Did we confuse generation Z?

ONE of our former lecturers reminded us that change is the only constant factor in our lives, whether we like it or not and whether it is good or not.

It was not so much breaking news because each day is different, but he emphasised that we needed to embrace change, be part of it, or help to direct the course of the change.

At that time, the situation in the country and the world was politically, economically, and socially stable.

There was no urgent need to be worried about coping with changes. It did not warrant major concern other than working towards getting a job and starting life. The templates were as simple as that.

Comparing those years and now, it is evident that the world is experiencing rapid changes much faster than two or three decades ago.

Our world is experiencing many changes driven by human activities, natural factors, geopolitical dynamics as well as social factors. Some of the changes bring new opportunities and benefits while others create new challenges, risks and confusion.

Over the past few years, the global focus has been on climate change and its attendant challenges as well as the calls to address its negative impact on humanity. This is a justified concern given the suffering caused by the impact of the climate crisis.

On the global political front, there also has been a fair share of attention to seismic geopolitical shifts that have dominated discussions. Global power is thought to be shifting from the West to the rest. The West's treatment of countries outside its bloc has prompted calls for a new world order that empowers countries to make decisions that suit their contexts. The sanctions imposed by the West on the rest and the raging wars have given impetus to these global changes.

While these changes have occupied the global centre stage, there are also major changes in the social arena that seem to be coinciding with these major changes and yet the world seems to be moving on as if it is business as usual.

The social templates that were used to raise societies in the era of the Silent Generation and Generation X are fast disintegrating thus confusing to those of Generation Z and Alpha. This is why some have described them as the confused generation.

Nothing is now socially certain about themselves and their environment. For starters, society has put them in a conundrum where they are not sure of their situation and identities save for handing that over to feelings rather than social natural ascriptions.

For the social Silent Generation and Generation X, society had a package of pre-positioned social templates used to acquaint with social life and to be quickly part of society with limited doubt. In a way, this made their lives easier as they were limited opportunities to be politically incorrect hence social conversations and debates were easy to initiate and were more progressive.

For generations Z and Alpha, life is much tougher now because nothing in their social lives is certain without an inquisition. Their gender, race, tribe and everything natural about them and their environment are now defined by feelings which creates challenges as they confront the world.

That certainty means that it is no longer easy for them to socially engage without worrying about being politically incorrect in a social world that is now driven by feelings rather than social and traditional templates and natural attributes. Nothing is what it looks like which means to engage one has to start by asking many questions.

Pronouns that we grew up using to address each other by just how people appeared to us have become major sources of annoyance and contention to the extent that before initiating a conversation one has to be sure how to address the other person. Balancing the human rights aspect of this debate and the effort required just to acquaint with the social environment is becoming restrictive and thus discouraging social engagement.

As the young generation gets immersed in these day-to-day confusions of life, when they get home, the intra-conversation is whether they deserve to endure the rigours of this new society just to be politically correct and to be accepted as a member of society or just stay at home and mind their own business.

This is seen by some analysts as creating a hermit problem where the young generation today avoids direct social engagement and prefers to do so online and in isolation, hiding away from the demanding society. They isolate, go inward, and readjust after failing to cope with the rigours of today's world. Part of the reason is also because they are financially broke.

Studies show that this is becoming a huge global social challenge that may affect the future of the world. Imagine raising a stay-at-home generation of adults who are incapable of socialising face-to-face and yet they are expected to influence national and global policies.

Recent studies show that one in three younger Britons are socialising less, while in Australia, 71% of Generation Z and millennials have reduced going out with most of these rarely going out to socialise other than for family errands and business activities. In one Asian country, they are proposing paying a monthly allowance just to encourage youth to go out, socialise and integrate with society.

----Tapiwa Gomo is a development consultant based in Pretoria, South Africa. He writes here in his personal capacity.