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Gen Z, Explained: The Art of Living in a Digital Age
An optimistic and nuanced portrait of a generation that has much to teach us about how to live and collaborate in our digital world.
Born since the mid-1990s, members of Generation Z comprise the first generation never to know the world without the internet, and the most diverse generation yet. As Gen Z starts to emerge into adulthood and enter the workforce, what do we really know about them? And what can we learn from them? Gen Z, Explained is the authoritative portrait of this significant generation. It draws on extensive interviews that display this generation’s candor, surveys that explore their views and attitudes, and a vast database of their astonishingly inventive lexicon to build a comprehensive picture of their values, daily lives, and outlook. Gen Z emerges here as an extraordinarily thoughtful, promising, and perceptive generation that is sounding a warning to their elders about the world around them—a warning of a complexity and depth the “OK Boomer” phenomenon can only suggest.
Much of the existing literature about Gen Z has been highly judgmental. In contrast, this book provides a deep and nuanced understanding of a generation facing a future of enormous challenges, from climate change to civil unrest. What’s more, they are facing this future head-on, relying on themselves and their peers to work collaboratively to solve these problems. As Gen Z, Explained shows, this group of young people is as compassionate and imaginative as any that has come before, and understanding the way they tackle problems may enable us to envision new kinds of solutions. This portrait of Gen Z is ultimately an optimistic one, suggesting they have something to teach all of us about how to live and thrive in this digital world.
Born since the mid-1990s, members of Generation Z comprise the first generation never to know the world without the internet, and the most diverse generation yet. As Gen Z starts to emerge into adulthood and enter the workforce, what do we really know about them? And what can we learn from them? Gen Z, Explained is the authoritative portrait of this significant generation. It draws on extensive interviews that display this generation’s candor, surveys that explore their views and attitudes, and a vast database of their astonishingly inventive lexicon to build a comprehensive picture of their values, daily lives, and outlook. Gen Z emerges here as an extraordinarily thoughtful, promising, and perceptive generation that is sounding a warning to their elders about the world around them—a warning of a complexity and depth the “OK Boomer” phenomenon can only suggest.
Much of the existing literature about Gen Z has been highly judgmental. In contrast, this book provides a deep and nuanced understanding of a generation facing a future of enormous challenges, from climate change to civil unrest. What’s more, they are facing this future head-on, relying on themselves and their peers to work collaboratively to solve these problems. As Gen Z, Explained shows, this group of young people is as compassionate and imaginative as any that has come before, and understanding the way they tackle problems may enable us to envision new kinds of solutions. This portrait of Gen Z is ultimately an optimistic one, suggesting they have something to teach all of us about how to live and thrive in this digital world.
280 pages, Hardcover
First published November 15, 2021
46 people are currently reading
470 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
January 16, 2023
Interesting, but I'm definitely not the intended demographic. This is a great book for older generations wanting to better understand and navigate Gen Z life. There were some good passages and observations though, especially on religion and education.
February 2, 2022
“Gen Z Explained. The Art of Living in a Digital Age” is study of what this young generation (17-25 years of age) think and do, and why believe and act in the way they do.
What I liked about the book, is that it placed me directly in Gen Z’s "shoes", providing me with an inside looking out approach that was enlightening. It was also a very different approach from the many articles and books I’ve come across that have examined GenZ from the outside looking in.
I took my own notes, because I was reading the book largely for business, as our company, Snibble, targets GenZ. Within these notes I highlighted a list of “gems”, based on insights that I found throughout the book. These gems included:
1. GenZ live in a “White water world”. I love this metaphor because GenZ is indeed paddling through rapids. (Page 159.)
2. We underestimate, or are too wrapped up in, the changes that digital is creating in our society. Great technological advance generally create great social changes – just as the Industrial revolution dramatically transformed cities and farms, family structures, education and types of work.
3. Adults are not able to lead GenZ because they themselves are struggling with Digital Transformations. This has given rise to a tremendous sense of self-reliance, among GenZers, and contributed to the disillusionment of other generations e.g., Millennials, GenX and Boomers. Who can lead them through the turbulent times?
4. GenZ’s disillusionment with institutions and older adults have caused them to take on challenging approaches to the status quo, including huge support for diversity, including and equity. GenZ demands that all people be accepted and respected. (Page 84.)
5. Attention is currency and the time of GenZ (and others) is worth payment. (Page 22.)
6. Online is important to GenZ but offline relationships are more important and reserved for the inner circles of GenZ. (Page 35.)
7. GenZ treats identity as modular and/or fluid and moves through different identities as they discover themselves through different communities. This can be done more readily because of the opportunities, digital has over an analog world.
In many ways this is a vastly accelerated process of what older generations have experienced, while their identities change as they have progressed through various life-stages - school, work, marriage, children, wealth accumulation, retirement and decline.
GenZ rarely belongs to only one community and generally practices “Modular belonging” drawing support and learning from others in each community. (Page 98.)
That said, this idea of Modular Belonging is a new construct in society. (Page 122.)
8. The Internet permits “Social DIY” – and I also love this phrase! (Page 103.)
9. GenZ will modify its identity to suit the audience and culture of many social media platforms. A good example of this is the Instagram vs. Finsta profiles they simultaneously present online. (Page 72.)
10. A moral imperative for GenZ is to discover, express and live out “Who you are” in life. This includes finding people, groups, squads and “Fam” whom you can trust and with whom you can be your authentic self. (Page 91.) Finding your fam is ultimately related to finding your identity. (Page 93.)
11. Flexibility is really valued by GenZ including flexibility of identity, flexibility of movement, flexibility of transaction, and flexibility of time. This flexibility must be balanced against authenticity as they can be a dynamic tension between the two concepts. (Page 75.)
12. Authenticity is important because it is so easy to paint a fake picture in the digital realm. For GenZ it is almost a crime to be inauthentic.
13. Technology including hormone therapy, surgical techniques and reproductive treatments encourage and support the belief in gender fluidity. (Page 50.)
14. GenZ see the attitudes towards gender and sexuality as being the biggest difference when compared to the values of their parents.
15. Family are friends and friends are family – the relationship with parents and close friends is very different with GenZ. There are many reasons for this including the decline of “Traditional families”. (Page 133.)
16. “Okay Boomer” – this phrase generally refers to older people who are out of touch, don’t get it, and are closed minded. (Page 125.)
17. GenZ is very cautious when it comes to a romantic relationship for many reasons. It is nervous of financial stability, the smartphone is a permanent attachment to a partner (offering no escape), and they are worried about high divorce rates and the related emotional and financial costs. (Page 140.)
18. Dating apps can be a form of entertainment. I never thought about this! (Page 142.)
19. David Brooks claims there is a religious revival today where astrology, witchcraft, mindfulness, social justice and wokeness, are new religions. (Page 153.)
20. GenZ has “Duck syndrome” i.e., they are composed on the outside but paddling furiously below the surface.
The book covered the United States and United Kingdom, and I think a good follow up would be to expand this a more global study, comparing and contrasting GenZ with their peers in non-Western, and less developed, countries to see how the results might differ.
This book was also based on research conducted among college and university students. It would also be good - and inclusive - to expand this study to other members of GenZ.
Ironic or what?
Overall it was a very good book and I recommend it to anyone who is doing business with GenZ in mind or for parents who want to better understand their children.
What I liked about the book, is that it placed me directly in Gen Z’s "shoes", providing me with an inside looking out approach that was enlightening. It was also a very different approach from the many articles and books I’ve come across that have examined GenZ from the outside looking in.
I took my own notes, because I was reading the book largely for business, as our company, Snibble, targets GenZ. Within these notes I highlighted a list of “gems”, based on insights that I found throughout the book. These gems included:
1. GenZ live in a “White water world”. I love this metaphor because GenZ is indeed paddling through rapids. (Page 159.)
2. We underestimate, or are too wrapped up in, the changes that digital is creating in our society. Great technological advance generally create great social changes – just as the Industrial revolution dramatically transformed cities and farms, family structures, education and types of work.
3. Adults are not able to lead GenZ because they themselves are struggling with Digital Transformations. This has given rise to a tremendous sense of self-reliance, among GenZers, and contributed to the disillusionment of other generations e.g., Millennials, GenX and Boomers. Who can lead them through the turbulent times?
4. GenZ’s disillusionment with institutions and older adults have caused them to take on challenging approaches to the status quo, including huge support for diversity, including and equity. GenZ demands that all people be accepted and respected. (Page 84.)
5. Attention is currency and the time of GenZ (and others) is worth payment. (Page 22.)
6. Online is important to GenZ but offline relationships are more important and reserved for the inner circles of GenZ. (Page 35.)
7. GenZ treats identity as modular and/or fluid and moves through different identities as they discover themselves through different communities. This can be done more readily because of the opportunities, digital has over an analog world.
In many ways this is a vastly accelerated process of what older generations have experienced, while their identities change as they have progressed through various life-stages - school, work, marriage, children, wealth accumulation, retirement and decline.
GenZ rarely belongs to only one community and generally practices “Modular belonging” drawing support and learning from others in each community. (Page 98.)
That said, this idea of Modular Belonging is a new construct in society. (Page 122.)
8. The Internet permits “Social DIY” – and I also love this phrase! (Page 103.)
9. GenZ will modify its identity to suit the audience and culture of many social media platforms. A good example of this is the Instagram vs. Finsta profiles they simultaneously present online. (Page 72.)
10. A moral imperative for GenZ is to discover, express and live out “Who you are” in life. This includes finding people, groups, squads and “Fam” whom you can trust and with whom you can be your authentic self. (Page 91.) Finding your fam is ultimately related to finding your identity. (Page 93.)
11. Flexibility is really valued by GenZ including flexibility of identity, flexibility of movement, flexibility of transaction, and flexibility of time. This flexibility must be balanced against authenticity as they can be a dynamic tension between the two concepts. (Page 75.)
12. Authenticity is important because it is so easy to paint a fake picture in the digital realm. For GenZ it is almost a crime to be inauthentic.
13. Technology including hormone therapy, surgical techniques and reproductive treatments encourage and support the belief in gender fluidity. (Page 50.)
14. GenZ see the attitudes towards gender and sexuality as being the biggest difference when compared to the values of their parents.
15. Family are friends and friends are family – the relationship with parents and close friends is very different with GenZ. There are many reasons for this including the decline of “Traditional families”. (Page 133.)
16. “Okay Boomer” – this phrase generally refers to older people who are out of touch, don’t get it, and are closed minded. (Page 125.)
17. GenZ is very cautious when it comes to a romantic relationship for many reasons. It is nervous of financial stability, the smartphone is a permanent attachment to a partner (offering no escape), and they are worried about high divorce rates and the related emotional and financial costs. (Page 140.)
18. Dating apps can be a form of entertainment. I never thought about this! (Page 142.)
19. David Brooks claims there is a religious revival today where astrology, witchcraft, mindfulness, social justice and wokeness, are new religions. (Page 153.)
20. GenZ has “Duck syndrome” i.e., they are composed on the outside but paddling furiously below the surface.
The book covered the United States and United Kingdom, and I think a good follow up would be to expand this a more global study, comparing and contrasting GenZ with their peers in non-Western, and less developed, countries to see how the results might differ.
This book was also based on research conducted among college and university students. It would also be good - and inclusive - to expand this study to other members of GenZ.
Ironic or what?
Overall it was a very good book and I recommend it to anyone who is doing business with GenZ in mind or for parents who want to better understand their children.
March 11, 2023
I was interested in learning more about Gen Z, but not in a broad sweeping way. To that end, this book felt factual and like a study…and while it was dry reading, I think worth my time. I don’t have less questions, but maybe I never do. If you are pressed for time, read the last chapter as a legitimate summary and representation of what’s in the book.
April 11, 2024
I think this book is probably great for older generations trying to understand gen z. But as a millennial and someone who thinks about generations a lot, I don’t think I’ve learned anything new. I was also expecting to hear more about what makes gen z different from millennials (rather than boomers, as this is quite obvious). But I felt that many of these points could have been said about me as well.
I also didn’t like the last points about free speech and identity politics, which I found commonplace and shallow.
It must also be said that this study was conducted with mainly Western (Anglo Saxon, although with some foreign students), college educated students. Therefore it’s not at all representative of all gen z. A broader reflection on class would have been welcomed.
That being said, I appreciate the positive, optimistic tone. And I think authors do capture some important elements about gen z.
I also didn’t like the last points about free speech and identity politics, which I found commonplace and shallow.
It must also be said that this study was conducted with mainly Western (Anglo Saxon, although with some foreign students), college educated students. Therefore it’s not at all representative of all gen z. A broader reflection on class would have been welcomed.
That being said, I appreciate the positive, optimistic tone. And I think authors do capture some important elements about gen z.
October 26, 2025
Interesting description of Gen Z. Qualitative research generally tries to look at a people group in a way that looks at them from their own perspective. This seems to be the attempt of these researchers. However, the book raises three concerns about the research. 1) The subjects seem to be primarily college students in liberal institutions. They do not seem to represent anything close to the breadth of Gen Z. 2) The researchers do not seem to have any objectivity in their research. They appear to be looking for specific outcomes. 3) The research seems to be whitewashed so as to present their subjects in the best possible light, even explaining away seriously concerning issues such as the mental health issues their participants tell them they are struggling with. The authors set up numerous straw men in the book, especially pitting the perspective of older generations against the subjects they are studying and assume full the liberal constructs these young people embrace--which are, no doubt, the same positions the researchers take--are established truth.
July 24, 2024
There are certain things they over generalise and some of it is that the scope of this research is very limited to the Western lens of the digital space. 4 white women wrote this and I would say they are Gen X so I think they've done well in trying to capture what they didn't know
For me, I can't say I learnt much
I've been pretty ingrained in internet culture since I was a teenager and I think the combination of being into anime and being an ethnic minority has weirdly meant a lot of what's been mentioned in the book as experience of Gen Z is also something I have experienced. In many ways, I don't think I'm the intended audience.
The book is also somewhat hard to read as it is clear it's a research text
For me, I can't say I learnt much
I've been pretty ingrained in internet culture since I was a teenager and I think the combination of being into anime and being an ethnic minority has weirdly meant a lot of what's been mentioned in the book as experience of Gen Z is also something I have experienced. In many ways, I don't think I'm the intended audience.
The book is also somewhat hard to read as it is clear it's a research text
December 27, 2024
A lot of research has gone into this, but it didn't tell me anything I didn't know already. Perhaps targeted more at the boomer generation, rather than millennials.
It would have been useful if the differences between Gen Z and millennials had been elucidated.
This book was recommended by someone senior (older / white / male) at work who had found it insightful - which is probably telling in itself.
It would have been useful if the differences between Gen Z and millennials had been elucidated.
This book was recommended by someone senior (older / white / male) at work who had found it insightful - which is probably telling in itself.
March 6, 2022
Makes me want to be Gen Z!!
How postmillennials see the world sliding from real to digital seamlessly. Collaborating and co-operating and booking up. Everything seems a shade different to the Gen X world.
Such a lovely and gentle insight into the lives and outlooks of the young people we are handing our world to. It leaves me with hope. Kind of.
How postmillennials see the world sliding from real to digital seamlessly. Collaborating and co-operating and booking up. Everything seems a shade different to the Gen X world.
Such a lovely and gentle insight into the lives and outlooks of the young people we are handing our world to. It leaves me with hope. Kind of.
October 28, 2022
They meant well and it’s clearly based on extensive qualitative research but there’s a lack of coherence that got on my nerves and the likely lack of validity— the populations are two campuses in the Bay Area and the North West of England—makes the whole endeavor feel misguided. A plus: the conclusion assembles themes that the reader from a different generation might find useful.
December 20, 2023
Veldg interessant å lese om Gen Z og kjennetegner ved denne generasjonen. For meg var særlig kapittelet om teknologi til ettertanke. For å forstå denne generasjonen, må man også klare å ta inn over seg at de ikke kjenner en verden uten internett. Denne boken lyktes med å framstille dette, pluss mye annet.
June 19, 2022
Excellent reading
This book gives great insight into the thoughts, hopes and desires of a generation in waiting, it offers great hope for the future of humanity. Well researched and expressed. All older generations would benefit from reading and learning from this generation.
This book gives great insight into the thoughts, hopes and desires of a generation in waiting, it offers great hope for the future of humanity. Well researched and expressed. All older generations would benefit from reading and learning from this generation.
December 30, 2021
Sympathetic scholarly book
March 6, 2023
The media cover and summaries were better. The pop-culture quizzes on online news sources were more fun.
The book?
Painfully not insightful.
The book?
Painfully not insightful.
April 26, 2023
Very well conducted and comprehensive research into gen z. Must read if you really want to understand me.
March 20, 2024
A thoughtful exploration into Gen Z and major themes that typify the generation.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews