Millennials Rising : The Next Great Generation

Rating:
Summary: A fascinating, although not wholly convincing, study
Review: "Millennials Rising: The Next Great Generation," by Neil Howe and William Strauss, attempts to explain the generation of people born between 1982 and 2002. The authors label this group the Millennials; according to the authors' model, the Millennials follow Generation X (born between 1961 and 1981), the Boomers (1943-60), the Silent Generation (1925-42), and others in a chain of definable generations that stretches back for centuries.

The authors look at some of the cultural forces that have shaped (and, increasingly, are being shaped by) the Millennials. They consider the increasing emphasis on multiculturalism; the impact of "Kinderpolitics," or child-centered politics, on Millennial lives; the school uniform movement; Millennial pop-culture favorites like Harry Potter and Pokemon; the "boy band" surge; the impact of the Columbine massacre; and more.

Ultimately, the authors make some bold predictions. They claim that the Millennials will likely become the latest in a series of "hero generations" that occur every few generations (the last hero generation, according to the authors, was the G.I. Generation, born 1901-1924). They also predict a "Millennial makeover" of American popular culture in the first decade of the 21st century.

The book is fascinating and informative. But the authors' essential conceptual model and conclusions are problematic. It seems to me that the whole "generational" model is an artificial (and, at worst, stereotype-driven) way to break people into easily-labeled groups. In fact, I think things are a lot more complex than the authors seem to believe.

Still, the book is engrossing reading. It was actually recommended to me by a distinguished U.S. Army officer who suggested that the book could give military leaders insights into the wave of young people currently entering the armed services. I believe that many other professionals could also benefit from a critical reading of this book.

The book is full of fascinating sidebar quotes from many sources: periodicals ("U.S. News and World Report," "Spin," etc.); government officials and politicians (Donna Shalala, Bob Dole, etc.); film dialogue ("Cruel Intentions," "Rushmore," etc.); song lyrics (Christina Aguilera's "Genie in a Bottle," Hanson's "MMMBop," etc,); TV show dialogue ("Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Malcolm in the Middle," etc.); cultural critics and commentators (Camille Paglia, Bill Maher, etc.); and other sources.

Throughout the book are funny and incisive cartoons by R.J. Matson. Charts and poll data also add to the book's appeal. Unfortunately, the lack of an index is a negative point. "Millennials Rising" is not without its problems, but it's definitely worth reading.

Rating:
Summary: Next is Generation Z?
Review: One gets the feeling from reading some of these books on generational differences that the authors have uncovered a goldmind of potential enless dimensions. The authors have devised a "Generation Y" rubric, which leaves them with "Generation Z" to come next, and then in the marvels of listings, back to "Generation AA", "BB," and so on. Books such as this say the obvious, but in such a way that jacket blurb writers can find a sentence or two to pull up and extol.

Rating:
Summary: No.
Review: This book is ridiculous. Sure they have stats. Of four high schools in ONE county in Virginia. Companies DO need to change thier policies but not by following this book. Biased and confined to one social demographic. Also check for a more recent book a lot has happened since 2000. The book says that this generation (MY generation by the way) will offer and expect loyality from thier companies. That might have been true BEFORE Enron. It also says that this generation respects authority and has faith in the government. Well. After seeing our government fail spectacularly on Sept. 11...
Check for a more updated book. We've changed.

Rating:
Summary: A fascinating, although not wholly convincing, study
Review: "Millennials Rising: The Next Great Generation," by Neil Howe and William Strauss, attempts to explain the generation of people born between 1982 and 2002. The authors label this group the Millennials; according to the authors' model, the Millennials follow Generation X (born between 1961 and 1981), the Boomers (1943-60), the Silent Generation (1925-42), and others in a chain of definable generations that stretches back for centuries.

The authors look at some of the cultural forces that have shaped (and, increasingly, are being shaped by) the Millennials. They consider the increasing emphasis on multiculturalism; the impact of "Kinderpolitics," or child-centered politics, on Millennial lives; the school uniform movement; Millennial pop-culture favorites like Harry Potter and Pokemon; the "boy band" surge; the impact of the Columbine massacre; and more.

Ultimately, the authors make some bold predictions. They claim that the Millennials will likely become the latest in a series of "hero generations" that occur every few generations (the last hero generation, according to the authors, was the G.I. Generation, born 1901-1924). They also predict a "Millennial makeover" of American popular culture in the first decade of the 21st century.

The book is fascinating and informative. But the authors' essential conceptual model and conclusions are problematic. It seems to me that the whole "generational" model is an artificial (and, at worst, stereotype-driven) way to break people into easily-labeled groups. In fact, I think things are a lot more complex than the authors seem to believe.

Still, the book is engrossing reading. It was actually recommended to me by a distinguished U.S. Army officer who suggested that the book could give military leaders insights into the wave of young people currently entering the armed services. I believe that many other professionals could also benefit from a critical reading of this book.

The book is full of fascinating sidebar quotes from many sources: periodicals ("U.S. News and World Report," "Spin," etc.); government officials and politicians (Donna Shalala, Bob Dole, etc.); film dialogue ("Cruel Intentions," "Rushmore," etc.); song lyrics (Christina Aguilera's "Genie in a Bottle," Hanson's "MMMBop," etc,); TV show dialogue ("Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Malcolm in the Middle," etc.); cultural critics and commentators (Camille Paglia, Bill Maher, etc.); and other sources.

Throughout the book are funny and incisive cartoons by R.J. Matson. Charts and poll data also add to the book's appeal. Unfortunately, the lack of an index is a negative point. "Millennials Rising" is not without its problems, but it's definitely worth reading.

Rating:
Summary: Glimpse of Things to Come
Review: Strauss and Howe have written a book that is very much in tune with the trends currently occupying today's teens. Oddly enough, much of the criticism on this review page stems from a lack of ability to COMPARE generations. Students who cannot see a contrast between youth ten or twenty years ago and youth today cannot fully comprehend the change that has happened.

Indeed, the people who appreciate the concept of Millennials best are educators. Educators who have been in education for some time have noticed the shift and are the best people to consult on how youth culture has changed. Interestingly, it is these educators who have given the book the most positive reviews.

The change is very real. While I understand concern about not wnating to "label" a large group of people, the trends are undeniable. SAT scores, international test comparisons, teen crime, teen pregnancy, drug usage. With a few exceptions and statistical aberations, and media frenzies around horrific spectacles like Columbine, the trends are wholly positive. All are improving. While still not at the levels that they should be, the TREND is the important aspect of the theory. Unlike Boomers, Millennails a generation of improving trends and youngest members will be "better" than the older ones. Contrast this with Boomers -- who through their entire youth brought about a 17-year slide in SAT scores, worsening crime, and explosive drug use.

But the message of Strauss and Howe is the thing that is most often misunderstood. The authors are not calling for fascist regimentation of today's teens, but rather, a LOOSENING of that regimentation. They merely want pundits, the media, and the culture to appreciate today's youth as wholesome. A generation to be encouraged, not scorned. And certainly not one that should be held down by EXCESSIVE zero tolerance and testing policies. Far from calling for more regimentation, the book is pointing out the excesses of the Millennial's elders.

I highly recommend this book -- an excellent portrayal of what's going on in today's changing youth culture.

Rating:
Summary: Three years later and the analysis holds
Review: I've used info from Millennials Rising in the classroom (MBA marketing) and in my marketing consulting practice, and I can tell you that the premise resonates with Xers and Boomers who live and work with Millennials. Yes, these kids are REALLY different from previous generations--in many ways better, in a few others disappointing--but this book is critical to identifying and understanding those differences. Think, for example, about how A&F has failed to connect with today's youth after dominating the post-teen clothing market for a decade--actually, their sales dove just as the first Millennials went off to college. Understanding generational change is extremely important to marketers and I highly recommend this book to anyone whose business targets certain age demographics.

Rating:
Summary: Stop! Check everything in here first!
Review: Caution: Please be sure to check every fact in this book independently and do not take any statistic at face value! I advise you all to verify what you read in here with outside sources and make sure to check out the whole story on the various teen problems, attitudes and trends that are covered in this book, because many facts are taken out of context. For instance, unwed teen pregnancies are up and have actually been rising for a long time. Although Strauss & Howe note that teen pregnancy is down, the number of teen births outside of marriage is up and the drop in all teen pregnancies has only been caused by a large decline in births to teens who are actually MARRIED, the net loss in married births each year outnumbering the net gain in out-of-wedlock births from the previous year enough to keep the total number down. Those who would think that conventional and approved behavior has returned as the norm among teens after looking at teen pregnancy statistics would be well equipped to know that the traditionalist institutions of marriage and no premarital sex are not being held to at all in this sphere.

The number of teen deaths from drug overdoses has actually increased from the years Xers were teens to today with Millennial teens, even though S&H would have you believe that Millennials are cleaning up everything that was done by Generation X and are becoming more clean-cut and obedient of the rules any way you slice it. They are 50% higher than the rates in the mid-90's when later Xers were teens. In fact, although you'll hear in this book that teens are becoming suddenly very different from Generation X, Gen-Xers have created almost the entire redemption of the dip in the SAT average that was created by Boomers (right up to an average of 1017), and teen suicide has been falling without any temporary setbacks or reversions since the 1970's -- it seems that Gen-X youth has been a generation of improvements, even though S&H speak of Millennials needing to reverse decades of "worsening" by Baby Boomers and Generation X. While any one statement in this book looked at alone may seem to some people like a conclusive corroboration that needs no elaboration, of a central gospel of a consistently conventional, well-behaved, well-achieving adolescent generation, the information in here should not be taken to heart unless you are going to research each topic in full detail, from the original sources (hospital reports, FBI crime statistic summaries, U.S. census tables, etc.) first, and even then a single fact may not be certain to prove a thesis of an entire generational direction. So before you look at that teen pregnancy graph and say "Hey! They're on to something! There's no way anything in this book can be false!", listen to the skeptical little voice inside you first.

Rating:
Summary: So todays kids are all squares according to this book
Review: First of all, the only viewpoint I see of this book is very lilly-white suburbanite, you know, the stereotypical soccer mom with her family van, baby on board stickers, kids in car seats until they are teenagers, soft names for boys (Tyler, Josh, Justin, Tristan), extracurricular activities, etc. This was well meaning, but I hate to say that just doesn't seem to be the case in a lot of areas. Then again, you have to remember the kids born in the 1980's and afterwards were coming of age when there was increased awareness in child abuse and kidnappings and acceptance of "alternate lifestyles" became more common. That's why teenagers today hide themselves in changing rooms, as the author stated. I wouldn't give 10 cents to be a kid or teenager in todays world. Everytime I go to my sons school during classtime to pick him up or drop something off, it's like I'm stepping into a forbidden territory and have to watch every move.
Give it another 10 years and we'll see if the kids are really better now, as adults.

Rating:
Summary: The New Kids On the Block
Review: William Strauss and Neil Howe continue with their theories about history being affected by different generations because of the the way the generations are raised behave a certain way. This time they focus on the youthful Millennial generation which they say will be quite unlike Gen X or the Boomers. They say they will be more conformist and better behaved than these other generations because they have been raised in a heavily monitored environment in which team playing is emphasized. Their weakness may be that they could be become big brother's dream children since they may be unable to think or act independently from the group, even when their peer group may be going in the wrong direction.

Strauss and Howe's theories seem to have justification, but there are other theories that historians and social scientists have come up with and the authors do not address the validity of these theories very much. One being that a civilization rises to its peak with traditional values and then falls apart gradually by rejecting these traditional values for new gods and liberalism. It would have been interesting to have them react to such a theory. I also thought that by not addressing other theories of civilizational history, it made their some of their comments on the increasing multiculturalization of America seem naive at times. Given the previous theory I have mentioned, such multiculturation of America will cause its decline, not improve it.

This book is one of their more entertaining books that I have read by them. They have sidebar comments from millennials and about millennials that are amusing and interesting much of the time. They also have funny cartoons about millennials throughout the book. This makes the book more interesting than other books of social analysis.

Strauss and Howe say that the millennials will be the next hero generation that may be asked to fight another total war. That may be so, but in a way, I hope not. The more I study history, the more I learn that the wars we fight are usually total rackets and unjustified, no matter how much they are glorified afterwards because our soldiers sacrifice themselves in them. True heroic citizens stay informed and skeptical and make sure that the government is not hoodwinking them into another useless war.

That being said this is still a useful book and I use the authors' theories all the time when analyzing events, social institutions, and the arts and entertainment.

Rating:
Summary: Informative yet still Encouraging
Review: This book deals with a difficult topic of labeling a Generation "on the whole" with character traits and memories, in a generation raised by parents whose goal in parenting was specifically to raise individuals! Nevertheless, these authors have done a great job of summing up valuable information, statistics, and feedback from all age-groups on the topics of millenials. If you are just getting into the "Millenial generation" this book is excellent, especially if you don't feel you need to be told yet again how negative these kids are, how dangerous, how doomed, and how unredeemable they are. You've probably heard all that before on the evening news anyway.