I'm very fascinated by America's generational cycles.
Strauss and Howe said "the story of civilization seldom moves in a straight line, but is rich with curves, oscillations, and mood shifts". Generation X, also called the 13th Generation or the "baby busters" is typically defined as those being born between 1961 and 1981. Generation Y is typically defined as those being born from 1978 to 1995. The Baby Boomers are typically referred to as those people who were born prior to 1964, starting right after World War Two in 1945 and are a huge generation by sheer numbers, also called the "pig in the python". In fact, some even attribute the economic slowdown currently in play as the result of the huge numbers of Baby Boomers in the workforce retiring between the years of 2007 and 2009. The Silent Generation are folks who are born between the years of 1925 to 1945 and the G.I. Generation are typically referred to as born between 1901 and 1924.
New research has just emerged reflecting the habits and usage of these various generations online.
According to Pew Internet & American Life Project, Americans who are part of Generation X are most likely to bank, shop
and look for health information online, Baby Boomers are as likely as
Generation Y to make travel reservations online, and members of the
Silent Generation are proficient with email and are gaining ground
online.
Though 74% of all US adults are online, younger users ages 12-28
have embraced online applications that enable communicative, creative,
and social uses, older users are more likely to engage in online
activities that require some capital, such as travel reservations and
online banking.
It also finds that though more than half of America’s online
population is between ages 18-44, larger percentages of older
Americans are going online and doing more things there than they have
in the past. The biggest increase in internet use since 2005 is in the
70-75 year-old age group. While just over one-fourth (26%) of 70-75
year olds were online in 2005, 45% of that age group is currently
online.
What would you think the most popular online activity would be?
You guessed it! Email.
Three quarters (74%) of internet users ages 64+ send and receive email,
making email the most popular online activity for this age group.
But, email has lost some ground among teens. Some 89% of
teens said they used email in 2004, but only 73% say they do now.
What has replaced email?
Social networking, blogging and instant messaging have all gained significant ground.