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Is there any tradition as time-honored as one generation finding fault with all the ways a younger generation is acting compared with the way the current generation did things when they were their age?
Methinks not.
When things change, it’s human nature to cling to what’s comfortable and discount or discard what’s new, whether those new things manifest as entertainment, hobbies or communication patterns.
As a parent, I’ll admit I was surprised how many teens aren’t eager to start driving and how few are dating. But instead of approaching those differences from a place of negative judgment, it’s worth examining them from another perspective, one that might even lead to celebration over condemnation.
Let’s start with delayed driving. According to a survey by a large national insurance company, 80% of 18-year-olds had a driver license in the early 1980s. In 2021, only 60% did. The number of 16-year-olds with licenses in 1983 was 46%. Just 25% had licenses in 2021.
Might this be an annoyance for parents who thought they were going to be free of Uber duties sooner than they were? Sure. But according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, drivers 20 and under made up 5.1% of licensed drivers in the United States in 2021 but 8.5% of drivers in all fatal crashes and 12.6% of drivers in all crashes.
If we have fewer young drivers, it follows we will have fewer crashes. Perhaps our kids are better at risk management than we give them credit for.
Another trend that doesn’t get much attention: The birth rate among 15- to 19-year-old females has declined 78% from 1991 to 2021. In that same time frame, the percentage of high school students reporting ever having had sexual intercourse declined in ninth grade (39% to 16%), 10th grade (48% to 23%), 11th grade (62% to 35%) and 12th grade (67% to 48%).
Younger generations also are delaying marriage. In 1890, the median age for a first marriage for men was 26.1 and 22.0 for women. By 2021, it had climbed to 30.4 for men and 28.6 for women.
Is all of this contributing to a population decline that will affect many areas of society? Yes. But it’s arguably a good thing that young people are delaying undeniably risky behaviors and waiting to get married until they know who they are and have more financial stability.
Finally, let’s talk about substance use and abuse. Cigarette smoking among young people is at an all-time low, and there’s been a decline in use of products like e-cigarettes that replaced traditional smoking. National Institutes of Health researchers found the percentage of teens abstaining from alcohol, tobacco and nicotine use has been historically high and holding steady in recent years.
As humans, we love to look for one thing — and only one thing — that causes big changes like these. Perhaps it was the pandemic or the rise of technology that has us interacting more digitally than in person. Perhaps we’re putting too much emphasis on “I” instead of “we” as a society.
The act of comparing us then to them now can be an act of curiosity or an act of judgment. Far too often, it feels like the latter. And so I challenge you to get outside your personal comfort zone and talk to someone who isn’t your age about how their lives are going. Find out their “why” before you ask, “Why aren’t you doing it this way?”
I’m an eternal optimist, but I think the kids are going to be all right. They just might not be like us. And that’s OK.•
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Chartier is a lifelong Indianapolis resident and owner of Mass Ave Public Relations. Send comments to [email protected].
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