This is a doctoral project that needs constant editing. The first step will be to go through the document and proof read, edit grammar as needed, make in text citations, ext. I hand it into the teache

ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION AMONG MILLENIALS

Doctoral Project

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

ABSTRACT

The millenial generation today represents the majority of the population in the United States and around the world. There are several problems that this generation continues to experience and top of it all is various mental illnesses. The most common mental illness being experienced is depression. This is a significant concern for policy makers as well as psychology professionals. This study examines the problem of anxiety and depression among the millenial generation as well as steps that can be taken to deal with the problem. The study is qualitative and involves interviews with various millenials to determine their views and their situation. This study fills an important gap in the literature.

Contents

Chapter One: Overview of the Study 9

Background 10

Statement of The Problem 14

Purpose of The Study 16

Theoretical Framework 17

Significance of the Study 18

Limitations 18

Delimitation of study 19

Definition of Key Terms 20

Organization 20

Chapter Two: Literature Review 23

Leading Causes of Depression and Anxiety 23

Risk and Protective Factors 23

Internal Risk Factors for Depression 24

Environmental and Family Factors 25

Traumatic Events 26

Technology and Depression among Millenials 27

Introduction 27

Addiction to technology 28

Risk Factors 29

Millenials 31

Theoretical Framework 35

Summary 35

Chapter Three: METHODOLOGY 37

Introduction 37

Sample 39

Analysis 40

Limitations 41

Chapter Four: Results 42

Introduction 42

MILLENNIAL AS AN UNWANTED LABEL 42

Rejecting Imposed Definitions 44

Social Definition of Generations 47

Millennials as the Children of Modern Times 48

Technology 53

Education and Pressure to Succeed 55

Liberalness 57

Chapter Five: Discussion of Findings 59

References 61

Appendix 64

Chapter One: Overview of the Study

The millennial generation is experiencing higher levels of suicide, anxiety, and depression compared to the baby boomers and generation X. There are several reasons that have been given in the past but none has been clearly definitive. New studies on various generations have shown that the millennial generation carries with it higher expectations for perfection and these elevated expectations have also been blamed for this pressure (Odenweller et. al, 2014). There is focus on individual empowerment in developed countries like the United States and Canada. The empowerment has been happening in the social and economic sphere (Ferri-Reed, 2013). Millenials are living up to high standards set by the previous generations. The individuals who are in these countries have been constantly working on themselves leading to higher educational levels and career attainment. These are the issues which seem to have cost the current millennial generation. The current millenials feel like they are overburdened with a streak of perfection which is something unknown to the parents and grandparents.

Perfectionism can be described as a combination of high personal standards and extremely critical self-evaluations. It is this criticism that is said to be eating the millenials today. The perfectionism is not what is pressuring the millenials but it is today referred to as multidimensional perfectionism where the young adults feel the pressure to measure up to several sets of criteria. The desire to reach the impossible standards increases the anxiety, suicidal thoughts, depression, and eating disorders among this generation (Odenweller et. al, 2014).

The cases of depression among the millenials and adolescents have skyrocketed in the last few years. the number of people diagnosed in the United States has gone up 33% from 2013 to 2017. The depression among millenials ages 18-34 has increased by around 47%. The statistics that are shown here indicated that there is a greater problem in the society. It is critical to look at the topic to understand why these conditions are increasing by the day. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that suicide is the second highest cause of deaths for millenials. This is a worrying trend and it is critical to investigate this issue. (Ferri-Reed, 2013). The rise of depression needs to be investigated because it will have a significant influence in the lives of this generation in the future. there seems to be a widespread despair among the young’s in the country today.

Mental health is often described as being similar to an onion, there are several layers on top of one another that could be affecting the health of millenials. The millenials seem to have been affected by several issues such as bullying, abuse, neglect, and low self-esteem. The root cause of depression by some scholars among millenials has been identified as the lack of identity (Stein, 2013). The building of self-esteem and confidence have been identified as the areas of starting when it comes to solving the issue of depression. The depression statistics might seem shocking but it is important to consider the fact that there are also millions of other people who suffer in silence.

Depression among the millenials has also been linked to several other health disorders. 80% of people with major depression are also diagnosed with one or more health disorders. The people who have depression are Laos more likely today to suffer from several other chronic illnesses. The depressed millenials are also more lily to engage in alcohol and substance abuse compared to the people who do not have such a diagnosis. The millenials suffering from depression, therefore, end up spending more on healthcare compared to other generations. The healthcare providers of today are forced to inquire about depression as a signal for other health conditions as a result of such observations. (Ferri-Reed,2013)

The workplace is also an indicator of the mental health situation today. The millennial employees have also been reported to suffer from depression compared to every other generation that is represented in the workforce. The companies of today are being forced to priories their resources to mental health as today millenials are becoming the largest population of employees. 20% of employees in the workplace have reported that they experience depression compared to 16% of the baby boomers (Weinstein et. al, 2015). The opportunity for them in an area like employment is unique. They are the first generation to go into the workplace being highly educated but there is little job growth for them in the modern companies. The highest percentage of the millenials feel that they are too educated or are underemployed in their workstations. The millenials are reporting depression and anxiety in the workplace. The depression has affected their productivity while at work and at home. The companies are reporting a far worse off bottom-line as a result of this.

There are several societal and generational factors that have been reported to lead to the rising cases of depression among millenials. One of the reasons is that the millenials were not given the much-needed skills to persevere through the hard times. They were not ready to go through times when there is little demand for labor and less disposable income. The lack of preparedness of life that tis seen among millenials can be associated with the lack of enough skills while in school. They are taught how to pass in tests and get good skills but there is little done to improve on their competence. It seems that the education for them was superficial and did little to build their confidence when they got to the workplace. The millenials have been suffering and pushing themselves to depression because they have high expectations which do not meet the realities of the present job market and life in general. Millenials are looking for more in life and want to have an impact as opposed to just a paycheck. The world today is harsh and glorifies the people who have paychecks. The millenials have different expectations to the rest of the generations in the world and this makes their existence difficult compared to the rest. Stigma is also not an issue when it comes to the millenials of today. They are open to talk about various challenges in life including the mental and the physical. There have been studies who associate the present increase in depression to the ability of millenials to have comfort in self-disclosure compared to the previous generations.

The paradox of choice is one of the phenomena that millennials have to endure compared to the previous generations thus leading to high levels of depression. This is to mean that individuals have too many choices available to them yet too little time to make the right choice. This can create pressure to make the right choice even with the little information one may have at hand. The millennials always get trapped in trying to find the best choice and this cycle may trap them because every choice they make will have its consequences. (Odenweller, 2014). Whenever they experience any challenges in the choices they made, they may feel the need to blame their decision making abilities. Also, they may consistently feel the need to keep changing their choices at every instance of trouble and difficulty. In this case they may not experience the progress they desire and this may drive them to depression.

Increased competition among the millennials and very few opportunities make it hard for millennials to cope and thus driving them to depression. In the previous generations, a degree meant that one was well read and qualified. However, in the recent generation of millennials, a college degree is almost equivalent to a high school qualification. Millennials have a hard time working between different schedules while taking different manual jobs just to earn an extra pay. This is depressing because the expectation was to get a white-collar job after college. Balancing the need to be independent and their parents’ chaperoning can be tiring. While it was easier to secure a job of one’s choice for the previous generations, it has become harder for the millennials.

Millennials are growing up in the era of technology and social networks which have been attributed to several mental health problems including anxiety and depression. Social networks give access to whatever everyone else logged on is doing. Millennials are notorious for posing every little detail they’ve been up to on their social media pages such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. While this is entertaining, other millennials keep checking on what their friends have posted and make comparisons which lead to low self-esteem. They imagine that their counterparts having a good on social media never experience any bad moment. This will drive the millennial to self-loathing because they believe that they have not achieved their dreams. This constant comparison and always coming short is what leads to lack of self-esteem, drug use, among other vices to cope with the sadness. (Odenweller, 2014). Exposure to technology creates in the minds of the millennials unrealistic expectations based on the lives of their icon celebrities. Watching their favorite celebrities step out in designer outfits and cars make these millennials set standards for their desired lifestyles. This depresses the millennials when thing don’t work as they would desire in order to live big like their favorite celebrities (Steiner, 2013).

The United States is dealing with a higher mental health deal because of several reported cases of depression. Depression has always been there but the levels today are unprecedented. One of the key generations experiencing depression are millenials. The depression among this generation has been linked to social isolation. The drive to achieve more and be successful and the failure to do so may lead one to isolate themselves from their social circles. Social isolation is linked to heavy drug use to fill in the void of loneliness. Millennials, due to unfulfilled dreams and ambitions may opt to recoil and ‘suffocate’ their brains with social media or movies (Stein, 2013). Lack of contact with family and friends enhances the feeling that one is alone in the misery. High suicide rates are witnessed among millennials compared to the previous generations. The high rates of suicide and the costs of treating depression are of interest to several stakeholders from government policy makers to psychology professionals. The government and other players in the health sector are burdened with an increased bill on mental health issues. The economy is dealing with a labor force that is quickly drained and worn out which ends up affecting productivity in the workplace. Employers today have to take into account the mental health of their workforce more than before.

The societal pressure to succeed is seeing many millenials ignore their mental well-being. For most millennials, unlike previous generations, success isn’t just completing schools and getting a job then settling down and getting your favorite job. Millennials want more of everything to live their ideal lifestyle. Also, they want to work 100+ hours, sleeping 3-4 hours a night in order to seem successful (Odenweller et. al, 2014). Some study while working even for 8 hours just to get extra money. By the time they get home, they have no time to even self-reflect and review their day.

Depression and anxiety are part of the lives of millenials who are the majority in many countries around the world. The depression and anxiety among millenials has been linked with the desire to do and achieve everything at the same time (Eagan, 2016). The need to control and the realization that thing always happen no matter what makes it hard to cope. The realization that several of these dreams cannot be achieved easily has been associated with rampant drug abuse and alcoholism as an escape mechanism (Odenweller et. al, 2014). Millenials constantly push themselves to achieve more ignoring their physical and mental well-being which can lead to burnout and sickness. It is critical to investigate why the millenials are depressed, what risk factors they have been exposed to, and what can be done to mitigate the issue.

Mentioning ‘millennial’ has become synonymous to entitlement. The purpose of this study is to understand how entitlement among millennials has become very common and has become one of the drivers of depression. Entitlement among millennials is where they believe that the people they interact with intrinsically owe them something. It is very common in the work places and homes of the millennials. It is argued that this originates from the boomer and generation X parents that raised and spoiled them. Growing up, millennials are rewarded for participation and even coming in last just for the ‘effort’. Coming into the real world outside their homes, only excellence is rewarded. This may be very depressing since they may feel unappreciated at their workplaces and feel as though their efforts are futile. They always feel they are worth more than the salary given to them based on the fact that they are educated rather than the value they add to their employer. Dealing with this, millennials will often feel unappreciated and unwanted driving them to depression. They often face the world with very high expectations of how people should treat them and regard them. The world always falls short in this driving them to low self-esteem and depression.

Instant gratification and low tolerance for frustration is a common phenomenon among millennials. Most millennials have a perfect plan for a post college life; get a job and thrive. Unlike previous generations, jobs are not as forth coming as they were before. There is a bigger gap between when one completes college and when they land their first job which may not be as high paying as they expected. In addition to that, millennials are delaying life steps; buying a house, getting kids and even a partner. Millennials want to reap benefits of the efforts they put in immediately and when that doesn’t happen, they are frustrated. Because of the expectations they had coming from schools and not being well equipped to deal with frustrations, millennials are likely to be frustrated and depressed in the end. There seems to be a wall existing and they lack the power to do anything about the matter. Hopelessness and sadness creeps in.

Depression among millennials has become a very common topic all over the world. It is discussed in journals, TV talk shows and even in top newspaper articles. Every millennial goes through a period of self-doubt and has to critically question the direction of their lives. It may be smooth for some, but for others the process is scarring. 7 in every 10 millennials have dealt or are dealing with depression. This has made it easier to talk about the challenges among the social circles because there is less stigma and shame around it.

The significance of the study is to understand the growing trends of depression among millennials. What are the causes of these trends and what can be done to resolve this?

There are several limitations that will be experienced when dealing with the study. The first one is that the sample size will be small because of the limited time and resources available. The profile of the sample will also be not ideal because of time and resources and the researcher will be forced to use a convenient sampling method. The other challenges that will be experienced in the study is the population dispersion as a result of the geographical limitations. An extensive profile might not be available. The age of data will also be challenging together with the timing of the study.

Again, the measure in which I will use to collect data limits my ability to conduct exhaustive analysis and interpretation. Some of interviews will be conducted through the phone which might bring the issue of missed questions. This can be attributed to the manner the conversation is structured. The method of having open ended question and not very formal structure of asking the questions provides a loophole for missing some key details. This might affect the quality data given by the respondents in relation to the research question. The study may face some longitudinal effects because the research topic is broad and requires a lot of time. Since time is a scarce resource, time available to fully exhaust information on the research topic might be constrained. This may affect the quality of results from the data collected.

The limitations of the study will be dealt with using the appropriate methods of research.to eliminate the problems that are as a result of the limits of having a small sample size. The data collection process also needs to be efficient to meet the limitation of time involved to deal with all respondents. The research will be carefully arranged and organized in order to ensure that time is well spent. Planning ahead of the research and developing the most appropriate question will ensure that data collected is accurate, relevant and enough for the research question. This will allow interpretation of data to be simple and efficient.

In trying to address the measure of collecting data, the study will have more participants interviewed via physical means. This will reduce the impact of collecting data via phone interviews and other online platforms which are not very efficient as compared to physical meeting. This will ensure that the interview is structured in a manner which reduces the chances of bias by the respondents. By utilizing data from respondents from different categories, it will ensure bias of the information will be minimized. Finally, this will be a qualitative research and hence the small number of sample size will not be a limiting factor.

Millennials are basically individuals that are reaching their adulthood in the 21st Century. They are also known as generation Y.

Depression is the feeling of severe hopelessness and sadness. An individual suffering depression feels dejected and alone.

Mental health is an individual’s condition as far as their health and psychological state is concerned. It is how well someone is doing emotionally and mentally.

Social Isolation is when an individual has little or no contact with the society or other individuals. It is different from loneliness because loneliness is lack of contact with other humans.

This study has five chapters where the first chapter gives the background of the problem, gives the statement of the problem and provides the theoretical framework of the study. Also, in this chapter the key words used in the study are explained. The second chapter gives the literature review and the fourth chapter explains the methods used for research. Chapter five discusses the findings of the research carried out in chapter four.

In chapter two of the research, there are several sections which deal with the specific literature in detail. The first chapter discusses the leading causes of anxiety and disorder. In realization that mental health is a broad topic, this section highlights some of the factors that cause depression and anxiety disorder. This section has subsections that have detailed information on the various factors. The first subsection deals with risk and protective factors. This subsection highlights the fact that there are risks which can influence the likeness of a person to get depression and anxiety disorder. Also, the subsection makes it clear that there are protective factors which can prevent a person from having depression and anxiety disorder. This sections goes ahead to classify the factors into various categories and explains each of them. The section highlights risk factors as internal, environmental & family, and traumatic factors. In internal risk factors, the paper discusses the personal traits which pre-disposes a person to depression and anxiety disorder. The section also discusses the some of the personal traits that can act as protective factors against the disorder. On the environmental and family factors, discuss the ability of environmental and family situations that can influence a young person in having the disorder. The paper states that young people do not have control of the family and environment factors and therefore it’s important for support structures to be in place. Also the paper discusses traumatic factors as one of the contributing factors to anxiety and depression disorder. The section discusses various traumatic events that could increase the chances of getting the disorder.

The other section deals with technology and depression among millenials. It’s evident that millenials are the first generation to have been brought up in the age technological advances. Although technology has come with great things and made life simple, it has some draw backs. One of the draw backs of technology is addiction. This has addiction has been associated with depression among millenials. This puts the millenials in a unique position in relation to depression. The section deals with how technology have influenced depression among millenials in relation to addiction. Also, the section looks at the risks factors associated with the addiction. Although the risk factors are common to any person with access to internet, the section pays close attention to young people. This can be attributed to the rising number of young people reporting anxiety and depression disorder.

The other section deals with concept of millenials. The section deals with the definition of millenials. This includes what the millenials themselves perceive their own identity. For a long time, there have been little information regarding millenials as compared to other generations. The section looks at the number of millenials as compared to other generations in the history. This section pays close attention to the issue of mental as related to millenials. The section utilizes academic articles which have been lately published as well as older article. The information is used to further discuss why the millenials seem to have mental health crisis.

The chapter also contains theoretical framework. This section discusses the theory connected anxiety and depression disorder. There are some issue which have been concisely observed by various studies. This sections puts the issue of anxiety and depression disorder into a more clear and simple theoretical framework that can be understood by readers. Finally, the chapter concludes with a summary. This summarizes all the information discussed in the chapter. It combines the ideas and arguments put forward in throughout the entire chapter into concise statements. It also points out the gaps observed in literature concerning millenials and the issue of depression and anxiety

Chapter Two: Literature Review

Extensive research has been conducted on the topic of depression or anxiety but there are is no exact set of answers that fit all situations. Mental health issues are different for everyone. There are also diverse factors that affect the mental health of each individual.

Young people are at the risk of developing depression and anxiety based on the things that they are at the risk of as well as protective factors. Every young person has a different childhood which affects the approach to various mental health issues. Every child growing up in a family or institution will go through various challenges that can be considered risk factors. Every child will have resources in their presence as well as strengths which will help them as they go through the difficult times. The resources and strengths which a child or young person will have growing up are what are considered the protective factors. There are generations who have more challenges compared to others. The higher the number of risk facts that a person is exposed to the higher the chances of development of various mental health conditions. Every individual goes through a set of risk factors in a different combination compared to the rest. The development of anxiety or depression will also be affected by the support that the individual gets from friends and family (Yen, 2009). Support helps the individual to build resilience and easily cope with the difficulties that they will go through in life.

Researchers have identified several ways of dealing with the risk and protective factors. One of the ways of protecting the young person from depression and anxiety is by identification of the risk factors. Identification of the risk factors will be countered with ways of countering them in the long run. One can help a child from a young age against the risk factors by supporting them in development and resilience (Young, 2015). Several studies have also identified the promotion of the positive aspects of the lives of young people can mean challenges will less likely get in their way of happiness. Promotion of these positive aspects can help in leading a better life for the young people with success and good mental health. The risk and protective facts in the life of a young person can be classified into three main areas. The first one comprises of the factors that are within the individual. These include family history of mental health conditions, temperament, and natural abilities. The second set of factors can be classified are those in the family and living environment of the individual. These include poverty, discrimination, and relationships with the primary caregivers. The final set of factors refers to specific life events. These include loss, important transitions, loss and family breakup.

Studies have shown that their certain personality traits and temperaments which puts an individual at the risk of depression. The people who have low self-esteem, are perfectionists, and those who are flustered easily will most likely develop several mental health conditions. These personality factors can be seen in various ways in a person. An individual can be seen to avoid new situations and withdraw from them completely. Anxiety also puts an individual at risk in addition to the inability to follow instructions and rules. A person who is aggressive and very irritable is at risk of developing depression at some point in their lives. The other characteristics of a person who is at high risk of developing mental health conditions is lack of understanding of consequences of their actions as well as displaying behavior that is not easy to manage (Przybylski, 2013). People at risk will also likely find it difficult to use and understand language. There are young people who will behave this type of way one time and the other but it is important to note that some will avoid new situations, for example, out of purely shyness. It is not possible for a person to change the internal factors such as personality but the environment can help in creating a supportive environment and building resilience.

Researchers have also identified the protective factors that a person can build naturally. Characteristics such as positive expectations of oneself, an easy temperament, and a sense of independence can go a long way in ensuring a healthy mental state. Problem solving and social skills are also associated with protection against mental illness. A person who can manage their behavior as well as emotions is also less likely to get into depression. The ability to develop and maintain lasting relationships with family and friends is also associated with good mental health.

The family and environment which the young person experiences at the start of their life is beyond the control of one individual. Studies have shown that it is critical to recognize the situation and its characteristics so as to provide additional security and support. The support and security are important for the mental well-being of the individual. There are risk factors that are associated with the family and environment. The first one is family conflict or violence. The presence of constant violence in the immediate environment will leave many young people at a higher risk of depression in addition to neglectful or unsupportive relationships. The absence of one or both parents is also a factor which leads to an inconsistent parenting in addition to the lack of supervision that is associated with it. One or both of the parents can be absent because of either neglect, death, divorce, or family separation. A young person will also be more at a risk of depression in cases where there is constant migration from one area to another. Moving countries and states can lead to such adverse effects especially when it is forced on the young person. Racism and discrimination in the immediate environment can lead to a young person contemplating things like suicide as well as low self-esteem. It leads to depression because of the feeling that the individual does not belong. The young person can also be affected by various natural disasters and bring instability to the situation. Natural disasters come also with trauma and it is likely to find the young people very depressed when such a thing happens to them. Family financial difficulties can also contribute to depression because young people will always compare their situation to that of their peers and will be affected once they note that they cannot get what the rest of their peers do not have.

The environment can also assist in removing some of the risk factors to an individual who will likely suffer from depression. Research has shown that presence of stable and close relationships at home and in the community helps the mental health of the individual. One develops resilience if they feel supported in their immediate environment. The support receives enables a growing individual to be optimistic and develop trust. It is the feeling that they are supported which ensures that they feel cared for regardless of what is happening in the environment. When children are growing up, it has been found that it is best to leave them out of stressful situations in the family. The support from the extended family has also been established as a good way of ensuring that the development of a child is not interrupted (Yen, 2009).

Several studies have shown that distressing or traumatic events can lead to someone being at a higher risk of depression. The events might be unavoidable but it is critical to support young people who are going through a challenging time. The traumatic events do not mean that it is a must for them to develop mental health difficulties but they are at a higher risk. The environment can go a long way in helping young people together with children cope with difficult times that they might not fully comprehend. Children, for example, require that adults reassure them whenever they are facing a change or a major loss in their lives (Zermatten & Van der Linden, 2008). There is the risk of compensation where children will make up stories to try cope with the situation. Making up such stories can lead to mental health issues when one becomes a young adult. The making up of such stories is also risky because it creates confusion in the mind of the child together with anxiety. The child will be also more likely to develop depression when they get into young adulthood. There are specific risk factors for children such as death of a family member, a friend or a pet. Illness can also be a traumatic event for a child. The divorce or separation of caregivers and parents can lead to a lot of trauma to a child. Simple events such as moving house or changing of the school can also lead to depression for the child. Natural disasters also put a lot on the shoulders of a young child. Neglect, abuses, or medical illness or disability can also be traumatic to children.

The millenials generation is the first one to grow in the age of modern technology. The use of online technology such as video games and social media has increased immensely in the last two decades. The emergent of this technology has been associated with several positive things such as increased ease of doing business, entertainment, social interaction and social capit9al, and cognitive skill development but there are concerns regarding today’s excessive use of the technology (Winker et. al, 2013. There are several users who have become addicted to the use of these technologies. Several studies have identified significant concerns which are associated with the uncontrollable motivation to be on social media and associated behavior. Several impairments have been identified as a result of using too much effort and time which can be dedicated to other critical areas of life.

In the past there was the notion that addictive behaviors can only include the places where someone ingests a psychoactive substance but it has been demonstrated that someone can be addicted to specific behaviors. The American Psychiatric Association (2013) has listed Internet Gaming Disorder for example as a potential behavioral addiction. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders has also formally recognized Gambling Disorder as a behavioral addiction. There are few studies which have looked at the area of video games and addiction but they have shown that it is characterized by addiction criteria (Winker et. al, 2013). The criteria which the use of video games and social media has shown is salience where an individual is preoccupied with the behavior. Other criteria include mood modification where performing the behavior seems to relieve or reduce aversive emotional states. The next criteria which has been shown is tolerance where individuals will increase engagement with the behavior over time so as to attain the initial mood change effects that one is used to. The video games and social media also meet the criteria of withdrawal where someone experiences physical discomfort and psychological effects when they are away from the behavior. The final criteria that these moods modifying things have shown is conflict where there is neglecting of recreational, social, work, and other critical activities so as to take up the behavior. The use of social media and video games has also been associated with relapse where a person is unable to control or cut down on the behavior. There are, however, few studies which show the similarities between the substance-related addictions and the use of technology such as social media and video games (Zajdel et. al, 2012).

There are several studies which have shown that their positive interrelationships among the addictive technological behaviors that are there showing that there are common risk factors. Some of the risk factors that have been identified include comorbid psychopathology and impulsive personality. Everyone who has access to the internet today regardless of the social status, gender, or age can be subject to its addiction. There are, however, some demographic factors that increase the risk to the individual. These include young age and other prevailing mental health problems. The millenial generation has a social culture which involves the communication through various digital media such as social media, email, and texting (Young, 2015).

Previous studies have shown that both women and men can become addicted to the use of technology but there is a difference in their online activities. The male population is likely to get hooked to cyber-pornography, and gambling. The female population on the other hand is more likely to be addicted to the addictive use of texting, social media, and online shopping. The studies have also shown that the individuals who are not in relationships are a higher risk of developing these addictive technological behaviors. In the present study, it is expected that the younger millenial generation and single females are likely to show symptoms of addictive use of social networks while the younger single males are likely to show addictive use of video games (Santos et. al, 2015). It is expected that these behaviors put an individual at a higher risk of psychological conditions like depression.

The other risk factor that has been identified with previous research is Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) which puts the individual at high risk of behavioral and substance use. The people with ADHD will become addicted to behaviors and some of these substances as they attempt to deal with their restless behaviors and thoughts. It is a form of self-medication as they tend to have a problem controlling impulses. There is a lot of empirical research which shows relationships between the addictive use of the internet and ADHD. The technologies such as social media bring on an outlet for touching and constant fidgeting when an individual is feeling inattentive or bored. When they are taken together, the symptoms of ADHD will have a positive relationship with the addiction to various technologies (Zermatten & Van der Linden, 2008).

Previous studies have identified a relationship between addictions and the development of emotional disorders such as depression and anxiety. When one is engaging in behaviors such as use of social media, they may help to ease the feelings that one has of depression and anxiety but it can also lead to symptoms of depression and anxiety because of the negative consequences. A number of studies have shown the relationship between depression and symptoms of addictive technological behaviors. Clinical and longitudinal data has also shown that the pathological use of video games and social media can be considered a secondary disorder in some individuals. It is expected that the use of technology by millenials will have a positive relationship with the development of depression and anxiety.

The literature that is available on millenials is limited to that which is popular among popular culture. the objective of this study is to unite the millenial generation with the concerns in psychology such as depression and anxiety. A review of the existing conceptions of millenials is important so as to understand how the young adults view themselves. The generation is termed as millenials because they have researched their maturity in the current millenial. The generation of millenials was born between 1980 and 2000. They are the generation which immediately follows the generation X between 1960s and 1980s. The millenials are today the largest living generation in the world with a country like the United States having over 69 million of this generation.

Howe and Strauss (2000) in their book emphasize that the millenial generation will continue with the trend of risk-taking, apathy, and selfishness that was invited by the Generation X. They also explain the social context of the childhood of this generation. It is important to note that the work was produced before some of the most significant historical events of this generation such as the Great Recession of 2008, the wars in the Middle East, and several significant tragedies like the September 11, 2001 attack in the United States. The following figure shows the generational outlook as it is normally classified.

The 1990s was a period which was child-friendly with a welcoming and positive climate for children. The period represented the beginning of an era where a child was protected more compared to the previous generation X. The political outlook at this time was also friendlier compared to the current state. There were several policies at the time which were keen on improving the future of the child. The family values beginning from this period were at the core of the nation. The birth rate rose and the society started emphasizing the importance of keeping the children first. The consumer culture at the time was also different and people started marketing products that were meant solely for children. The parents at this time were spending more time with the kids spending the maximum time available with their young ones. There was close supervision across all quarters including education.

The parenting practices that rose up during this generation is what has led to millenials in general having close relationships with the parents. The relationship between mothers and their daughters is notably very close. There is also a general trust in the authority figures. The millenial generation also happens to be the most educated one at this time. The millenial generation has spent time in advanced classes, homework, and other activities. The demands on the young people, however, were high and the free time for the children reduced significantly. The millenial generation became one which is used to a rigid structure, academic pressure and the idea of vertical growth is emphasized. Millenials are also associated with the creation of a grassroots form of culture. the millenials have been described as confident, pressured, well-cared for, community-oriented, healthy, technologically adept, achievement-oriented, and sheltered.

John Stein (2013) in his article in the times concluded that “They’re earnest and optimistic. They embrace the system. They are pragmatic idealists, tinkerers more than dreamers, life hackers… They want constant approval—they post photos from the dressing room as they try on clothes. They have a massive fear of missing out and have an acronym for everything (including FOMO) …they don’t identify with big institutions…They want new experiences, which are more important to them than material goods. They are cool and reserved and not all that passionate. They are informed but inactive…They’re financially responsible; although student loans have hit record highs, they have less household and credit card debt than any previous generation on record—which, admittedly, isn’t that hard when you’re living at home and using your parents’ credit card.” He also notes that the prior generations of the same have not taken into account the opinions and voices of the millenials.

Mental Health and Millennials A body of relevant literature regarding Millennials deals with the “mental health crisis” in this generation. The mental health crisis as a social problem is based on the rising suicide rates 28 among young adults and the increasing number of college and university students seeking psychological care for anxiety and depression (Rensenbrink Flatt 2013). Evidence does suggest “large increases in mental health issues among young people in Western nations between the early 20th century and the early 1990s” (Twenge 2011), but conclusions regarding causality are more difficult to establish. Twenge emphasizes that generational changes have led to distinct cultural shifts causing this problem. From a psychological perspective, “the cultural environment during childhood plays an especially important role in shaping lifelong susceptibility to anxiety” (Twenge 2011:470), and so Millennials are experiencing a “disconnect between expectations and reality—young people were told ‘you can be anything you want to be’ and ‘you are special’ and then found that reality was not quite so easy” (470). This disconnect can crush the perfectionism of Millennials and lead to psychological and emotional fragility (470), increasing susceptibility to anxiety and depression. Rensenbrink Flatt (2013) also comments that the academic pressure Millennials face plays a key role in emotional instability; a childhood in a competitive environment with strong parental pressure may have resulted in an inability to cope with failure. She also notes that the increasing diversity of college students may add some anxiety to minority students or students of lower socioeconomic status in terms of the social and financial burdens of college life, again placing prevalence on the role of intersectionality in understanding the anxieties of a generation. At a broader level, Twenge et al. (2012) looked at the value system of Millennials and found that this generation has less concern for others than do preceding generations and values extrinsic life goals (Twenge et al. 2012:1054). This construction of Millennials fits with the achievement-oriented nature of the generation, described by Howe and Strauss (2000), Byock (2015), and Stein (2013). Twenge et al. comment that emphasis on extrinsic values over intrinsic values correlates with distress and poorer psychological well-being, creating a possibility for mental health problems (2012:1058). Taking a life course perspective, Robinson et al. (2013) write that the transition 29 between adolescence and adulthood is a high-risk period for the onset of mental illness (28). They describe the coexistence of anxiety and depression in modern young adults as the result of a dichotomy between endings and beginnings (35). As Millennials leave adolescence, they experience loss, resulting in depression; as they begin adulthood, they experience uncertainty, resulting in anxiety (35).

Depression is a mood suborder which ends up affecting individuals and prevenient them from leading a life that is normal within the family or at work. It affects the operation of the individual in the whole society. The current study makes use of the behaviorist theory in studying the topic of depression among millenials. The focus of the behaviorism approach is on the observable behavior and the conditions under which individuals will learn the behavior that they take up. The depression that is witnessed among millenials is as a result of interaction with the environment. The current study will take the approach of classical conditioning in dealing with the problem. This is where two stimuli are linked together to provide a learned response in a person.

Anxiety and depression is a problem that has affected several millenials and several studies have tried to look at various aspects of the situation. The literature review contains an analysis of the literature that is available on the topic in question. The literature starts by explaining who a millenial is. The millenial is the individual who has reached adulthood in the millenial which is the period after 2000. It is a term which is loosely used in many circles and it is critical to study it from the professional side according to how sociologists have classified the generations. There are several risk factors that are there that make the millenial generation particularly vulnerable to these mental health concerns. These range from technology to the outlook of the society when these individuals were getting to adulthood. The current generation is experiencing a period where they are aware of their mental health and it is critical to look at all these factors. There is, however, a gap in the literature with little specific focus on the problem of depression among the millenials. The literature present talks about young people and can only be applicable to the generation at the time they were being conducted. The current study will focus solely on the millenial generation and why they are ridden with anxiety and depression.

Chapter Three: METHODOLOGY

While there are clear benefits to a quantitative analysis of the demographic aspects of generational and social change, this thesis takes a qualitative approach. Focusing on a smaller sample of individuals enables qualitative research to delve more deeply into the questions being asked. By engaging in what Schwartz and Jacobs (1979) term “reality reconstruction,” the interviews used in this study represent detailed mirrors into the subjectivities of the sampled individuals. Multiple themes could be studied in depth, respondents could be pushed to consider the social phenomena behind their thoughts, behaviors, and actions, and connections could be made even within data collection rather than being limited to the isolated realm of data analysis. Building on Max Weber’s theory of Verstehen, qualitative research utilizes the interpretive and decision-making processes of individuals to form sociological theories (Schwartz and Jacobs 1979). As qualitative researchers, our role is to build from the subjective to the objective by finding social meaning within the individual and their life experiences. Qualitative research introduces an important human component to psychological inquiry by looking at smaller groups of people at the micro-level, a definitively different approach from skimming the surface of a larger subset of the population.

The theoretical approach described in the previous section is particularly well-suited for qualitative methodology. The behavioral classical theory presents vision of a society in which large-scale social transformations and changes are felt at an individual level. Parallel to structural transformations, modernity is accompanied by changes in the ways in which human beings shape their identity. Although it has an important psychological component, identity is a primarily subjective experience, and so societal changes in processes of identity formation have consequences at the individual level. The broad social transformations that result from the intersection of modernity and generational theory, then, are represented within the subjective experiences of all modern young people, albeit with some variation dependent upon specific social context, gender, class, race, or other identity factors. The mirrored and subjective nature of this research reflects Lash’s vision of a mirrored modern society. For this reason, a micro-level analysis allows for a deeper understanding of human subjectivity, and despite the small sample size the thoughts outlined by these few respondents are conceptually relevant to social changes occurring on a broader scale. Specifically, regarding the Millennial generation, qualitative study is important for this demographic due to the prevalence of popular culture literature regarding Millennials. Writing about (and criticizing) Millennials has become a cultural hobby but often lacks analytical sophistication. A methodology adapted to understand the subjectivity of young people gives a voice to first-person and gives understanding on their psychological makeup to better understand their anxiety and depression. Perspectives. This thesis engages in “grounded research” in which concepts and thematic elements were directly built upon the data itself. Rather than beginning with specific hypotheses and assumptions, I allowed the interview process to determine my findings. In this way, qualitative study leaves room for the intricacies of human nature and allows researchers to confront and adapt generalizations applied to broad social groups to develop a psychological theory which is grounded on data.

To collect a sample for this study, I relied on personal networks and social media. The sampling method that was used is snowball sampling. My sample consisted of 25 young adults between the ages of 17 and 27, with an average age of 21. I personally recruited seven respondents, five respondents replied to my various Facebook posts requesting interview participants, and 13 respondents were referred to my study by someone that knows me personally. Four had either not attended college or had completed some community college, two were planning on attending college in the next two years, six were college graduates (two of whom had either a Masters or a professional degree), and the remainder were currently attending college. All respondents could be categorized as middle class, upper middle class, or upper class. Various other traits of the sample are outlined in Table 1

The greatest problem in selecting a sample for this study was response bias: at times it was

difficult to recruit participants, which is why I found myself drawing on social networks and referrals. Of the 15 individuals in the sample I knew personally, two were close friends, four were family friends, two are in the university, and one was a relative. Data Collection Interviews took place between November and December 2018. Four were conducted over the phone, and the rest were conducted in person at a location chosen by the respondent. One interview was not fully completed due to time constraints, but the completed portion has been included in analysis. I informed each participant of the confidentiality of their responses and received verbal consent regarding participation and to record the interview. Interviews lasted between 45 minutes and 2.5 hours and were semi-structured and open-ended. Questions were developed through exposure to relevant literature and designed to best answer my initial research questions. The interviews covered the respondents’ demographic information, generational identity, childhood, anxieties, fears, social media use, insecurities, and mental illness. The full interview schedule is attached as Appendix A.

Each interview was fully transcribed. I personally transcribed all of the interviews. Major thematic elements were noted throughout the data collection process and in deep readings of several of the transcriptions. Relevant literature also framed the development of themes. Each interview was initially coded along main ideas such as social media use, money, anxieties, social networks, competition, emotions, and “being an adult.” Several main ideas were selected to be addressed in each of the following chapters. Once delineated by chapter, the data was further divided into more specific thematic elements and then organized to provide a skeletal structure for each portion of the analysis. Interview responses are both paraphrased and quoted directly and all identifying information has been changed to protect the identity of the respondent while preserving relevant background information.

While an important tool for understanding the subjective component of social change, qualitative study inevitably has inherent limitations to generalizability due to the small sample size and its potential lack of heterogeneity. This sample is primarily women, not by design but because those willing to participate were most often women. While there was some variation in levels of education, all of the respondents grew up in a middle class, upper middle class, or upper-class household. Some observations based on intersectional identity factors will be noted throughout the discussion. Many times, the respondents mentioned how their social context or personal characteristics influenced the way they see the world, and this will also be addressed throughout. The qualitative nature of this study allows for generalization regarding the generational consciousness, identity formation, anxieties, and insecurities of modern young people. Finally, as a young, upper middle-class individual I must note my own similarity to the sample population. While this was not intentional, given the restrictions and difficulties of recruiting interview participants outside of a formal research context it is not surprising. My initial desire to pursue the research questions that drove this study stemmed from personal experience. Beyond the research idea and the sample selection, I have taken care to not bring my personal bias into my analysis.

Chapter Four: Results

Conducting a Google search of the term “Millennials” will produce approximately 38 million results, yet despite this high number there is relatively little consensus – even among Millennials themselves – regarding what the Millennial generation actually constitutes. Most respondents, when asked what the term Millennial means to them, expressed amusement, frustration, or apathy. In contrast to Alwin and McCammon’s (2003) definition of a generation as sharing a “self-conscious identity,” the reactions of the respondents seemed to demonstrate a lack of intrinsic generational consciousness, departing from the identity component required to establish a cohort as a generation. However, it is important to note that Millennials do not completely lack generational identity; rather, their identity as a generation has been complicated by an upbringing in high modernity. This chapter aims to outline modern young adults’ generational self-definition, and highlights two primary themes to demonstrate the impact of modernity on the life course and generational structure of Millennials. The first is that Millennials embody the reflexivity of modernity and understand themselves and their generation as integrated with specific social contexts. The second is the heterogeneity, diversity, and individualism of this generation, reflecting key ideologies of modernity.

Hesitant Self-Identification When people talk about Millennials I’m like, “Yes, you’re talking about me.” But I wouldn’t necessarily call myself or refer to myself as a Millennial (Isabel, age 19). Although often told that they are Millennials, modern young people are far more hesitant to identify themselves using the term. This hesitancy stems partly from a rejection of generational boundaries and partly from a feeling that the word Millennial is not their own but one that has been assigned to them. On the one hand, respondents like Isabel rejected the idea of generational boundaries: “I don’t know if I buy into the whole generational thing. It probably makes sense to a certain extent to generalize growing up during a certain time but putting any definitive boundaries on that I feel is unnecessary.” On the other hand, many young people described a lack of self-identification with the specific term Millennial. Aditi, a 21-year-old, laughed off the term, saying “I don’t ever actually identify with the word … it’s just a joke to me,” while Catherine elaborated: I guess that is the cohort that I’m in, but I don’t self-identify as a Millennial, and so it’s sort of this outside thing that has been imposed on me. I mean, I am. I don’t reject that, but that’s not something that I care about, that isn’t a meaningful part of my identity as much as those things [other identity factors such as woman, student, 20-year-old that I just said were. Ironically, Millennials’ hesitancy to accept boundaries and labels serves as a defining characteristic of the generation as a whole. When asked to define what the term means, the modal definition used age ranges and numbers, including the group of individuals between 18 and 30, those born between the mid-1980s and 2000, and those who experienced their formative years of development around the turn of the millennium. Having established this definition, many respondents begrudgingly accepted that they were Millennials, while still underscoring their lack of self-identification. Aaron, a 25-year-old, presented this idea: “I understand that I’m in the age range of what people consider Millennials. I don’t mind other people saying it, but it’s not something I would brag about or label myself or profess in any way.” Evident in Lauren’s (24) comment, “I don’t know what the true definition of being a Millennial is, but I’ve heard people say that I am, so therefore I must be,” disassociation with the term Millennial is not an active decision to reject the term. Rather, respondents seemed to reluctantly accept the label without either fully denying or embracing it. However, one respondent did embrace the term Millennial. Samantha, a 20-year-old said: I think I’m pretty much as Millennial as it gets at this point just because of the mix of social media and growing up around here and going to a liberal arts school … working in tech and going to San Francisco all the time and loving the food trends, getting really deeply into random stuff. I think that’s a very Millennial-y thing. I would definitely consider myself a Millennial. Her acceptance of the term was conditional on its breadth and generality. She went on to say that think it’s kind of a broad term, and I think there are a lot of sub-definitions of it that I identify with and so there are enough where I can comfortably say that I am a Millennial … I’m okay under this big umbrella term. Because most felt that the label Millennial was an over-generalization of the diversity of their generation, they were able to accept it as a blanket term and not as an indication of any particular trait or characteristic.

When discussing generational identity with young adults, it is the term “Millennial” that causes the most frustration. Most of the respondents identified with other young people and with modern youth culture. They begrudgingly accepted that they were “technically” a Millennial but rejected the social connotations of that label. Their frustration and confusion with this term primarily stems from the fact that it is a label given to this generation by older adults. As criticism of younger generations from older generations is a common social phenomenon, it is understandable that the connotations of “Millennial” are primarily negative. The negative connotations of the term are also influential in adding to generational resentment (Feuer 1969). Jenny, a 25-year-old from the emphasized that the term Millennial signifies “entitled, and lazy, and expect success without working hard. But I feel like that doesn’t describe me and a lot of people, it’s just another generalization.” Samantha added that “just stereotypically we’re very whiny and self-absorbed, so I don’t want to say I’m whiny and self-absorbed because no one wants to identify with the negative traits … I don’t think that we’re all like that. We’re a very dynamic group of people.” Jenny and Samantha’s comments demonstrate the extent to which Millennials’ generational identity is also dialectically formed in relation to the assessments and opinions of older generations. Just as Millennials reject the term because it was imposed onto them, they understand themselves either in accordance with or in contrast to the opinions of older adults.

Many other respondents also rejected the term Millennial because they saw it as a negative generalization that cannot capture the nuances and variation of an entire generation. As Aditi emphasized, “you can’t encompass such a diverse culture all into one thing.” She went on to describe how older generations use generalizations regarding Millennials in marketing and political strategies to serve their own purpose: “I think a lot of people who are not Millennials use it as a political tool, or a social tool, to understand or generalize people that they need something from, like notes or things like that.” Her cynical perspective on the term Millennial reflects a rejection of the overgeneralizations used by critics of the generation such as Joel Stein (2013) in favor of an emphasis on diversity. A second common reason for dismissal of the term Millennial is the belief that the term is a criticism due to its frequent use in conjunction with descriptors such as lazy, entitled, spoiled, and sheltered. Lisa, a 17-year-old, stated “I think the media generally portrays it [Millennials] as very negative. I think the way that someone described it to me was that Millennials are Lena Dunham girls. People who are living off of their parents, really quite spoiled.” Similarly, Jacqueline, an 18-year-old, said “being a Millennial, people just think you’re like, noses in your phone all day.” She went on to say, as a whole it is stereotyped negatively. It’s where people my age, they don’t know what it means to be respectful, to respect older people and have common sense, that’s how I feel it’s always seen. It’s just like, oh, young and ignorant and arrogant… I feel like that’s really what my age group has come to represent in the eyes of older people.

Although respondents mostly admitted that “to be a Millennial is just kind of what you are” (Casey, 25), they were frustrated with the barrage of criticism they felt from the rest of society. Casey emphasized that the negative portrayal of Millennials has led to intergenerational resentment: while Millennials are scapegoated for social change, they criticize the older generation for hindering progress. An opinion held by several respondents was that Millennials often did embody some of the negative stereotypes, but that these characteristics should not be criticized or seen negatively. Rather, their differences from older generations could be attributed to the different social context in which they grew up. Thomas, a 21-year-old, commented that many of the criticisms are unfounded: “I think there are a lot of false conceptions about the Millennial generation, about their work ethic or their values not aligning properly with the rest of America.” Respondents also emphasized that because they are a younger generation, the criticisms from older generations are often about their being young. Josh, a 19-year-old, commented: “[the term] issued as silly Millennial. Silly Millennial, they’ve only been here 20 years, they don’t know how the world works.” While highlighting how the modern generation of youth is merely different from older generations, rather than worse or better, Samantha added, “we’ve just lived through the 90s and now. We’re still very new.” That Millennials are a generation of youth, which makes them an easy target for criticism, inevitably leads to the type of generational resentment described by Eisenstadt (1956) and Feuer (1969). Feuer analyzes how young generations become frustrated with a society controlled by older generations; Millennials expressed frustration that their negatively stereotyped generational definition has been assigned to them by older members of society. While the outside perspective remains critical, young adults such as Catherine see positive aspects of their generation: “I do care about being young and think that young people and people our age are doing a lot of cool things and should be taken more seriously than we are, especially young women and girls are not taken seriously.” As these young adults come of age, they will obtain further power to reject these stereotypes and to establish themselves in society. Nevertheless, in the interim that frustration remains. When confronted with the term Millennial, respondents accepted that they were a part of the generation but expressed their frustration with the criticism implicit in that description. While they did not completely reject the characteristics assigned to Millennials, they insisted that the implications of these traits are not as negative as they have been previously understood. By rejecting boundaries and definitions, Millennials also understood themselves through the frame of reference provided by older generations. However, many of the young people expressed a wish for the social image of their generation held by others to go beyond the stereotype and reflect the diversity they see in themselves.

Reflecting Erikson (1968) and Giddens’s (1991) analyses of identity as simultaneously subjective and social, Millennials appear to think of their identity as a reflexive project, one dependent on their particular social contexts. Their understanding of their generation is constructed relevant to their sociocultural surroundings. Millennials are who they are because they were raised in a unique social context and with a specific parenting style. Likewise, respondents described how each generation is different because of its own social context. As a means of rejecting criticisms of their own generation, young people emphasized that these differences do not lead to any one generation to be worse or better. Rather, the historical events that occurred in the lifetime of each generation – particularly events occurring during youth – lead each generation to be simultaneously the same as and unique from others. This nuanced way of thinking aligns with sociological life course theory (see Alwin and McCammon 2003).

When asked what makes their generation unique, nearly all of the respondents emphasized that growing up in a modern social context has affected Millennials’ behavior and value system. Josh elaborated: I think they themselves [Millennials] are not unique, I think it’s their environment that makes them unique. Humans have never lived in a time of this exact technological advancement. It’s all relative, I mean. I’m sure it was totally crazy when fire became a thing. I’m sure it was totally crazy when iron tools replaced stone tools. It’s all relative. The exact technology wasn’t the same, but for every generation the exact technology of that time, the exact time they lived in had been so completely different than the time before. I think that in their uniqueness, in the uniqueness of Millennials, they are the same as everyone else. The exact situation is different, but in the comparisons to past generations they are similar if not the same. His understanding of Millennials as only being unique because the time in which they grew up is unique represents an understanding of social life as reflexive. Modern young adults, rather than emphasizing any conscious decision to behave a certain way, appear to understand that they are who they are because of their environment. Isabel commented, “I think ultimately people are just people. But the way that we’ve grown up has obviously affected those experiences and nobody else is going to have the same experiences.” Respondents emphasized that the parenting style they experienced as children also helped shape their generation, primarily because parents in the 1990s overwhelmingly emphasized their role as a safety net for their offspring. While this will be discussed in more detail later in this thesis, it is important to mention the relevance of parental attitudes toward children when understanding how the Millennial generation has become a product of its environment. As Howe and Strauss (2000) analyzed in their work on Millennials, the 1990s was the era of the “protected child.” Importantly, this means that middle-class parents of Millennials saw their role as protectors: children were given the opportunity for exploration without the pressure of self-sufficiency. Michael, a 19-year-old, described this phenomenon: I mean, the kind of parenting that existed for most of that time period was much more focused on an extended adolescence, where you’re still pretty much a kid until you're 23 because your parents still pay for everything, you don't really have to worry about yourself, you just have to worry about if you're going to college, getting through college, doing your best, having a good time. After college, worried about getting a job, but your parents will still subsidize your life so you don't have to live in a shack. Like, just a lot more support than I feel like people have ever gotten before, partially because of the economic situation for most of the time that Millennials have been coming into the work force, but also just because of the style of parenting that's much more focused on nurturing and things like that. Casey also mentioned this protective parenting style: “I think older generations have somewhat tried to make life easier for Millennials in certain ways… I think there's kind of that mentality of giving more to your children than you feel like you had.” Both of these respondents, as well as others, emphasized that their parents’ attitudes affected their development during childhood. As a modern

generation, Millennials embody Giddens’s (1991) emphasis on the reflexivity of modernity. Not only does their generational development and identity formation reflect this reflexivity, but they also appear to be acutely self-aware of the role their social context has played in their development. Lasch’s (1979) metaphor of modernity as a mirror is personified in Millennials, who are comfortable acknowledging the influential role of social and historical framework towards the formation of their subjective identity. Generations as “Just Different” After asking them to define their generation, I asked respondents whether Millennials are worse or better than older generations.3 Some individuals, addressed later in this chapter, responded that Millennials were definitively worse, but the overwhelming majority used the phrase “just different” in their responses. Citing differences in social contexts, many young adults believed that because differences are caused by the world being different it is impossible to rank generations as better or worse. Megan, a 24-year-old from Southern California, stated: “it’s the kind of thing where you can’t compare because the world changes and there are things that are better about the world. The exact question wording was as follows: “How do Millennials/members of your generation compare to members of older generations? Worse? Better?” (see Appendix A). Now, and there are things about the world that are worse. … You know, it's just the world is different.” This perspective was also used defensively regarding criticisms of Millennials as a “worse” generation. Both Antonio and Casey addressed this by commenting that each generation has its faults: I feel we're totally different. I don't think we are worse or better than them… I feel we're just different. We obviously grew up in different eras and … I feel we're just different people. A lot of them blame us for not paying for our own college, but it's expensive. I can see a lot of that thing is happening more. They are like, "Well, we worked then. We paid for our own college." Then we blame them for messing up the economy. But it's everybody's fault. It's not one specific group. (Antonio, 22)

I think that each generation can blame another generation for something. … I think they're all just different. I mean it's just the times and the atmosphere that you grow up in. The environment that you get lends itself towards your upbringing being different and it's constantly changing the world and society and tech and everything. It's all changing so I think that we're all just kind of catching up. (Casey, 25) Respondents were able to use their knowledge of individuals and generations as socially defined to deflect the criticism they felt was aimed at them by other members of society. As a modern form of generational resentment (Feuer 1969), this perspective criticizes older generations not for their behavior but rather for their lack of understanding that all behavior is a result of social context. Confronting attitudes towards Millennials, Catherine summarized: “every new generation … thinks it is super, super special and the other generations think it’s terrible in new special ways, and I don’t think that’s particularly true. I think we’re all pretty similar and have pretty similar hopes and fears.” This similarity was seen as particularly important in reference to Millennials’ status as the current generation of youth. Respondents mostly agreed that being young is similar regardless of one’s generation. Following up on his earlier statement, Josh added: I think that the Baby Boomer generation and Generation X probably suffered through a similar thing. When they were young and feeling like the world is in their hands, people were like, “Well slow down, you don’t know how this all works, you’re just young people.” That’s how I kind of think the Millennial generation is now, and that in 20 years when there’s whatever is next, Generation Z or something like that, I think that against our greatest efforts those same prejudices will be pushed on the next generation… Right now, the meaning of Millennial is young people, and young people to old people in general are just wild and just want to change everything. Priya, a 22-year-old from Silicon Valley, made a similar comment: When the Baby Boomers were young, they were also a very revolutionary generation but now they look at how we're different from them and they see it as a bad thing. Maybe not remembering how their parents saw their generation as very lost and very anti-authoritarian and stuff like that. Same with Generation X. … I think it's just every generation is different from the one before it, but it doesn't ever mean they're better or worse, they're just different. There are different conditions when you're growing up. Although being young is similar for all generations, life course and generational theorists agree that the social context during youth is particularly important in the process of identity development. Respondents also seemed to grasp this concept. They highlighted differences between themselves and their parents by citing the different worlds in which they were raised. Jacqueline stated, “we were just raised differently. My mom and dad were raised in a time where … the world was kind of a different place.” Respondents who were children of immigrants were particularly observant of how differences between themselves and their parents could be attributed to the environments of their youth. Victoria, a 24-year-old from Silicon, admitted that both her and her parents were forced to “balance two cultures and identities” as a result of being multiracial, but emphasized that her parents were presented with more objective obstacles. She stated, “my parents grew up in a war-torn country. They were more worried about their next meal or how they’ll get to America, whether they’re going to pass their interview process, whether they had TB (tuberculosis) in that screening … whereas I was worried about my AP (Advanced Placement) scores at that age.” The “totally different mindsets” of herself and her parents were similar to those expressed by Antonio, another child of immigrants. Their stories indicate on a more dramatic level the profound effect of social and historical context on differentiating each generation. Millennials’ tendency to define themselves and others socially and reflexively indicates the extent to which they are a modern generation.

Technological advancement was repeatedly cited as the primary factor contributing to the establishment of Millennials as a unique generation. Several respondents referred to the impact that a social context focused on technology has had on young people. Michael commented, “I think it just so happened that a lot of really big societal changes occurred – because of the Internet and technology and lots of other things – that it put us in a unique position.” This era of rapid change has also created a dividing line between older and younger generations. David, a 27-year-old from the Central Coast, emphasized that Millennials are accustomed to adapting to change because they were raised in a fluid social environment: “a lot has happened in a short time … that effectively changes the world in such a way that it makes it harder for people who grew up in times not like this to relate and change with the times.” Other, older generations, having less experience with adaptation, are perhaps unable to adjust as quickly as modern young people, potentially leading to division and animosity between the generations. Beyond separating Millennials from their predecessors, technology has increased accessibility and made communication easier. Young people often see this as positive but acknowledge that online communication has led to less face-to-face contact, a phenomenon that older generations are quick to criticize. Kayla, a 20-year-old from the Central Coast, echoed these criticisms: “I just think that we’re disconnected from life … everything is so controlled by technology and nothing seems as real anymore to Millennials.” Many respondents acknowledged a dichotomy between connection and disconnection as a result of an upbringing with technology. Victoria described this disconnect as lonely, and Megan commented, I think other people see it [this generation] as disconnected from their surroundings, which definitely makes sense because technology is so readily available. You do have a lot more access to people, but it’s in a different way… I think globalization and access to more people and more things is good, but it makes it harder because you have more options, and when you have more options it’s harder to choose. So, I don’t know if it’s necessarily good or bad. Whether accessibility and global communication are positive or negative, they have affected the personality development of Millennials. Respondents believed that being brought up surrounded by technology has caused Millennials to appreciate and accept modern conveniences and to desire instant gratification. Ashley, a 20-year-old, elaborated on this subject: “I think being a Millennial incorporates a different view of society around you, and how you view technology and how you use it. It’s all about becoming more modern … we expect things faster; we go after things faster using technology.” Most of the young people interviewed emphasized that being brought up with technology is beneficial. Some respondents cited having to teach their parents about new technologies or having an advantage in the job market due to their familiarity with modern advancements. Another positive aspect of a technological childhood, and perhaps the rationale behind why Millennials are comfortable with reflexive notions of identity, is that exposure to technology leads to self-awareness. Samantha noted, we’re a product of technology, we’re a product of social-networking and that’s probably what changed our generation the most. People think that we’re so selfish, but I don’t think that’s necessarily true. I think it’s because social-networking became so rampant and people got into it and naturally you just post about yourself and your life. I think we’re very self-involved. We’re also very self-aware and we care a lot about issues. This thought simultaneously acknowledges criticisms of Millennials as the “Me, Me, Me Generation” (Stein 2013) while indicating the importance of self-awareness as a tool for social awareness. Becoming accustomed to seeing their lives mediated through a screen has given Millennials a metaperspective on their own existence, one that allows them to see the bigger picture. As part of this, and referring to generational differences, many respondents believed that younger generations will be even more focused on technology. Jacqueline described how her early childhood remained technology-free, a contrast from children born in the 21st century. As a result, she believes that today’s young adults had “a more authentic upbringing, more natural than now, being raised in all the technology and all the things that come with that.” Importantly, while Millennials define their generation in relation to advancements in technology that accompanied their upbringing, they have already begun to distance themselves from subsequent generations, citing technology as a divisive element.

As Thomas stated directly, “a lot of Millennials are highly educated; they were raised with the goal of going to college and being able to have a successful career.” Because Millennials are currently in the life stage of attending school, education – particularly higher education – is an important element when defining this generation. Surveys conducted by the Higher Education Research Institute at the University of California Los Angeles (HERI) indicate that, over the past 50 years, college students’ achievement-based goals have sharply increased, demonstrating that modern young people value academic achievement more than did their predecessors (Eagan et al. 2016). Some respondents stressed that education outside the classroom, such as online discourse about social and political issues, has also led to informed young people. Formal education, although important, was often seen as a source of stress. Lisa reflected this when she said, “People have gotten way more intense about education than they used to be.” The intensity felt by Millennials stems from academic pressure, both in high school and in college, and competition regarding college acceptances and job acquisition and can often have a negative impact on emotional health (Eagan et al. 2016). Thomas stated: “The world has gotten a lot more competitive in a lot of arenas, like getting into colleges, getting good jobs at good companies.” Lisa went on to say, “I feel like people my age and people older than me are very intense about high school, college, grad school… The age group of 18 to 28, I’d say, is very intense about getting into the workforce, getting stuff done as soon as possible, and having the highest level of education.” It is important to note, however, that not all of the respondents and not all Millennials are engaged in higher education. The four respondents who had either completed some community college or who had not participated in any form of higher education did not mention education as a defining factor of their generation, again stressing the importance of specific social context and intersectionality when creating a generational definition. Other young people added that they felt pressured to succeed, although the source of this pressure was nebulous: “There is still more pressure on us to know what we’re doing and have everything figured out” (Catherine, 20). Anxiety about having one’s life “figured out” is indicative of the life stage presently occupied by Millennials, and stress about the future is exacerbated by young adults’ fear of failure. Byock (2015) analyzed this phenomenon, also described by Lauren: “I think because of social media, because of the Millennial attitude towards ‘I want this great thing but I don’t have smaller goals to getting there,’ when on the first try we don’t succeed, failure is very much seen as this negative thing.” Fear of failure and other anxieties regarding adulthood will be addressed in the following chapter; as an initial understanding, entering adulthood brings many challenges that are an important component of Millennials’ self-definition. Partly due to their current life stage and partly due to an academically-focused childhood (Howe and Strauss 2000), Millennials see their generation as one that values education and success.

Another central characteristic of Millennials is that they are liberal and accepting of difference, more than previous generations. This description is reinforced by national survey findings that indicate an increase in progressive political views among modern college students compared to 50 years ago (Eagan et al. 2016). Lauren summarized, “the Millennial generation has this ‘it’s okay’ attitude about social things.” She went on to say, I think that being a Millennial means that you are way more progressive than our parents have been. I think that we’re more open to people and things and experiences that are different than the ones we have had. More accepting, whether or not we understand someone who’s different or something else that they’ve experienced, there’s a level of “it doesn’t affect me, so I don’t care. It doesn’t affect me, so it’s okay.” In the Millennial generation there’s less of a stigma about “well, that’s not like me so that’s wrong.” Millennials were described as accepting of same-sex or interracial marriage as well as other forms of difference. Antonio attributed this to growing up in a more diverse environment,4 stating that “we just know how to be with other people and don’t know how to hate.” Kayla expressed optimism that the liberalness of Millennials will lead to the creation of a more accepting society, echoed by Antonio: “most of the Millennials want to change the world, they want to change everything right now. They want to make this country better and then make the world a better place.”

Chapter Five: Discussion of Findings

In their present life stage, Millennials must make important decisions regarding their future. As a generation that values independence, exploration, and social engagement, there are numerous pressures to establish a “successful” life path that simultaneously allows them to be financially independent, pursue their interests, and give back to the community. Modernity also presents the paradox of infinite choice: increased freedom means that young people have more options than ever, but increased options do not make decisions easier. In some ways, fear of failure can be debilitating. Josh describes this: “I’m a little bit afraid of failure because of any of the down [negative] things that might come with it. And so, it seems sometimes better to not try than to fail.” His anxiety about failure results in a type of risk-aversion that Byock (2015) and Deresiewicz (quoted in Byock 2015) are quick to criticize in this generation. However, awareness of risk is typical of modernity as a whole. Giddens (1991) describes the ease of becoming “overwhelmed by anxieties about risks which are implied by the very business of living”. Furthermore, in emerging adulthood (as in all periods of transition) the risk and reward paradox feel particularly dramatic and overwhelming, and so the combined insecurities of living in modernity and in a tenuous stage of life may exacerbate risk aversion and the fear of failure in life. These are some of the pressures that are pushing millenials into depression.

Just as they defined their own expectations for adulthood, Millennials worry about not meeting these expectations. Similar to a fear of failure, respondents mentioned concerns and anxieties centering on not reaching their own goals for adulthood. Their fears relate directly to their expectations regarding employment, finances, personal goals, and success. Importantly, not all respondents were in the process of looking for a job at the time of the interview. Several older respondents were already employed while others who were younger were more concerned with their college experience. Catherine described how, as a junior in college, she was still “comfortably removed… I don’t feel I have to worry about that yet so I’m not.” However, most of those respondents who were not already established in their chosen field – including younger respondents – mentioned concerns and anxieties about finding a job they will enjoy and that will allow them to live comfortably. Perhaps as a result of the 2008 financial crisis, several respondents were worried about the job market. Michael commented, “we were hearing the unemployment rate is really high, it’s hard for college graduates to find jobs.” Similarly, Amanda acknowledged: “I feel that not being able to find a job is a scary reality.” Beyond merely finding a job, Millennials place great value in finding work that is meaningful and about which they are passionate: “I want to be passionate about whatever I do. I don’t want to just have a nine-to-five boring office job” (Priya, 22). Michael conceded that he does not “need to love my first job” but values employment that will act as “a good career stepping stone.” Extending from their social engagement, Millennials place as much emphasis on finding meaningful work as they do on earning a good salary, although having more criteria adds to the difficulty and anxiety of finding a job. The societal pressures in total contribute in pressuring the millenials. The general environment seems to be pushing the millenials to anxiety and depression. Future research can focus on having a larger sample and establishing the causes of depression and anxiety among millenials. The sample can be more diverse to ensure that the results are easily generalizable.

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Appendix