Managing the Millennials

CHAPTER 2

AREN’T WE ALL JUST THE SAME?

Society persists despite the mortality of its individual members, through process of demographic metabolism and particularly the annual infusion of birth cohorts. These may pose a threat to stability, but they also provide the opportunity for societal transformation.

—Norman Ryder

SO WHAT? ISN’T EVERY GENERATION THE SAME?

When speaking about our research, we often face skeptics who ask, “Aren’t Millennials the same as every other generation? Don’t they challenge the status quo, push boundaries, and engage in an experimental lifestyle just as every generation did in its youth?”¹ The answer to the second question is obviously “yes,” but that does not mean the answer to the first is too. Separating these two questions allows us to provide a useful response.

Sometimes the best answer to a question is another question. Think about this: Due to technology, Millennials are the first generation that does not need an authority figure to access information. Do you think that may shape how they relate to authority figures or how tacit knowledge gets transferred?

Maturational Theory

An obvious starting point for giving a meaningful answer to our skeptics is with maturational theory, the traditional belief that people change, mature, and develop their values, attitudes, and preferences as a function of age. As visual acuity, crawling, walking, and speaking are all the normative result of growing up or aging, so are attitudes and values. By observing ...