Gen Y is becoming Gen 'I, me, myself'

According to a study described in the new issue of the ‘Journal of Personality and Social Psychology’, which compares the traits of young people (Gen Y) in high school and those entering college today with Gen X at the same age from 1966 to 2009, shows an increasing trend of valuing money, image and fame more than self-acceptance, affiliation and community.

According to the study’s authors Jean M. Twenge, professor at San Diego State University; Elise C.

Freeman, a graduate research associate at the same university; and W. Keith Campbell, a professor at University of Georgia, the results support the ‘Generation Me’ view rather than the ‘Generation We.’  Though the study confines itself to young Americans, it is as relevant in the Indian scenario as well.

Anupama Wadhwa, a 30-something mother of two teenagers agrees with the findings, “In today’s generation, identity stems from who or what they are. This is the trend amongst today’s kids.

I live with my extended family and we have youngsters of all age groups – in school and colleges and almost uniformly, they are not very concerned about the world around them. Their focus lies in performing well, earning money and doing well for themselves.”

The youngsters, on their part, justify the reasons for choosing to be self-serving. Mitali Katoch, III year student of B.Arch, studying in University School of Architecture and Planning, Delhi says, “My parents (both of whom are doctors) used to stay in hostels and were never forced to attend family weddings, birthdays and meet up with relatives. But I am expected to do so because I am at home and at times, Dad even says, ‘Why do you want to be so secluded?

You think you are a hotel room and not staying in a house.’ Days go by when we don’t even get to see each other because of our respective work, but I feel that every one of us goes through a phase of trying to balance life, work and friends and I am sure they went through it too. My focus is right now is my studies.

There are times when we just want to hang out with friends but they keep asking me to be back by a certain time. The pressure is just too much. See, everything is moving towards the fact that we have to work in life. So we have to think like that too.” 

Jean Twenge, the lead author of the study, believes otherwise. In a book on millennium children, Generation Me: Why Today’s Young Americans Are More Confident, Assertive, Entitled – and More Miserable Than Ever Before, she says, “I see no evidence that today’s young people feel much attachment to duty or to group cohesion. Young people have been consistently taught to put their own needs first and to focus on feeling good about themselves.”

Parth Sharma, a II year English Hons. Student of Kirorimal College, University of Delhi, says, “There is immense pressure to perform and perform well. That is a major criteria. Isn’t everybody self-centered? Even elders are involved in themselves so what’s wrong if children are focused on themselves too? There is so much pressure on us to start earning.

Unless you are really rich, why would you want to work? But we have prepare for future. I am not saying that youngsters are not self-serving in the way you mean, but those kids are not assets to society but liabilities. We are not self-serving out of choice but because of our situation and circumstances.”

While elders may worry that the trend doesn’t augur well for times to come, churn out as it might the I, Me, Myself adults, the future does lie with these youngsters who may in time become conscious of their larger purpose in life.