Characteristics of “Generation WE”

Generation WE (also called the Millennials), the biggest, most diverse, and best-educated age cohort in the history of the nation, are prepared to exert their influence in this year’s presidential race and in the political, social and environmental sectors.

According to a new 2007/2008 Gerstein | Agne Strategic Communications research study, sponsored by entrepreneur Eric H. Greenberg, the Millennials_- – those born between 1978 and 2000, currently including 95 million young people up to 30 years of age — are very different from the Baby Boomers (78 million by comparison) and Gen-Xers and are already creating a new politics and social dynamic in America. Politics as usual is not an option for Generation WE, who project to be 100 million strong by 2015. The in-depth national survey of 2,000 individuals aged 18 to 29 along with a series of 12 focus groups offers a revealing snapshot into the values and attitudes of the Millennials.

Characteristics of Millennials:

• Millennials are post-ideological because they are uninterested in learning about and defending the “conservative” or “liberal” approaches to the problems our country faces. However, although they reject both traditional ideological labels, they are shifting decisively away from conservatism. In 2002, Millennials voted Democratic by a 49-47 margin. Since then, their progressive tilt has steadily increased. Their votes made the 2004 presidential race close and decisively tipped the 2006 Congressional elections, with 18-29 year olds favoring Democrats 60-38.

• The worldview of the Millennial generation is shaped by two unique dynamics. The first is a commitment to the greater good over individual gain, an ethos that reaches across traditional divisions such as race, ideology, and partisanship.

• Millennials are highly involved in community and national life, as shown by the increase in the under-30 electoral turnout. In the 2004 election, Census data indicate that the 18-24 year old group, completely composed of Millennials, increased their turnout 11 points to 47 percent of citizens in that age group, while 18-29 year olds — dominated for the first time by Millennials — increased their turnout 9 points to 49 percent. These increases were far, far higher than among any other age group.

• Millennials display an across-the-board rejection of the country’s current leadership and dominant
  institutions. Whether it’s Congress, the federal government, major corporations, or organized religion, these young Americans believe the large institutions that dominate modern society have failed, placing narrow self-interests ahead of the welfare of the country as a whole.

• Despite their harsh assessment of the current state of affairs and leadership, Millennials are not pessimistic about the future and have a clear sense of generational identity. Ninety percent of the survey’s respondents agreed that their generation “shares specific beliefs, attitudes, and experiences” that set them apart from generations that have come before them. They also feel a very strong kinship with young adults of their generation abroad (70 percent), which contrasts with the connection they have with generations of older Americans.

• They believe that new leadership can transform government and corporations. Millennials have the entrepreneurial belief that they can innovate themselves out of the troubled world they’re inheriting and the future challenges they face. That task begins with the unique role of technology has had in shaping this generation and the confidence it has given them in the power of innovation to fundamentally change the world.

• Nearly 50% of the survey’s Millennial respondents cited “the rise of the Internet, cell phones, text messaging, e-mail, and similar advances in personal technology” as the primary influence shaping the attitudes and beliefs of their generation. Technology as an integral part of their lives was the most influential factor of fourteen tested in the research shaping the generation.

The full survey, the focus group transcripts, and detailed demographic and psychographic analysis will be available on a new web site GEN- WE.com. In addition to the Millennial survey, Mr. Greenberg has co-written a book with New York Times-bestselling author Karl Weber entitled, Generation We: How Millennial Youth Are Taking Over America and Changing Our World Forever, (Pachatusan; available mid-October).

Source: Generation WE