Aaron Deupree Kirsty Gillies Heike Koester Feriha Ramadan

Aaron Deupree
Kirsty Gillies
Heike Koester
Feriha Ramadan
Subgroups
 Subgroup (not subculture) according to Jandt
(2007): psychologists label this as a membership group
based on vocation, hobby, or special skills, that, like
cultures, provide patterns of behavior and values:
these can be generational, occupational, expatriate,
etc. These may pose communication problems with
other subgroups just as the dominant culture they
exist within and depend on may clash with other
cultures.
Examples of Subgroups
 Examples include: Generation X’ers, college freshmen,
prostitutes, vegetarians, doctors, teachers, Disney
Corp. employees, punks, bikers and lesbian culture.
Sometimes they are also know as deviant culture,
which has no negative connotation, but simply reflects
divergence from the greater culture they exist within.
Membership can be longlasting or temporary but it is
not exclusive. Like the larger cultures they exist within,
members behave and think according to norms the
subgroup endorses or espouses.
Argot (jargon, cant, slang)
 They can also be identified by argot, which is the
vocabulary of a subgroup, and is an important aspect
of a subgroup’s identity and establishes the boundary
of the subgroup. Indeed, terms applied pejoratively to
a subgroup can help establish that culture. In some
cases, the subgroups adopt such terms and give them
new meanings and establish pride based on the
identity whereas the word might have been a source of
shame before.
Activity
For your date range, in your group, in the next 2-3
minutes, think of as many events, products, or other
important items you can think of for that ‘era’, and
record it on the paper.
Can you identify any tendencies of that ‘generation’ from
your own experiences or interaction with them?
The Generations
Generation
Year
Other Names
Baby Boomers
1946 to 1964 (Wikipedia)
(Strauss and Howe
“Generations”: 1943-1960)
Generation X
(1961-1964) 1965 to 1981
1961-1984 (some articles)
Gen-X, “baby bust”
(“latchkey kids,” “videogeneration”)
Generation Y
1980-1999 (Wikipedia)
1981-2000
1982-2001 (9/11)
Gen-Y, Millennial
Generation, Baby Boom
Echo, Echo Boomers
Demographers have not reached a
consensus on dates
 Date ranges are guidelines and are not clearly defined.
 Virtually every article read had different date ranges.
At times, terms were used for radically different date
ranges.
The Baby Boomer Experience
 Sputnik; walk on the moon
 New technology: transistor radios, television, space race
 Sexual freedom, Roe vs. Wade, drug experimentation
 Movements: civil rights, women, environment
 Assassinations: JFK, Robert Kennedy, Malcolm X, Martin
Luther King
 Music: Rock and Roll, Beatlemania, Motown
 US (Woodstock, Vietnam War), India (independence),
Canada (Trudeau)
Source: Wikipedia
Baby Boomer Characteristic
Tendencies
 Experimental
 Individualism
 Free spirited
 Social cause oriented
Source: Wikipedia
Experiences of Generation X
 The Chinese government killed protesters in
Tiananmen Square.
 The U.S. stock market crashed.
 The Chernobyl nuclear accident occurred.
 The Exxon Valdez caused an oil spill.
 The Challenger space shuttle exploded.
 The first computer disk was sold.
Diana Oblinger
 Generation X
 The generation X (1961-1984)
Generation X is consistently characterized by being the first
American generation to grow up as ‘latchkey kids’ having a
set of parents working outside of the home.
Generation X grew up with:





cold war
a high divorce rate
MTV
the first wave of computers and modern technology
socially acceptable and media-driven casual sex.
Generation X in the workplace
Gen X requires flexible schedules, democratic
leadership, variety in work duties, the ability to grow
skill sets and recognition.. It has come of age in the
information age, an era of constant activity, change
and ever developing global marketplace. After growing
up with absent parents, they understand the
importance of being available to their families. X-ers
are also innovative thinkers who crave variety of
projects in their positions and they like different
experiences.
Experiences of Generation Y
“Y2Curious: America's Generation Y has grown up
around various phenomena including the Internet
with online chatting, Wikipedia, YouTube and its
numerous informational resources, digital video and
music, Tickle Me Elmos, continued abuse of underage
drinking and iPods.”
Sophia Yan
Yan, S. (2006, December 8). Understanding generation
Y. The Oberlin Review.
Tendencies of Generation Y
 They are generally more financially savvy: saving for retirement,






and retirement benefits are very important
Employee and employer loyalty have disappeared.
Are less likely to be obsessed with work;
They are more interested in preserving their quality of life, even
if it means staying at the same position in the labor hierarchy.
Dress more casually
Members of Generation Y are characterized as being more
racially and culturally tolerant than past generations.
Gay rights and non-traditional gender roles have also become
more widely accepted.
Yan, S. (2006, December 8). Understanding generation Y. The
Oberlin Review.
European Millennials in the
Workplace
Characteristics
 Mobile
 Multilingual professionals
 Work and play in Europe without borders
What do they want out of their work?

Money is not the most important thing.

Maintaining balance

Cultivate personal relationships

Leisure

They want to make a difference and feel they can.

They’re not afraid to leave a job if it’s not what they want.
Young Europeans for the most part are most concerned with;

Environment

Global warning

Pollution
Ratnesar, R. Generation Europe. (2001, April 12). Time.
Generations and Education
Changes to Post-Secondary
Education
 Higher enrollment
 More students attend college part-time than in
previous years
 More women are attending
 More students are over the age of twenty-five
 Several ‘generations’ in one class at a time; professors
are still mostly Baby Boomers (50+), some older GenXers (40+)
The ‘new’ Student Population
 Delayed enrollment (did not enter postsecondary






education in the student graduated from high school)
Part-time attendance
Work full-time, thirty-five hours or more, while going
to school
Are financially independent (Financial aid definition)
Have dependents
Are single parents
Are ‘mature students’, who have no high school
diploma
Tendencies of Millennials
 “gravitate toward group activity
 identify with their parents' values and feel close to
their parents
 spend more time doing homework and housework and
less time watching TV
 believe "it's cool to be smart"
 are fascinated by new technologies
 are racially and ethnically diverse
 often (one in five) have at least one immigrant parent.”
Attitudes of Millennials
 Computers aren't technology
 Typing is preferred to handwriting.
 Staying connected is essential.
 There is zero tolerance for delays.
 Consumer and creator are blurring.
 Reality is no longer real. (Perspectives)
 Doing is more important than knowing.
 Learning more closely resembles games than logic.
 Multitasking is a way of life.
Millennial Generation Learning
Preference Tendencies
 Teamwork
 Experiential activities
 Structure
 Use of technology (students believe they are more tech
savvy than their teachers or professors)
 Strengths: multitasking, goal orientation, positive
attitudes‘ and a collaborative style.
Implications for Educators and
School Cultures
 Schools, colleges and universities are providing a
various options to meet students' expectations for
service, immediacy, interactivity.
 There is no one ‘correct’ formula’.
 Students often range in ages/generations, learning
styles, and preferences in communication.
 Administrators and educators must adapt their facility,
curriculum, classes, etc. to meet the needs of such a
varied range of students, taking into consideration the
tendencies of certain generations, their preferences
and learning styles.
Bibliography
Belhassen, S. (2009). Generation X: In defiance of the box. Understanding generation X and
workplace application.
Blandford, S. & Shaw, M. (2001). Managing international schools. London: Routledge
Falmer.
Jandt, F. (2007). An introduction to intercultural communication: Identities in a global
community. Thousand Oaks, USA: Sage Publications.
Lang. S. (2001). CU sociologist’s book claims Generation X’ers adopt ‘chameleon’ personalities
to cope with anxiety, fears. Retrieved March 6, 2005, from Cornell Chronicle:
http://www.news.cornell.edu/chronicle/01/10.11.01/Rosen_book.html
McGlyn, A. (2005, December). Teaching millenials, Our newest cultural cohort. Retrieved
June 29, 2009 from www.eddigest.com
Bibliography Continued
No author. (2006, April 26) Older workers underappreciated in workplace, says survey.
Seniorjournal.com . Retrrieved April 13, 2009 from
http://seniorjournal.com/NEWS/Retrirement/6-04-26OlderWorkersUnderappreciated.htm
Oblinger, D. (2003). Boomers, Gen-Xers and Millennials: Understanding “new students”.
Educause . Retrieved June 30, 2009 from
http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/erm0342.pdf
Pikul. C. (2005). Back to school at 52. Retrieved May 6, 2009, from Salon.com:
www.salon.com/mwt/feature/2005/09/13/freshman_year
Thompson, E. (2009, June 3). Dumbest generation? Professor blames technology. USA
Today.
Yan, S. (2006, December 8). Understanding generation Y. The Oberlin Review. Retrieved on
June 30, 2009 from
http://www.oberlin.edu/stupub/ocreview/2006/12/08/features/Understanding_Generati
on_Y.html
Cultural Borders and Mental Barriers: The
Relationship Between Living Abroad and Creativity
William W. Maddux and Adam D. Galinsky
Abstract: Despite abundant anecdotal evidence that creativity is associated with living
in foreign countries, there is currently little empirical evidence for this relationship.Five
studies employinga multimethodapproach systematically explored the link between
living abroad and creativity. Using both individual and dyadic creativity tasks, Studies 1
and 2 provided initial demonstrations that time spent living abroad (but not time spent
traveling abroad) showed a positive relationship with creativity. Study 3 demonstrated
that priming foreign living experiences temporarily enhanced creative tendencies for
participants who had previously lived abroad. In Study 4, the degree to which
individuals had adapted to different cultures while living abroad mediated the link
between foreign living experience and creativity. Study 5 found that priming the
experience of adapting to a foreign culture temporarily enhanced creativity for
participants who had previously lived abroad. The relationship between living abroad
and creativity was consistent across a number of creativity measures (including those
measuring insight, association, and generation), as well as with masters of business
administration and undergraduate samples, both in the United States and Europe,
demonstrating the robustness of this phenomenon.
Maddux, G. and Galinsky, A. (2009). Cultural borders and mental barriers: The relationship
between living abroad and Creativity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 96/5.
Candle Box Experiment
Creative Results