Generation Gap

Introduction

People are different regardless of their age, habits, characteristics, behavior and thoughts. Sometimes these differences can become a problem for communication, especially when young and old meet each other. This problem is the generation gap.

What is the generation gap?

Generation gap is a difference in values and attitudes between one generation and another, especially between young people and old people. These differences may relate to beliefs, politics, language, work, demographics and values. The differences between generations can cause misunderstandings, but it is possible for generations to overcome their differences and maintain functional relationships.

The sociological theory of a generation gap first came to light in the 1960s, when the younger generation (later known as baby boomers) seemed to go against everything their parents had previously believed in terms of music, values, government and political views as well as cultural tastes.
It was then that American researcher Karl Mannheim studied the differences that separate one generation from the other, that often appear during the transition into adulthood.

And so the generation gap began. It has evolved and expanded over the years. The generation gap now is different from the generation gap in the 1960s. But the main problem is the same. And here some examples.

People belonging to the older generations lived in a joint family system and believed in sharing and caring. However, this concept has deteriorated over the generations. The current generation wants freedom and there is hardly anyone who follows the traditional way of living in the joint families. The overall lifestyle of people has changed drastically.

The language undergoes various changes over time, resulting in a clash of generations.
Each generation adopts a new set of slangs, thereby creating some separation from the previous one. Communication between people belonging to different generations at home as well as at work sometimes becomes quite difficult due to this change in language.

Women belonging to the older generations were mostly confined to the home. They were only seen as someone who should take care of the house, it was the men of the house to go out and work. However, society’s attitudes towards women have changed over the generations. Today, women are allowed to enter any field of their choice and work just like men.
But today in many countries we face this problem. For example, in Islamic countries, women are not allowed to work or study, even they cannot go outside without a chadra.

Young people and adults have problems with each other when their thoughts do not match, when they give different solutions to the same situation and they contradict each other. Or their tastes do not coincide with each other. These problems are the main problems of today’s society, which are found in almost all families or in different environments.

Coclusion

And wind up my speech I want to say that Generation gap occurs because the world is constantly changing. It should be understood that people born in different ages are bound to be different from one another. People must respect each other for their individuality rather than imposing their ideas and beliefs on each other. The only solution is that people should understand and accept each other, their thoughts, tastes, beliefs and values.