‘we will tell the next generation
the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord,
his power, and the wonders he has done.’ (Psalm 78:4)
There’s yet more startling analysis on Gen Z this week, from Dr Jean Twenge from the University of Chicago. One of the issues is the seeming paradox of how connected Gen Z are, yet how lonely they are. Into this mix comes not only the research a few years back from Barna about the millennial ‘Connected’ generation, but now brand new research on the Gen Z ‘Open’ generation.
We need all the studies we can get on a fledgling generation soaked in what Twenge identifies as individualism and technology. Something clearly isn’t working, when the research from Barna shows that 48% of UK teens feel deeply cared for by those around them, yet only 15% feel optimistic about the future. Even if we offset individualism with the love of those around us, it still isn’t enough.
We long for as many answers as there are questions, including importantly to the most acute cases amongst a generation gripped by anxiety and depression. Yesterday in The Times Trevor Phillips movingly wrote about his late daughter, and (in response to Twenge) how he knows there’s more to this than smartphones. So what might the report from Barna about the role of Christian faith have to offer amidst all this?
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