Generation in Flux, Article Review Example

In the article ‘Generation in a Flux’, Don Aucoin outlines the concept of ‘emerging adulthood’ and the idea that we now have a new phase between that of adolescence and adulthood.  This new attitude was fed by the revolutionary attitude of their parents, the baby-boomers, who were more hedonistic than previous generations. The relentless pursuit of pleasure and the good-life has transcended to the new generations.  I consider this to be an accurate representation  of current thinking. Hence it is the ‘baby bust’ generation, those that were born between 1966 and 1985 that should be heading into their prime earning years.  As such they now face the stark reality that there simply are not enough jobs to meet the demand for high paying roles.

It is the emerging aspect of  globalization  that finds  us  now entering uncharted territory.  The concept of the middle classes not starting families early and not getting saddled with property mortgages at an early age is not a new phenomenon. This attitude has prevailed in Germany for many years.  It is the emerging economies like that of India, China and Brazil where the younger people have different aspirations in terms of wanting western democratic standard of living.  A reverse trend is taking place in the middle classes, the young people are moving from rural living to that of City living causing a population explosion in the Cities.  This is attributed to a huge growth in prosperity and the younger people seeking a better quality of live in the Cities. The younger generation differ from the older generation in so far as they are less interested in owning property and land.  With the current downturn in the economy greater emphasis has been moved towards education, travel and job security.

There is little doubt that this new phase of emerging adulthood has been influenced by the behavioural lifestyles of their parents. Globalization has contributed by creating an international stage of multiculturalism where people can compete and find alternative lifestyles in different nations.  The concept of global travel has equally become more attractive and the expansion of milt-national companies has created more interesting lifestyle jobs in exotic locations.