Rick and Kathy Hicks published their book, “Boomers, Xers and Other Strangers” with Focus on the Family in 1999. The focus of this book is intergenerational relationships, in extended families, churches and workplaces. They work on an approach to generational development that goes right back to formative influence in the family home.
1. Developing Our Difference
Rick and Kathy introduce their readers to psychological/sociological processes behind the development of distinctive values and behaviours in different generations. They draw heavily on the work of Morris Massey, written up in his 1979 book, “The People Puzzle“.
In early childhood, up to the age of seven, children are developing an ‘imprint’ or pattern mostly through observation. Through to the age of thirteen they are modelling or identifying themselves after their heroes. Through the teenage years they are developing through socialisation by peers or significant others. In early adulthood they change or replace values in response to significant emotional events.
On another tack, the Hicks introduce eight factors contributing to value development: family, formal education, other formal & informal teachers, religion, media, friends, income and geographic location. This is very useful – helping us move beyond simplistic global generalisations about members of any generational cohort.
2. Your Decade of Destiny
The Hicks provide a fascinating overview of the formative effects of each decade, covering the 1920s to the 1990s in the United States. They cover trends, American events, inventions, fads, popular radio and television, movies, publications, popular music, fashion, heroes, and religion. They draw on the research done for the American Decades series, published by Gale Research, Detroit, and America in the Twentieth Century series, published by Marshall Cavendish, New York.
As can be expected, the Hicks provide a short ‘Focus on the Family’ style commentary at the end, outlining the move from traditional Judaeo Christian values in the 1920s through to non-traditional values in the 1990s. I wasn’t present in the 1920s, and I don’t live in the United States. But I’m under the impression that permissiveness, violence, backyard abortions, and drug abuse were all found in American cities, towns and countrysides throughout the twentieth century. It could be said, however, that these trends have become more mainstream over time.
3. Defining the Generations
Rick and Kathy explain their approach to distinguishing between generations. They look for population increase and decrease. So the Baby Boom starts with the increase in child birth and ends with the decrease. They talk about the Boomers as a ‘pig in a python’ and the N Geners as a ‘camel in a cobra’. I’m not impressed by the simplicity of this approach. It ignores the sociological factors they have explored earlier in the book. I suspect that they have projected a Baby Boom self-understanding on to other generations.
The Hicks do acknowledge the limits of their generalisations, indicating that the values referred to are primarily typical white, male, middle class values. They refer to “mean values” – held by most people during time period.]
Kathy and Rick tie the ‘GI Generation’ (born 1901–1924) and the ‘Silent Generation’ (1925-1945) together as the Builder Generation, a group who value deferred gratification, embracing personal sacrifice in the interests of a big job or task.
The Boomers (1946-1964) experience a generation gap with their parents because of differences in education levels and the approach to consumerism they have grown up with. This generation, say the Hicks, is characterised by permissive morality and instant gratification (as in television).
The Hicks refer to George Barna’s ten characteristics of Generation X (1965-1976): disillusioned, abandoned, wanting a high quality of life, independent, defensive, comfortable with change, more sensitive to people, pluralist, flexible, pragmatic.
They then give us nine generational unifiers of Gen Y (1977 – 1997) as seen in Coca Cola’s Teen Planet Survey results. As published in Young Life Magazine in Spring 1998 these were: self reliance, love of family, looking to global icons, consumerism, Americentrism, itchy feet, mediavores, unabashed fun seekers, with hope. The tenth characteristic, not quoted by the Hicks, is questioning of tradition.
The Hicks go on to provide a useful analysis of change in generational values, covering motherhood, family, marriage patterns, hair, clothes, music, money, purchasing, marketing, high tech, war, morals, work style and marketing. They list potentially explosive situations in which these values will be working:
A family reunion for a 50th wedding anniversary. What will people wear? A church is looking at building extensions. Will they use cash in hand or take out a loan? Office management is looking at music over intercom. What style of music should be used? A family is deciding on an ultimate holiday. A company is revising its policy manual. The point is that generational values affect us at all levels of life.
4.Overcoming Generational Walls that Divide Us
The Hicks invite their readers to begin the process of integenerational reconciliation by understanding their differences. They provide ten questions to help their readers analyse their own values. Readers explore the impact of their childhood location, their family situation, the role of faith, church and religion in their upbringing. The identify significant people in their development, as well as formative events. Educational influences are explored. Media is explored, including the impact of television, music and movies. Readers are invited to consider who or what influenced their attitudes or beliefs about marriage/family, money, God, work, education, government and authority. The final questions, “Have you had a significant change in any of your values as you’ve grown up? What caused that change?”
Rick and Kathy go on to practical and theoretical steps for resolving differences, focusing on understanding, acceptance and forgiveness. They finish by focusing on the development of positive values in members of emerging generations, particularly in the family context. They ask their readers to take seriously the interaction between parental values and the values of people beyond the home. Conversation is the key.
About Rick and Kathy
Rick Hicks is President of Operation Mobilization USA. Kathy Hicks continues to write, recently publishing, “Scaling the Wall“, looking at overcoming perceived barriers to entering the international mission field. A useful summary of Boomers, Xers and Other Strangers, written in the same year as the book, appears at the Focus on the Family site.