Backstreet Boys to Twenty One Pilots: Generation Gap explained

Nothing can explain the relationship between a Gen Z offspring going “Ye meri zindagi hai. I’ll deal with it ” and a Gen Y parent replying to it with “beta tumne duniya nahi dekhi hai (child, you have seen nothing out there).” Where the Gen Y parent listens to the tunes of Sonu Nigam, the Gen Z offspring prefers The Weeknd. While the Gen Z offspring creates reels on Instagram, the Gen Y parent sits in the other room, watching viral WhatsApp videos in full volume. And while these are just differences, people spell it as ‘generational gap’. However, this doesn’t mean that generational gaps don’t create unnecessary barriers.

People born between the years 1980 to 1994 are referred to as the ‘Generation Y’. They are popularly known as ‘Millennials’ or the ‘Digital Age’. And yes, they do not belong to the era where messages were sent through pigeons. And as of 2020, three out of every ten Gen Y’s are parents.

However, the Generation Z which was born between the years 1995-2012, might disagree.

While a Gen Z blasts 'Twenty One Pilots' away on their headphones, the Gen Y parents wait for 'I want it that way' to air on VH1. Well, I think it's fair to say that Gen Y parents and Gen Z offspringss are all trapped in a generation gap where neither are ready to listen to what the oher has to say.

Let me cite an example. Homosexuality is an alien concept for Gen Y parents, since they belong to an era where homosexuality was a tabboo. However, while the Gen Z offsprings welcome the concept with an open mind, Gen Y parents are sill skeptical of it. Hence, being vulnerable to communication gaps with their offsprings.

But that doesn’t mean that the Gen Y hasn’t done enough for their offsprings. Yes, generational differences definitely do cause misunderstandings and communication gaps, but its management varies from parent to parent.

For e.g. the Gen Y’s were born in households with four to five elder as well as younger siblings, and were, hence, always vulnerable to comparison by their elders. And when their turn to be a parent arrives, they have two different paths to pursue, owing to their childhoods. While some of the parents create comparison between their offsprings and others as they pass on the teachings of their parents to their Gen Z kids, the others (who understand how it feels to be compared to others) understand the issue and do not pass on such ideologies.

Yes, we cannot deny that Gen Y parents might not be the most understanding in every situation. But that doesn’t mean that they are not trying their best to try and keep up with them. I mean, we cannot blame a Gen Y parent for having their childhood values involuntarily morph into parenting tactics.

But then again, there is only one solution. Communication.

While a Gen Y parent needs to communicate with their Gen Z kid openly about their feelings, a Gen Z kid needs to let their Gen Y parent know that they acknowledge the parent’s concern and feelings and vice versa.