#trends #DigitalAge #crime #technology
Youth culture has become less violent, less promiscuous and more responsible.
So writes New York Times columnist Ross Douthat.
He wrote that American childhood is safer than ever before, as teens drink less and smoke less than previous generations.
Violent crime, a young person’s temptation, had fallen for 25 years before the recent post-Ferguson homicide increase, he writes, in a column published Aug. 23, 2016, in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
At the same time, he writes, adulthood has become less responsible, “les obviously adult.” For the first time in more than a century, more 20-somethings live with parents than in any other arrangement.
Certainly, the recession of 2008 contributed to that. But Douthat also points out that the helicopter parent phenomenon, in which parents hover over their children by doing things the children should be doing for themselves, has contributed to the slower maturation process.
Douthat attributes these two trends to technology. “This mix of youthful safety and adult immaturity may be a feature of life in a society increasingly shaped by the Internet’s virtual realities,” he writes.
Let’s explore Douthat’s hypothesis.
When kids spend hours playing video games and otherwise sitting at computers, they are not out getting into trouble. At the same time, they are not out seeing what real life is all about.
A number of experts have written and spoken about the different groups in the workforce, with older workers, millennials and Gen-Xers all needing different things, and all motivated by different things.
But if you are among the older crowd, imagine hiring a 20-something who not only had never had a job, but also hardly had been out of the house in their formative years.
Imagine, too, the experts telling you that YOU have to change the way you do things to accommodate these kids.
Train them the way you were trained, they say, and they won’t last.
Not only are there psychological and mental differences in these kids, many are physically incapable of qualifying for many jobs. The police, fire and military usually have openings, but even if you bring back the draft, many of the recruits are not physically capable of enduring the rigor of military training. You’d probably kill them, literally, before you whipped them into shape.
Think, too, of the social aspects these kids bring. It’s tough to go out on dates when you are sitting at a computer for much of your life.
Of course, not all kids are like that. Some are ambitious, and are looking at bright futures. While others are taught to settle, they dream of what could be if they work for it.
If you are one of those kids, there are many options out there to fulfill those dreams. To check out one of the best, message me. You might come across a story of an 18-year-old high school senior who made more money than any of his teachers.
Technology is both good and bad for us. It is up to us, at every age, to take full advantage of the good while overcoming the bad. Young people must learn skills that will give them a leg up in the work force, while, at the same time, getting up, getting active and interacting live with friends, family and others.
Peter