According to sociologists, Generation ‘Z’ is the generation of people born from the mid -1990s (1995 onward) to the year 2010. This means that now demographically, Generation Z inhabitants are infants or children with the oldest in the group being teenagers. These young people are, in most countries of the world not old enough to obtain a driver’s license, not old enough to cast their vote and not old enough to marry.

However, most of these young people belonging to Generation Z down to the tiny toddlers are techno-savvy, Internet-savvy, digital natives of the world!  These newest beings on the planet earth are as adept at handling gadgets and at downloading apps as their previous generations were flying kites or building sand castles. This is why Generation Z is also referred to as the Internet Generation or the Generation ‘M.’

Generation Z is mostly the offspring of Gen X couples who were born between 1965 and 1980. Generation X people have mostly risen to higher ranks of society after overcoming numerous challenges of the middle class. These people-the parents of Generation Z are characterized as an industrious lot who have faced competition, braved inflation and embraced technology.

These successful lawmakers, entrepreneurs, business men, managers of global companies, investment bankers of today can afford to give their children the best that the world can offer in terms of schooling, clothes, gadgets and lifestyle products. Hence, Generation X has introduced the miracles of technology- iPads, iPhones, Tablet PCs, E-book readers as a way of life to Generation Z.  It is another story that the Generation Z takes more readily to technology and the internet than their parents who introduced them to it and can mentor previous generations in mastering the miracles of high-tech life!

Some would say that Generation Z is the most fortunate of all generations. To use the liberty of a metaphor, these are kids born with a sliver spoon in their mouth.  This is because Generation Z is born to the prosperous achievers of Generation X; they enjoy a multitude of choices in everything from toothbrushes and toys to career and dating; they have access to information and gadgetry, inconceivable in previous generations; and they do not have to struggle for the basic comforts of life- in fact they enjoy the luxury of expensive lifestyle products from a very early age.

Generation Z is the generation which uses YouTube to learn nursery rhymes, Facebook  to communicate with parents and Twitter to express their inner most thoughts. For them privacy is not sacrosanct as it was for older generations and they are bored by anything which is expressed in more than blurbs of 150 characters. This is the generation which knows how to use smart phones; which read books on Kindle and listens to music on iPods, even though they have mostly not started earning a living yet.  This is the generation which watches life in an extra-fast mode and consists of super-charged individuals who excel at multi-tasking.

However, it is all not as hunky-dory as it seems. With an absolute deluge of information from all sources, Generation Z is an over-exposed, over-stimulated lot with hyper-active processors trying to assimilate and break-down the vast pool of knowledge they receive each minute of the day. The over-exposure and constant stimulation leads to problems such as shorter attention spans, restlessness, delusions, depression, gaming and Internet addictions in young children.

Behavioral problems also arise as children depend more on communicating thru Skype, Instant messengers, mobile texts and social networking sites than they are at socializing with people face to face. This is the reason why Generation Z is also referred to as the ‘Silent Generation’.  It may come as a surprise but many of the generation Z are also growing up illiterate technically as they lose their ability to read and write in this highly tech-driven world.

The widespread usage of the social networking sites is also leading to a host of dangerous problems which the Generation Z has to contend with and which are unique to this generation. For example cyber-crimes such as cyber-stalking, cyber-bullying, hate mail, inflammatory videos and phishing sites are putting kids and teenagers at risk.  On a macro level, Generation Z  has to reckon with the issues of recession and unemployment, price-rise and consumerism, global warming and anti-microbial resistant super-bugs.

As Generation Z enjoys unparalleled freedom of speech and the services of a very powerful media; it can be the harbinger of change in the near future. It thus becomes the collective responsibility of society to nurture and harness the potential of Generation Z as they grow up to be the potential movers and shakers of the world!