"In fact, Gen Z might just be the most risk-averse generation on record. Fewer Gen Zers got a driver’s license, drank alcohol, or had sex as teenagers than their parents did. The same young adults now report skyrocketing rates of anxiety and other mental illnesses, with some estimates finding that as many as 1 in 5 18-to-24-year-olds have been diagnosed with depression. Timidity—not to mention self-conscious neuroticism—is increasingly the norm.
“An ongoing study from Montclair State University argues that some of this risk aversion is due to the current political climate—or perhaps young people’s perception of it. “Gen Z’s mental health has deteriorated due to a worldview that the society and environment around them are crumbling,” writes justice studies professor Gabriel Rubin. “Rights are being taken away, the Earth is burning, maniacs could kill you with a gun, and viruses could shut down society again.””
See also, for counterpoint: https://www.forbes.com/sites/markcperna/2024/06/18/gen-z-thriving-entrepreneurship/
Weird grouping with Gen Z being 3 years older than the max
But the way they use the computer and internet shows they aren’t risk adverse, just different risks
The anxiety is probably because like millennials, they’ve been told the world is ending their whole lives and instead of doing anything about it we’ve just made the middle class poor
Don’t forget the rapid fire misinformation they are addicted too. Manipulation is off the charts
People like Tate and Peterson have done immeasurable damage to Gen Z… Instagram was deeply damaging to women’s mental health but the manosphere has done damage that will probably never be undone.
Millennials were not told that. Millennials grew up on in the golden era and then it all fell apart on them when they became adults. They were raised on high hopes.
I mean… I’m 29 and grew up being told that everything my parents enjoyed would literally never be a reality for me. I was 14 when the economy crashed in 2008 and 17 when gas prices first started spiking and never went down. I had to take out a $40k loan just for 1 year of university when my parents had the chance to graduate nearly debt-free and use their summer jobs to qualify for a mortgage.
Maybe you’re thinking of Gen X or something, because I really wouldn’t consider 1995-2015 (roughly the time when Millennials were coming of age) a golden era.
Kyoto protocol was 1997, and that was just extending a climate treaty from 1992
You’re thinking of boomers