Closer Together, Further Apart: The Effect of Technology and the Internet on Parenting, Work, and Relationships. Jennifer Schneider
offering credit for Coursera courses. In the future, online classes may be combined with live lessons to provide traditional interaction between faculty and students in addition to online lectures. In many ways, the meaning of the phrase “going to college” is rapidly changing—especially for individuals who do not have the time or the financial resources to attend a traditional, brick-and-mortar university.
Even within traditional educational institutions teachers are today interacting with students (and parents) through digital media—emails, texts, classroom websites, and so on. College professors who used to find their offices crowded with students during their designated office hours now sit at their desks researching, writing, or planning future lessons during this same time period. Many will digitally interact with their students in real time over computers, phones, notebooks, and laptops via Skype, FaceTime, instant messaging, and other Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technologies. Teachers receive texts and emails from students at all hours of the day and night. And while technology has made professors more accessible than ever to their students, actual face-to-face interactions occur less frequently. How this change will affect relationships between professors and students and ultimately the learning process itself remains to be seen—especially over the long-term.
Educators differ in their approach to students using digital technology in the classroom. Mary Quigley, the Huffington Post blogger, comments:
In my college classroom, I don’t allow cell phones but do permit laptops on the assumption that students will use them to take notes and to pull up the assigned readings (the days of handouts are over). While some are writing down key points or referring to readings, a good number are also surfing the Internet (sometimes to share updates on the topic du jour), finishing an assignment for my class or another, checking email and logging on to Facebook. On my last day of class this spring, I asked my students about why they feel the need to be online constantly, even in class. One admitted that if the browser was open he felt compelled to surf; “I’m addicted,” he said. While several students complained that it was distracting to sit next to other students who are on Facebook typing away, they didn’t want to say anything. Another student tried to justify checking her email occasionally during class for “important” messages; of course when you’re 19, an “important” message can be anything from Jessica Simpson giving birth, to a Supreme Court ruling, to an internship posting.12
While some experts believe it is possible to successfully digitally multitask in the classroom and elsewhere, others vehemently disagree. But the fact is to date there is simply not enough evidence-based research, particularly studies about Gen Y and Gen Z, to know if digital natives who’ve grown up multitasking will develop the skills to be as productive or perhaps even more productive than previous generations. Whereas most baby boomers would likely argue that it is virtually impossible to carry on an in-person conversation while simultaneously typing on another topic, their belief that a person cannot divide his or her attention in that manner does not mean that people cannot evolve to do just that—where required. And it is equally likely that most Millennials would disagree with the boomers’ point of view. So, are the brains of digital natives literally developing differently than the brains of older generations? This seems quite likely considering the early developmental stage at which children now begin using digital communication technology, but it is also too soon to know. What is certain is that sociologists, educators, communication experts, and brain researchers are keeping a close eye on this possibility. What we do know now is that classrooms—indeed, education as a whole—have been altered permanently by the digital revolution. Whether you feel that these changes are for the better or worse depends, to a large extent, on when you were born.
The Workplace Divide
Digital immigrants and digital natives increasingly face a generation gap in the workplace as well. In part, this stems from differing generational values related to concepts like “respect for authority,” “respect for the workplace,” what defines a “solid work ethic,” and “communal productivity.” Yet the bulk of this current workplace divide appears to stem from differing uses of and reliance upon new communications and documentation technologies.
Up until very recently, workplaces were usually populated by only two generations at a time. While these two generations may not have always liked or respected each other, they knew each other. There weren’t a lot of surprises. When the younger generation “misbehaved,” the older generation recognized what was going on and dealt with it effectively because, as parents, they had raised that younger generation. The older generation was usually able to push the right buttons to get the desired result from younger employees because they were the ones who installed the buttons. And when the older generation got cranky, the younger generation understood. They’d seen the same occasional crankiness in their parents and teachers while they were growing up, so they knew what it was all about and, more important, what to do to smooth things over.
Today, however, as people are remaining in the workforce longer, three and sometimes even four generations are working together in a typical business. The age and experience gap between a semi retired Silent Generation senior manager and a Gen Y worker bee can be immense. These two sets of individuals have vastly different cultural references, are motivated by different things, use the tools of the workplace differently, and, most important, communicate differently—not only in terms of the language they use but also in the ways they use it. Members of widely spaced, multiple generations may struggle to recognize, let alone understand, the older or younger person’s perspective because the generational unfamiliarity is simply too deep. Their generational norms are too far apart to fully understand each other or to communicate fluently with one another. For instance, to the Silent Generation the phrase “communication skills” by definition means the ability to speak eloquently and to write organized, grammatically correct formal documents. To the Gen Y worker that same phrase means fluency with email, texting, social media, smartphone apps, websites, and other recently developed communications technologies. Same phrase, vastly different interpretation—yet both will likely show up on a résumé.
Older and younger workers can often fail not only to recognize and acknowledge that a simple phrase might mean two completely different things, but also to accept the validity of the other generation’s workplace values and ethics. For instance, most older workers were educated and trained in what could be considered hierarchical or “top-down” work environments. Here, the boss is to be unquestionably respected, while workers do what they’re told without question. In such environments an older boss is much more likely to communicate by writing a formal memo than shouting across the room. Conversely, younger workers are more at home with a more collaborative model—with everyone contributing to the direction taken, giving, receiving, validating, and questioning everyone’s ideas and contributions. Furthermore, Gen Y workers tend to communicate in whatever way seems fastest—text messaging, emailing, or walking into a private office unannounced. This is an approach that people from older generations sometimes find offensive or disrespectful. These misunderstandings—and misunderstandings are exactly what they are—can cause a great deal of unintended and unnecessary intergenerational workplace tension. Furthermore, people from different generations are often motivated by different rewards in the workplace. Whereas older workers often look for praise, raises, and promotions, younger workers are typically more interested in extra time off and other “quality of life” perks. Neither generation’s attitude appears to be any better or worse than the other’s; they’re just different. Yet that difference creates conflict.
A major chasm appears to be forming in the workplace between digital natives and digital immigrants regarding all things technological. Some experts contend that baby boomers and Gen Ys, in particular, have increasingly clashing values and misaligned worldviews, and a 2011 poll by the Society for Human Resource Management found 47 percent of Gen Y workers felt older managers (boomers) were resistant to change, whereas 33 percent of boomers decried Gen Y’s informality, need for structure, and lack of respect for authority.13 Furthermore, the study found that 38 percent of older workers had concerns about younger employees’ “inappropriate use or excessive reliance on technology.” Conversely, 31 percent of younger workers thought their older managers had an “aversion to technology.”14 A study canvassing 3,800 Gen