# Generations Hypothesis **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 5, 2009, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/generations-hypothesis/505366 "2009-08-05T00:16:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2009, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/generations-hypothesis/505366/1 "2009-08-05T00:16:00Z")
What is your opinion of the Generations Hypothesis of William Strauss and Neil Howe? What will be the crisis that the Millennials will face? [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generations\_(book)](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generations_(book)) ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2009, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/generations-hypothesis/505366/2 "2009-08-05T00:19:32Z")
People catching on to them after several posts that they’re not seeking conversation so much as help with homework. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2009, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/generations-hypothesis/505366/3 "2009-08-05T00:20:58Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > People catching on to them after several posts that they’re not seeking conversation so much as help with homework. 😕 Apologies but your sentence structure is confusing. ---
**Author:** ![Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e56c9b/32.png) [@Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harriet_the_Spry)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2009, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/generations-hypothesis/505366/4 "2009-08-05T00:44:29Z")
What crisis could the Millennials possibly face? I look around me, and there is no crisis, no crisis at all, as far as the eye can see. Apparently they can’t see it, either. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2009, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/generations-hypothesis/505366/5 "2009-08-05T00:56:43Z")
> [@Harriet\_the\_Spry](#): > > What crisis could the Millennials possibly face? I look around me, and there is no crisis, no crisis at all, as far as the eye can see. Apparently they can’t see it, either. The War on Terror cough cough the Recession cough cough New rivarly with China and Russia cough cough. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2009, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/generations-hypothesis/505366/6 "2009-08-05T01:08:18Z")
> [@Curtis LeMay](#): > > The War on Terror cough cough the Recession cough cough New rivarly with China and Russia cough cough. You call that a crisis? That’s just normal life on the planet. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2009, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/generations-hypothesis/505366/7 "2009-08-05T01:27:54Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > You call that a crisis? That’s just normal life on the planet. It’s building up to a crisis I fear. The Great Crisis of the next generation will be a combination of the abovementioned factors. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2009, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/generations-hypothesis/505366/8 "2009-08-05T01:58:30Z")
It’s an intriguing take on a plausible idea- that civilizations cycle through different patterns of culture in a predictable sort of “ecological succession” way- but some of his examples seem too forced to justify the pattern he claims. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2009, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/generations-hypothesis/505366/9 "2009-08-05T02:00:59Z")
Remember, the crisis doesn’t have to be what we would normally think of as a crisis, just something that has a profound affect on the way our society operates. IMO, the movement of the demographically large boomer generation from the workplace to retirement and death will be the crisis of this cycle. Everything else can be mitigated to some degree, but not that. > [@Lumpy](#): > > It’s an intriguing take on a plausible idea- that civilizations cycle through different patterns of culture in a predictable sort of “ecological succession” way- but some of his examples seem too forced to justify the pattern he claims. Such as? ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2009, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/generations-hypothesis/505366/10 "2009-08-05T03:23:03Z")
> [@ultrafilter](#): > > Remember, the crisis doesn’t have to be what we would normally think of as a crisis, just something that has a profound affect on the way our society operates. IMO, the movement of the demographically large boomer generation from the workplace to retirement and death will be the crisis of this cycle. Everything else can be mitigated to some degree, but not that. Why assume that this will make things worse for the remaining population, rather than better? Just the death part, that is. Caring for retirees will no doubt suck. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2009, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/generations-hypothesis/505366/11 "2009-08-05T04:12:18Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > Why assume that this will make things worse for the remaining population, rather than better? I don’t believe I did. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2009, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/generations-hypothesis/505366/12 "2009-08-05T04:22:45Z")
> [@ultrafilter](#): > > I don’t believe I did. I’m not trying to be obtuse, but doesn’t labeling something a crisis imply things are worse? ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2009, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/generations-hypothesis/505366/13 "2009-08-05T05:05:49Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > I’m not trying to be obtuse, but doesn’t labeling something a crisis imply things are worse? Not here, at least not as simply as that. “crisis” is jargon from the generational theory. The [book](http://www.amazon.com/Generations-History-Americas-Future-1584/dp/0688119123/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1249448763&sr=8-1) is available for under $20, and well worth your time to read.