pattern of generations repeating throughout American history. This theory became quite influential with the public and reignited an interest in the sociology of generations. This led to the creation of an industry of consulting, publishing, and marketing in the field<ref name="COHE">{{cite web |first=Eric |last=Hoover |url=http://chronicle.com/article/The-Millennial-Muddle-How/48772/ |title=The Millennial Muddle |publisher=The Chronicle of Higher Education |date=11 October 2009 |access-date=21 August 2019 |archive-date=13 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110713233331/http://chronicle.com/article/The-Millennial-Muddle-How/48772/ |url-status=live }}</ref> (corporations spent approximately 70 million dollars on generational consulting in the U.S. in 2015).<ref name="Menand-2021"/> The theory has alternatively been criticized by social scientists and journalists who argue it is non-[[falsifiability|falsifiable]], [[determinism|deterministic]], and unsupported by rigorous evidence.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Brooks |first1=David |author-link=David Brooks (cultural commentator) |title=What's the Matter With Kids Today? Not a Thing |url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/00/11/05/reviews/001105.05brookst.html |access-date=8 March 2018 |publisher=The New York Times |date=5 November 2000 |archive-date=13 January 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180113163037/http://www.nytimes.com/books/00/11/05/reviews/001105.05brookst.html |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Generation Gaps |first=Michael |last=Lind |date=January 26, 1997 |publisher=The New York Times Book Review |access-date=8 March 2018 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/97/01/26/reviews/970126.26lindlt.html?_r=1 |archive-date=9 March 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180309120456/http://www.nytimes.com/books/97/01/26/reviews/970126.26lindlt.html?_r=1 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=The Generation Gap: More Myth Than Reality |first=Frank |last=Giancola |date=1 December 2006 |publisher=Human Resource Planning |access-date=July 5, 2018 |url=https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-157194740.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180705175737/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-157194740.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 5, 2018}}</ref>

There are psychological and sociological dimensions in the sense of belonging and identity which may define a generation. The concept of a generation can be used to locate particular birth cohorts in specific historical and cultural circumstances, such as the "[[Baby boomers]]".<ref name="Biggs 2007 695–711"/> Historian Hans Jaeger shows that, during the concept's long history, two schools of thought coalesced regarding how generations form: the "pulse-rate hypothesis" and the "imprint hypothesis."<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Jaeger |first1=Hans |title=Generations in History: Reflections on a Controversial Concept |journal=History and Theory |date=1985 |volume=24 |issue=3 |pages=273–292 |url=http://www.history.ucsb.edu/faculty/marcuse/classes/201/articles/85JaegerGenInHistHISTTHEOCrOCR.pdf |doi=10.2307/2505170 |jstor=2505170 |access-date=19 December 2018 |archive-date=5 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305193145/http://www.history.ucsb.edu/faculty/marcuse/classes/201/articles/85JaegerGenInHistHISTTHEOCrOCR.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> According to the pulse-rate hypothesis, a society's entire population can be divided into a series of non-overlapping cohorts, each of which develops a unique "peer personality" because of the time period in which each cohort came of age.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Strauss |first1=William |last2=Howe |first2=Neil |title=Generations: The History of America's Future, 1584–2069 |date=1991 |publisher=Harper |location=New York}}</ref> The movement of these cohorts from one life-stage to the next creates a repeating cycle that shapes the history of that society. A prominent example of pulse-rate generational theory is Strauss and Howe's theory. Social scientists tend to reject the pulse-rate hypothesis because, as Jaeger explains, "the concrete results of the theory of the universal pulse rate of history are, of course, very modest. With a few exceptions, the same goes for the partial pulse-rate theories. Since they generally gather data without any knowledge of statistical principles, the authors are often least likely to notice to what extent the jungle of names and numbers which they present lacks any convincing organization according to generations."<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Jaeger |first1=Hans |title=Generations in History: Reflections on a Controversial Concept |journal=History and Theory |date=1885 |volume=24 |issue=3 |page=283 |url=http://www.history.ucsb.edu/faculty/marcuse/classes/201/articles/85JaegerGenInHistHISTTHEOCrOCR.pdf |access-date=19 December 2018 |archive-date=5 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305193145/http://www.history.ucsb.edu/faculty/marcuse/classes/201/articles/85JaegerGenInHistHISTTHEOCrOCR.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

Social scientists follow the "imprint hypothesis" of generations (i.e., that major historical events—such as the [[Vietnam War]], the [[September 11 attacks]], the [[COVID-19 pandemic]], etc.—leave an "imprint" on the generation experiencing them at a young age), which can be traced to Karl Mannheim's theory. According to the imprint hypothesis, generations are only produced by specific historical events that cause young people to perceive the world differently than their elders. Thus, not everyone may be part of a generation; only those who share a unique social and biographical experience of an important historical moment will become part of a "generation as an actuality."<ref>{{cite book |last= Mannheim |first= Karl | chapter= The Problem of Generations |date=1952 |title= Essays on the Sociology of Knowledge: Collected Works, Volume 5 |editor1-last = Kecskemeti | editor1-first= Paul | location= New York |publisher= Routledge |pages=276–322}}</ref> When following the imprint hypothesis, social scientists face a number of challenges. They cannot accept the labels and chronological boundaries of generations that come from the pulse-rate hypothesis (like Generation X or Millennial); instead, the chronological boundaries of generations must be determined inductively and who is part of the generation must be determined through historical, quantitative, and qualitative analysis.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hart-Brinson |first1=Peter |title=The Gay Marriage Generation: How the LGBTQ Movement Transformed American Culture |date=2018 |publisher=NYU Press |location=New York}}</ref>

While all generations have similarities, there are differences among them as well. A 2007 [[Pew Research Center]] report called "Millennials: Confident. Connected. Open to Change" noted the challenge of studying generations:

<blockquote>Generational analysis has a long and distinguished place in social science, and we cast our lot with those scholars who believe it is not only possible, but often highly illuminating, to search for the unique and distinctive characteristics of any given age group of Americans. But we also know this is not an exact science. We are mindful that there are as many differences in attitudes, values, behaviors, and lifestyles within a generation as there are between generations. But we believe this reality does not diminish the value of generational analysis; it merely adds to its richness and complexity.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Millennials. Confident, Connected. Open to Change.|editor-last1=Taylor|editor-first1=Paul|editor-last2=Keeter|editor-first2=Scott|url=http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1501/millennials-new-survey-generational-personality-upbeat-open-new-ideas-technology-bound|pages=5|date=24 February 2010|access-date=24 February 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100227045407/http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1501/millennials-new-survey-generational-personality-upbeat-open-new-ideas-technology-bound|archive-date=27 February 2010|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref></blockquote>

Another element of generational theory is recognizing how youth experience their generation, and how that changes based on where they reside in the world. "Analyzing young people's experiences in place contributes to a deeper understanding of the processes of individualization, inequality, and of generation."<ref>{{Cite book|title = Youth and Generation|last = Dan Woodman|first = Johanna Wyn|publisher = Sage|year = 2015|isbn = 9781446259047|pages = 164}}</ref> Being able to take a closer looks at youth cultures and subcultures in different times and places adds an extra element to understanding the everyday lives of youth. This allows a better understanding of youth and the way generation and place play in their development.<ref>{{Cite book|title = Youth and Generation Rethinking Change and Inequity in the Lives of Young People|last1 = Woodman|first1 = Dan|publisher = Sage Publications Ltd|year = 2015|isbn = 9781446259047|location = London|pages = 122|last2 = Wyn|first2 = Johanna}}</ref> It is not where the birth cohort boundaries are drawn that is important, but how individuals and societies interpret the boundaries and how divisions may shape processes and outcomes. However, the practice of categorizing age cohorts is useful to researchers for the purpose of constructing boundaries in their work.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Grenier |first=Amanda |title=Crossing age and generational boundaries: Exploring intergenerational research encounters |journal=Journal of Social Issues |year=2007 |volume=63 |issue=4 |pages=713–727 |doi=10.1111/j.1540-4560.2007.00532.x}}</ref>

=== Generational tension ===
{{Main|Generation gap}}
Norman Ryder writing in ''[[American Sociological Review]]'' in 1965 shed light on the [[sociology]] of the discord between generations by suggesting that society "persists despite the mortality of its individual members, through processes of demographic metabolism and particularly the annual infusion of birth cohorts". He argued that generations may sometimes be a "threat to stability" but at the same time they represent "the opportunity for social transformation".<ref>{{cite journal |last=Ryder |first=Norman |title=The cohort as a concept in the study of social change |journal=American Sociological Review |year=1965 |volume=30 |issue=6 |pages=843–861 |doi=10.2307/2090964 |jstor=2090964 |pmid=5846306}}</ref> Ryder attempted to understand the dynamics at play between generations.

Amanda Grenier in a 2007 essay published in ''[[Journal of Social Issues]]'' offered another source of explanation for why generational tensions exist. Grenier asserted that generations develop their own linguistic models that contribute to misunderstanding between age cohorts, "Different ways of speaking exercised by older and younger people exist, and may be partially explained by social historical reference points, culturally determined experiences, and individual interpretations".<ref>{{cite journal |last=Grenier |first=Amanda |title=Crossing age and generational boundaries: Exploring intergenerational research encounters |journal=Journal of Social Issues |year=2007 |volume=63 |issue=4 |page=718 |doi=10.1111/j.1540-4560.2007.00532.x}}</ref>

Karl Mannheim in his 1952 book ''Essays on the Sociology of Knowledge'' asserted the belief that people are shaped through lived experiences as a result of social change. Howe and Strauss also have written on the similarities of people within a generation being attributed to social change. Based on the way these lived experiences shape a generation in regard to values, the result is that the new generation will challenge the older generation's values, resulting in tension. This challenge between generations and the tension that arises is a defining point for understanding generations and what separates them.<ref>Mannheim, Karl. (1952) 'The problem of generations', in K. Mannheim, Essays on the Sociology of Knowledge, London: RKP</ref>