The Theory of Generations: Looking Past to the Future

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The Theory of GenerationsLooking Past to the
Future
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What Does History Look Like?
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The Spiral of History

• Whats past is prologue Shakespeare The
  Tempest

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The Spiral of History

• Recurring generational behavior throughout U.S.
  history
• Generation people moving through time, born
  within 22-year grouping
• Exhibit common beliefs and behavior
• Regular, repeating cycle of four distinctive
  personalitiesGenerations The History of
  Americas Future, William Strauss and Neil Howe,
  1991

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The Theory of Generations

• Generation types

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One Generational Cycle
Idealist(Boomers)
Adaptive(?)
Civic(Millennials)
Reactive(X-ers)(Thirteenth)
b. 1943 - 1960 b. 1961 - 1981
b. 1982 - 2004 b. 2004? - 2027?
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The Theory of Generations

• Generational type can be an important predictor
  of how members will think and act
• Provides powerful insight on how to communicate
  with and market to different generational types
• Attitudes
• Values

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Generational Attitudes Values

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The Generational Diagonal

• Explains how the lifestage of different
  generations can impact events and crises...
• ...And how society will react to or manage trends
  and world events

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The Generational Diagonal
Cycle broken only once after the Civil War
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The Generational Diagonal

• Current snapshot

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The Millennial Class of 2000

• The 10 events that made the biggest
  impression Columbine War in Kosovo Oklahoma
  City bombing Princess Dis death Clinton
  impeachment trial O.J. Simpson trial Rodney
  King riots Lewinsky scandal Fall of Berlin
  Wall McGwire/Sosa home-run derby

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Communications Implications

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Turnings of History
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The Turnings of History

• The crisis phase and September 11
• Trigger
• Regeneration
• Climax
• Resolution
• Look to period of 1929-1945 as the last crisis

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The Turnings of History

• What we should look for
• More than shift in national mood new national
  priorities
• Trigger can happen quickly same with regeneracy
  climax may be some time in coming, unclear
• Not history repeating itselfold institutions
  will be abandoned, new ones invented
• If we are successful, we will ordain a new public
  order

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Implications?
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Application

• Accenture
• Recruiting using Boomer messages to attract
  Xers
• Based on generational understanding, changed
  messaging
• Developed start-up VC fund to allow employees
  to find their own path, encourage entrepreneurial
  innovation

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Application

• Boy Scouts
• Decline in membership no longer seen as relevant
  to society, local communities
• Messaging changed to fit Civics, Idealist parents
• skills development
• leadership training
• Intra-Fraternity Council (IFC)

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Appendix

• The following pages contain insight into current
  generations
• Also includes a look back at all the generations

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Current Generations

• GIs (Civics, born 1901-24)
• Firm believers in public harmony and cooperative
  social discipline
• Optimistic, good, constructive
• Charles Lindbergh, Robert Oppenheimer, Walt
  Disney, Ann Landers, Jimmy Stewart, Lee Iacocca

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Current Generations

• Silent (Adaptives, born 1925-1942)
• Highly refined taste for process and expertise
• Fair, nonjudgmental, open-minded, sandwiched
• Gore Vidal, Marilyn Monroe, Martin Luther King
  Jr., James Baker III, Pat Schroeder, Woody Allen

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Current Generations

• Boom (Idealists, born 1943-1960)
• True believers in generations, possess unyielding
  opinions about all issues
• Capacity for great wisdom, terrible tragedy
• Narcissistic, self-satisfied
• Oliver North, Joe Namath, Steve Martin, David
  Stockman, Jane Pauley, Oprah Winfrey

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Current Generations

• Generation X (Reactives, born 1961-1981)
• Perceived negatively by other generations
• Had to grow up fast to survive in a world of
  parental self-immersion or even neglect
• Pragmatic, quick, sharp-eyed, bad, cynical
• Michael J. Fox, Tatum ONeal, Michael Jordan,
  Mike Tyson, Tracy Chapman, Gary Coleman

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Current Generations

• Millennials (Civics, born 1982-2004)
• Will mimic last Civic generation GIs
• Growing up in wholesome, protective environments
• Precious, wanted, nurtured, clean-cut,
  homogeneous
• Hanson, Ashley and Katie Olson, Maestro, Jessica
  Dubroff

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Next Generation

• New Adaptives? (Adaptives, 2004-?)
• Will grow up over-protected mature into
  risk-averse, conformist adults
• Weak desire for early independence and adventure
• As youths, will emulate adults and make very few
  demands

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Fun Facts

• GIs have been the most legislatively protected
  generation
• Child protection laws, GI Bill, Medicare
• No member of the Adaptive cohort generation has
  been elected U.S. President
• Boomers have always considered themselves the
  power generation

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Fun Facts

• Gen-Xers are committing suicide more frequently
  than any other generation since the Lost (the
  last Reactive generation)
• Millennials will grow up with the lowest
  parent-child ratio in history

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U.S. Generations

• Colonial Cycle
• Puritan (born 1584-1614, Idealist)
• Cavalier (born 1615-1647, Reactive)
• Glorious (born 1648-1673, Civic)
• Enlightenment (born 1674-1700, Adaptive)

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U.S. Generations

• Revolutionary Cycle
• Awakening (born 1701-1723, Idealist)
• Liberty (born 1724-1741, Reactive)
• Republican (born 1732-1766, Civic)
• Compromise (born 1767-1791, Adaptive)

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U.S. Generations

• Civil War Cycle
• Transcendental (born 1792-1821, Idealist)
• Gilded (born 1822-1842, Reactive)
• Progressive (born 1843-1859, Adaptive)

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U.S. Generations

• Great Power Cycle
• Missionary (born 1860-1882, Idealist)
• Lost (born 1882-1900, Reactive)
• GI (born 1901-1924, Civic)
• Silent (born 1925-1942, Adaptive)

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U.S. Generations

• Millennial Cycle
• Boom (born 1943-1960, Idealist)
• Gen-X (born 1961-1981, Reactive)
• Millennial (born 1982-2004, Civic)
• New Adaptives (born 2004?-2027?, Adaptive)

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