Originally published July 2022.
Jonathan Haidt’s latest essay, ‘Why the Past 10 Years of American Life have Been Uniquely Stupid‘, calls attention to concerns related to how Gen Z has been raised.
According to Haidt (and previously fleshed out in his insightful text ‘The Coddling of the American Mind‘), Gen Z has received the most structure and attention throughout their upbringing, in comparison to previous generations, and the pre-organised playdates, ongoing extracurriculars and soft-handed critiques have inhibited their ability to develop grit and gumption.
Haidt is not alone in raising these concerns. Autonomous play and independent study are largely foreign concepts to Gen Z, which is why skillsets related to critical thinking and social interaction warrant attention.
“Gen Z is aware that they are ill-prepared”
CGS notes that, in reference to a survey conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), competencies lacking for Gen Z include: problem solving and creativity, the capacity to deal with complexity and ambiguity, and communication efficacy. And, according to another survey by SHRM, Gen Z is aware that they are ill-prepared.
While Haidt’s essay places the blame on older generations for not equipping Gen Z and calls attention to the implications that this has for the future of democracy (an important point, since Gen Z is proving to be a prominent voting bloc), it is also worth noting the economic impact it may have as Gen Z enters the workforce and Baby Boomers retire out.
The size of the Gen Z cohort will soon surpass that of Millennials, who currently make up the bulk of the US working populace, and so businesses must be mindful of the expectations and accommodations necessary for their new recruits.
