English 102-205: Analyzing Generational Differences and Teen Problems

This essay examines the significant differences in lifestyle and environment between present and past generations, focusing on the unique problems faced by contemporary teenagers. Issues such as cyberbullying, social media insecurities, and job-related anxieties, are explored, highlighting the mis...Read More

Tong Wu
Molly Ubbesen
English 102-205
July 13, 2018
A12
The lifestyle as well as the environment of the world has changed in a significant manner over
the years and this has affected in a significant manner the kind of life which the people of the
present generation lead. Technology, recent innovation and the change in the attitude as well as
the thinking pattern of the people and others have contributed in a significant to bring about this
change. Thus, it is generation that the lifestyle of the people of the present generation, especially
the teenagers, is drastically different from the lifestyle of the people and the teenagers of the
earlier generations. However, with this change in lifestyle the problems which the teenagers of
the present generation, especially the teenagers have to face are starkly different from the
problems faced by the teenagers of the earlier generations. As a matter of fact, some of the
problems like cyber bulling, social media insecurities, job related issues and others which the
teenagers of the present generation had to deal with were unheard of among the teenagers of the

earlier generations. It is a general misconception of the people that the recent changes have
greatly simplified the lives of the teenagers however that is not the case.
My intended goal in this paper is to show the problems which the present generation of teenagers
face in comparison to the teenagers of the earlier generations. The paper will also try to shed
light on the generational gap which exists between the teenagers of the present generation and
the teenagers of the earlier generations while explaining at the same time the possible reasons for
the same. The paper will also take the help of various sources and will give an outline of these
sources to drive home the point which I am trying to make. I have a personal interest in this
particular concept since I also belong to the same group of teenagers who are facing the kinds of
problems which were unheard of in the earlier times. My interest in the topic therefore is a
personal one and stems from my personal experiences and the problems which I face as a
teenager belonging to the current generation.
I studied in America for a long time, people in this country are very liberal and can proactively
express their opinion as well as the way they feel about certain things. In addition to this, it is
generally seen that the people from various generations interact freely with each other and as a
result the generational gap is not much of a factor in this particular regard. I would like to add in
this particular context that my parents and other members of my family and others in my social
circle are very supportive of me and they generally stand by the decisions which I have made and
even totally respect them. Furthermore, they totally appreciate the problems which I face because
of the changes in the landscape of the world and even help me to come with relevant solutions
which are likely to help me to get over them.
Unemployment is perhaps one of the major problems which the teenagers belonging to the
present generation face. It is true that the number of companies as well as business organizations

in the present times have increased in a significant manner than they were in the earlier times
however the population of the world has at the same time also increased in a significant manner.
Social media and other electronic media issues are another significant problem which the present
generation youths face. Social media have become an indispensible part of the present day
youths and it provides various kinds of benefits to them. However, at the same time there are
various negative aspects of the usage of social media as well cyber bullying, hate crimes and
others which the youths need to deal with. Family issues are another significant problem which
the youths need to take care of. This particular problem mainly arises because of the generational
gap which exists between the parents and their children.
The article “How Teens Today Are Different From Past Generations” by
Greatergood.berkeley.edu focuses on the concept of generational gap between the people of the
older generation and the teenagers belonging to the present generation. The author states that one
of the major reasons for the generational gap which exists between the people belonging to the
older generation and the teenagers of the present generation is because of the self-centeredness of
the youths of the present generation. The article “How Teens are different from Past
Generations” focusses on how the generation of the present age is formed owing to the social
along with the political events. The lives of the teenagers are greatly impacted by the advent of
mobile technology along with the social media (Greatergood.berkeley.edu.). The source
elaborates on the role that new media has played in making the teenagers depressed and anxious.
Is it the cell phones and the use of the internet that is driving the youth of the present generation
towards depression? Is the spending of around six hours by texting and web surfing is leading to
their mental health problem? The national rise of the mental health problems of the teenagers can
be said to be synonymous with market penetrating of that of the i-Phone. The source throws light

on the fact that the students who enter the college at the present times are afraid of making
mistakes as they have been over-parented. The teenagers of the present age are close to that of
their parents but “income inequality that demoralizes their hopes for the future”. The inequality
that the young generation perceive causes havoc in their life and is a cause of misery of their life.
The authors Sharlene Gale and Graeme Codington in the article “Facing the Youth in the
21st Century” has however talked about a different aspect pertaining to the young generation.
They have talked about obesity and state that this is one of the major problems which are being
faced by the teenagers of the present generation which was not being faced by the people
belonging to the older generation (Sharlene and Graeme). According to these authors, obesity
disrupts the mental equilibrium of the young generation that the people of the previous
generation did not have to face. The authors attribute this particular fact to the insistence of the
teenagers belonging to the present generation to eat more fast foods as well as readymade foods
unlike the people of the older generation who used to depend on the homemade foods. Sharlene
and Codington said that “this is one of the reasons for the ever decreasing life span of the present
generation people”. The author further states that the teenagers of the present generation do not
take much heed of the opinions as well as the suggestions of the people belonging to the other
generation and are highly confident about themselves and this has contributed in a significant
manner towards the generational gap that exists between them. This source provides a clear idea
about the concept of generation and I believe that an understanding of this particular concept is
important before we can undertake to understand the problems faced by the teenagers of the
present generation in comparison to the people of the older generation and the causes for it. The
article, “Facing the Youth in the 21st century” talks about obesity and how it leads to health
repurcussions for the teenagers of the present generation. The source has brought to light the fact

that the eating of more fast food decreases the lifespan of the teenagers. The teenagers of the
present time depends a lot on fast food in contrast to the previous generations who relied on the
home-made food. This source brings out the fact that the eating of the foods that are unhealthy
have an impact on their mental health. The youth of the present age is more aggressive and they
do not pay heed to the opinions of the elders. This source has focused on the aspects related to
health that the youth of the present generation have to face. It elaborates on how the unhealthy
eating and living of the young generation of the present age shortens the lifespan of the people.
The authors Richard, Fry, Ruth Igielnik and Eileen Patten in the article “How Millennials
today compare with their grandparents 50 years ago” dwell on the problem of unemployment
which is being faced by the present generation people. It is generally seen that the people
belonging to the current generation are more educated than the previous generations and in a way
more skilled. Yet they are being unable to find adequate jobs as per their qualifications and this
has contributed in a significant manner towards the large number of problems which they face in
the present times. Furthermore, the authors are of the opinion that the introduction of women
folks in the workforce has greatly enhanced the level of competition and this has adversely
affected the prospects of many teenagers. Thus, the primary reason for the particular problem
faced by the teenagers of the present generation can be attributed to the unhealthy food which
they consume. The article, “How Millenials today compare with their grandparents 50 years ago”
focusses on the fact that the young adult of the present time are better educated as compared to
the “silent generation”. Silent Generation indicates a group of old Americans who are like
grandparents. It was found that among the silent generation women there was only a meagre 9 %
who had completed the four years at college (Pewresearch.org.). The source can be a very
valuable piece of information as it suggests that the millennial women have 36 % completed

their college education. The article brings out the fact that millennial men prove to be better in
terms of education than that of the earlier generation of the young men. The article brings to
focus the fact that in that of the past half-century a large share of the men and the women have
been able to earn a degree. It has been found that 57 % of that of the millennial did not get
married that points to the societal shift in relation to marriage. This article has helped in
providing the statistics pertaining to millennial and the silent generation that has helped in
revealing important aspects related to the changes that have taken place in the society. Moreover,
Fry, Igielnik and Patten are of the opinion that the primary reason for the problems faced by the
teenagers of the present generation is “become they are more detached from major institutions
such as political parties, religion, the military and marriage”. The problem of obesity is another
major problem faced by the teenagers of the present generation which was not faced by the
teenagers of the earlier generations.
The article “Madhuka published in Test big site in the year December 2013” in the
similar strain as that of the article by Richard, Ruth and Eileen dwells on the problem of
unemployment faced by the people of the present generation and states that unlike the earlier
times when having adequate educational qualifications and skills was enough to get a good job it
is not so in the present times. Furthermore, the article also states that the increasing population of
the world has also added in a significant towards the level of competition faced by these
teenagers in field of job procurement. Unemployment is one of the major problems faced by the
teenagers of the present generation and the article considers the increase in the population of the
world as one of the major reasons for the increasing rate of unemployment among the teenagers
of the present generation. The article of Madhuka is a greatly useful piece of information that
talks about the young people acting as an asset for that of the country. The source states that

young generation of the present age have to experience more difficulty as compared to their
predecessors. The life of the young people have become a lot more complicated in the present
age and the socio-economic issues of the present time compels the youth to face a lot of mental
turmoil (Testbig.com). The socio-economic issue like unemployment disturbs the teenagers and
they take recourse to drugs and alcohol to alleviate their mental turmoil. This source talks about
how academic success can help an individual in getting a well-paid job. The stress that the
present generation feels on account of the competition has consequences in relation to their
mental health. Is education the main cause for frustration of the young generation? The increased
population along with the socio-economic changes have wreaked havoc on the life of the young
generation. This source has talked about “substantial growth in elderly population” that has
created pressure among that of the young people. The youth in the present time find it
burdensome to provide food and health care to that of the elderly population.
The author Derek Thompson in the article “Are Today's Youth Really a Lost
Generation?” refers to the teenagers belonging to the present generation as a lost generation. The
author also states that the present generation of teenagers had to face a lot of problems which
were not faced by the people belonging to the older generation. The viewpoint of this article is
similar to the previous two articles by Madhuka and Richard, Ruth and Eileen. Thomson has
stated that “Young people are struggling in record numbers to find work, leave home, and start a
family, according to 2010 Census figures released today”. This is one of the major problems
which the people belonging to the present generation face the people of the older generation did
not face in their time. The article, “Are Today’s Youth Really a Lost Generation” elaborates on
the struggle that the young people have to go through so that they can find suitable work and
they can start their family. The source talks about the Great Recession and how it has an impact

on the three generation- Gen- Y, Gen- X and that of the boomers. The boomers have to face that
of the wealth crisis and the Gen-X on the other hand has to face the crisis related to income. The
Recession has hit hard their income and threatened that of their pension (Theatlantic.com.). The
Gen-Y on the other hand is concerned about the future since they are not able to make money
that will have consequences in their later life. The present age suffers from the brunt of economic
problems and the men who have got low education attainment have to witness the falling of their
real income that can cause them great amount of frustration. The article has documented how the
Americans who are looking for some kind of work in the arena of manufacturing and IT will find
their positions under threat that can hamper them greatly. The volatile market of the present age
have lead to the crash of the stock market that is a cause of severe concern for the young people.

The authors Carroll Jennie and others in the article “Problems faced by the youth today.
The youth of today has been widely outclassed “dwell on the generational gap which exists
between the people belonging to the older generation and the teenagers belonging to the present
generation and the problem which inevitably arises because of this. The major factor which
contributes to this particular generational gap and the resultant problems faced by the teenagers
is the communication gap which exists between them. Carroll et al. has stated that “The main
problem is the communication gap between them and their elders — the former believing
themselves to be old enough for taking their own decisions for matters personal or social while
the latter just refuse to hand over this responsibility to them”. It provides the reasons for the
problems faced by the teenagers of the present generation which were not being faced by the
teenagers of the earlier generations.Teenagers have developed their own mechanism to take care
of the problems which they face and do not really believe in taking the help of the people
belonging to the older generation. It provides an overview of the manner in which the teenagers
of the present generation try to overcome the problems faced by them. The article, “Problems
faced by the youth today” highlights on the role that communication gap plays in creating a
difference between the teenagers and their parents. The resistance that the teenagers get from
their parents is a cause of the rift between them. This source draws our attention to the issue of
peer pressure that often leads then to disobey the elders who want to provide advice to them
(Dawn.com.). Another important facet that is revealed by this article is that the young people
who are not have the money for going to school are often forced into the ugly world of child
labour that has a tremendous effect on their mental condition. Is it not being bothered with
politics that makes the children vulnerable to the anti-social activity? This source has aptly
pointed out about the role that issues related to love play in destroying their life and render them

to be mentally unfit. The article talks about the heightened role that peer pressure plays that
compels the teenagers to become more competitive and they want to create an image about
themselves in front of the world (Ali et al.). The lines in the article, “Some people are naturally
competitive and they strive to act in ways that could help settle their 'image' either to impress or
intimidate others” points out to this fact. This article lays emphasis on the role that time can play
in the life of an individual and it is important to learn things at the early stage of life so that they
do not have to face any issues later on.
To conclude, the problems faced by the teenagers of the present generation are more in
number than the problems faced by the teenagers of the earlier generations. There are various
reasons for this particular aspect like the advancements in the field of technology, landscape and
others however the major one is the communication barrier which exists between the teenagers
and the older people. This communication gap can easily be bridged over by little effort from
both sides. Therefore, it would be apt to say that the problems faced by the teenagers of the
present though more numerous can be solved by effective cooperation with the people belonging
to the older generation. It can be said that the young generation of the present age have to face a
lot of problems owing to social along with the political events. The emergence of mobile
technology has complicated the lives of the young people and it has damaged their mental health.
It can hence be concluded from the research that employment can help the young people in
maintaining their mental equilibrium and it can help them in leading a satisfied life. In the event
of the youth getting the job that is in tandem with their educational qualification they would be
able to stay mentally healthy. On the basis of the research, it can be pointed forward that the
adults should try to engage in regular conversation with the young people that can help them in
ascertaining the mental health of the children so that appropriate help can be provided to the

children in the form of any kind of psychological support. Counselling can act as a remedy that
can help the children in getting over their mental worries and strengthen them internally. The
parents should act as a guide for the children instead of providing instruction to them. In the
event of the children getting the proper amount of support from their family and the social
environment they would be able to overcome their problems pertaining to anxiety and
depression. This conclusion will prove to be helpful in meeting the needs of the children so that
they do not go in the wrong track. This research can help in saving lives of the teenagers and it
can help their family in getting proper support so that they do not evolve to be individuals
suffering from depression. It is important to listen attentively to the problems of the young
children so that their grievances are addressed and they emerge to be mentally strong individuals.

References:
Dawn.com. "Problems Faced By The Youth Today." DAWN.COM. N.p., 2018. Web. 17 July
2018.
Greatergood.berkeley.edu. "How Teens Today Are Different From Past Generations." Greater
Good. N.p., 2018. Web. 17 July 2018.
Pewresearch.org. "How Millennials Today Compare With Their Grandparents 50 Years Ago."
Pew Research Center. N.p., 2018. Web. 17 July 2018.
Sharlene Gale S. and Graeme Codington, Facing the Youth in the 21st Century. May 1999.pp.1-
133. www.researchgate.net/publication/301647194
Testbig.com. "Some People Feel That Young People Face More Pressure Today Than The
Equivalent Age Groups Did In Previous Generations. Others Think They Have A Much Easier
Life Than Their Parents Did. What Is Your Opinion?Give Reasons For Your Answer And
Include Any Rel." testbig.com. N.p., 2018. Web. 17 July 2018.
Theatlantic.com. "Are Today's Youth Really A Lost Generation?." The Atlantic. N.p., 2018.
Web. 17 July 2018.