Generation Y: Unique Social Attributes That Shape Their Interactions

In both developed and developing countries, the generation that is now coming into adulthood (sometimes called “Generation Y”, “The Gamer Generation,” “Digital Natives" or “The Google Generation”) is the first generation that has grown up in a world where the Internet has always been present. As a result, this generation shares unique attributes that are shaping how they interact which each other, and increasingly these interactions are via the net and on a world-wide scale. As described by Forrester Research and others , this generation is apt to share the following attributes:

1. They are likely to value style, fun, and technology. In ways that are quite different from previous generations, which valued “book learning,” Generation Y perceives learning through gaming as something that is fun and educational as they overcome obstacles, and as they convert the new knowledge that they gain from the games into their subsequent actions. As continuously consumers and employers of all types of digital media in their work and in their entertainment, they make heavy use not only of traditional Internet services via computers, but increasingly are massive consumers of wireless services on mobile phones. [More about mobile services appears elsewhere in this environmental scan.]
2. They measure success in terms of whether the task is completed adequately, not by how much time it takes to complete the work (whether that task takes more or less time to accomplish). They are bottom-line and results oriented that seek a work place based upon a meritocracy. As people who intrinsically seek improvement, and not necessarily rewards, they look for embedded continuous assessment through points and rankings – some of which are built into the online systems they use and value. Seeking to be paid for their results, not a salary for sitting at a desk, their desired measures of accountability are made possible not only because they will work hard on tasks that they enjoy, but also because they enjoy working with others through technology.
3. This generation is highly collaborative, with an innate belief in the power of a diverse team. They thrive on change, and want to transform the world they inhabit. To reach Generation Y, companies and information organizations much recognize and incorporate in their services a sense of immediacy, an understanding of Generation Y’s sense of technological literacy, and a desire to work individually but through the global collective that is made possible through social networking and interactivity. It is through this collective that the Generation Y seeks, and has the potential, to change the world as dramatically as the Baby Boomer generation changed the post-industrial world after World War II.

Sources

• Bruce D. Temkin and Ross Popoff-Walker. The Gen Y Design Guide: Crafting Experiences to Meet the Unique Needs of Younger Consumers. Forrester, 2007.
• Bruce D. Temkin. Gen Y Is Truly Different; Design Accordingly: Attitudes, Media Usage, and Digital Activities Shape Requirements. Forrester, 2007
• Bruce D. Temkin. Social Networking Sites Need a Usability Boost: Forrester Evaluated MySpace, Facebook, hi5, Tagged, and Friendster. Forrester, 2007.
• Tamara J. Erickson. Task, Not Time: HBR Breakthrough Ideas for 2008. Harvard Business Review, February 19, 2008.
• John Seeley Brown and Douglas Thomas. The Gamer Disposition. Harvard Business Review, February 28, 2008.

This page is part of the Environmental Scan, one of NELINET's Planning, Assessment & Accreditation Initiatives.