Introducing the Alpha Generation! But, What’s In a Name?

Do you think a millennial is some kind of complicated math problem? Have you ever said, “Okay, Boomer,” or wondered what the terms Gen X, Y or Z even mean? These words are used to describe different generations or groups of people born in specific eras. If you are in elementary or middle school now, you are part of the new generation!

Some social scientists are calling this group, born between 2010 and 2024, Generation Alpha. This name makes sense because after Gen X, Gen Y and Gen Z, it seems fitting to go back to the start of the alphabet, but it’s all Greek to us!

Psychologist and author Jean Twenge does not like using letter designations for generations, calling them “lazy.” Twenge has named this generation Polars, reflecting the times we live in with the polarization, or divisions, in society and the melting polar caps.

So, why give names to generations? According to Dan Erickson, Assistant Teaching Professor at the School of Social and Family Dynamics at ASU, categorizing and naming things is just something that people like, or even feel compelled, to do.

“We as humans, we like organization,” Erickson explains. “It makes it so that you have a clear cohort of people that experience similar things growing up, that experience similar circumstances.”

Erickson admits that the start and end dates of each generation are kind of fuzzy. After all, while someone born at the end of a certain year and another person born a few days later might fall into different generations, they will have very similar experiences.

Erickson notes that there is some pushback about the names Polars or Generation Alpha. He says that this generation often rejects labels and asks, “What labels are real, which are not?

These Kids Are Digital Natives

Kids today have been surrounded by technology from the day they were born. Erickson adds that “digital natives” have a different experience with technology than those who were introduced to it gradually. He notes that the UBIQUITY of tablets and smart phones means that more kids are visual learners. But there are advantages and disadvantages to this relationship with technology.

“It’s really great to see the kids have access to knowledge,” Erickson says. On the one hand, he says, having instant access to a wealth of knowledge encourages exploration and gives kids the ability to learn things and gain skills that they might not otherwise. Want to learn a new recipe, find out how to fix something, or answer a question that no one in your household knows—it’s just a quick click away!

Tech savvy kids are comfortable in the digital landscape. They have a better understanding of how to navigate it than older folks do. This familiarity means they often have a better sense of what is sus or what passes the “sniff test” when is comes to content, Erickson says. But he worries that kids are bombarded by so much information on social media and “there’s no truth filter” on a lot of it.

The new generation sees issues and challenges much differently than earlier generations, Erickson says, “Because they have so much more access to different perspectives and insights, and so because of that I’m very optimistic for them…I’m hopeful that Gen Z and Gen Alpha are going to be able to find unique solutions that will actually help course correct where we’re going and make the world a better place for themselves and for the next generation.”

Trends & Facts for Gen Alpha

• • Named for first letter in Greek alphabet
• • Technology integrated in their lives
•    Get information and do schoolwork using platforms and tech
•    More likely to experience cyberbullying
• • More diverse & inclusive
• • Have fewer or no siblings
• • Will be more educated
• • Estimated 65 percent will work in a job that does not yet exist
• • Will face more extreme weather events during lifetime

Young People Get Climate Win in Court

In a Montana courtroom last month, members of Gen Z and Gen Alpha got a big win in a case concerning climate change. The judge ruled that young people have a constitutional right to a “clean and healthful environment” according to the state constitution. The Aug. 14 ruling means that Montana state legislators must consider the effects on the climate when they make decisions about energy policy and fossil fuel projects.

Held v. Montana was named for Rikki Held, the oldest of the 16 PLAINTIFFS in the case. The youth who took their concerns to court range in age from 5 to 22. Held was a teenager when the case began in 2020.

In a radio interview, Held said, “For us to have this come to trial and have this science-based evidence in the court record and having decision-makers listen to us is just really amazing.” She believes the ruling will have a ripple effect that extends outside of Montana and will affect other climate cases.

This is the first constitutional climate case in the U.S. to go to trial, but it will not be the last. Some other youth-led lawsuits are set to go to trial in the next year or two, supported by Our Childrens Trust, the same non-profit group that filed the climate case in Montana.

Through the Years...

2010 iPad unveiled January

2010 “Toy Story 3” hits movie theaters

2011 Minecraft is a top video game

2013 “Frozen” debuts

2013 “Selfie” added to dictionary

2013 K-pop band BTS debuts

2014 “The LEGO Movie” debuts

2015 Baby Shark goes viral

2015 “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” blasts into theaters

2015 Undertale debuts

2017 Nintendo Switch released

2018 “Bluey” debuts in October

2020 Animal Crossing: New Horizons debuts

2022 French Bulldog takes over as top dog, replacing Labrador as the most popular breed

Most Popular Baby Names in U.S.

2010  Isabella /Jacob

2015  Emma /Noah

2020  Olivia /Liam

Generation Alpha Is the Future!