The generation myth

I’ve seen a lot of online content lately about the “revolution” of in-person connection, and specifically about who’s driving it.

Obviously, because of the nature of what I’m working on, the algorithm sends a large amount of content my way about social connection, loneliness, community-building and, mostly, the rise of in-person connection. And, aside from highlighting the mediocrity that online content has achieved, it’s also had me reflecting on the age-old age-divide issue and how helpful (spoiler alert, it isn’t) that approach can be.

One particularly irksome recycled post I’ve seen centres on how “Gen Z, the most online connected generation is driving the in-person revolution.” I’m not sure what is bothering me most about this – whether it’s the fact that I’ve seen the exact same script recorded face-to-camera by multiple different creators – I’d prefer to see creativity and some original thinking – or whether it’s because none of these videos actually cite any material to back this claim up.

Perhaps I’m putting too much store in ‘trending online content’ but it did bring to mind a similar, but perhaps reversed, discussion from almost 20 years ago. Back then, the feeling was that social media and online connection was also being driven by the young – presumably Millennials – in those days.

However, in his 2009 book, Connection Generation, Iggy Pintado dispelled this myth with a mix of analytical research and highly entertaining anecdotal stories. Iggy showed that generation or age wasn’t the underlying driver for social media engagement. Rather, a person’s need or desire for connection was a much stronger indicator of whether someone would regularly engage in social media conversations.

Fast-forward 20 years and everything has changed. Social media is no longer social, and many social media platforms have reached addiction-level usage, designed like little content slot-machines to keep us scrolling. And it’s affecting us all.

I’m sure those creating the ‘Gen Z’s the saviour of humanity’ posts genuinely believe that this is true – because they’re the kind of person who is focused on meeting and gathering people and building a community around them.

However, the latest data from the US, but echoed globally, is telling a slightly different story. The Loneliness in America report by Cigna Group shows that 67% of Gen Z adults report feeling lonely, compared with only 44% of Boomers (not that this is a particularly good statistic either). And the dcdx 2026 Gen Z Screen Time report showed that the average Gen Z user spent around 118 full days a year staring at their phone – a 6% year-on-year increase.

But before we get too cosy thinking that older generations have all the answers, the same Loneliness in America report shows that the percentages of people feeling lonely across the younger three adult generations is almost negligible, with Millennials at 65% and Gen X at 60%. And, while a report by Screenbuddy shows that Millennials spend one hour less a day on their phone than Gen Zs, at an average of 5 hours a day, and Gen X an average of 4 hours, if you consider that Millennials and Gen Xers are more likely to have busier lives filled with external commitments like a full-time role, children and possibly elderly parents to care for, that’s a huge chunk of their limited available socialising time spent on the phone.

What isn’t in dispute is the biological need for real human connection and that, as a collective, we are craving it more than ever. But, while these statistics show how entrenched every generation is in the online world, they don’t really answer the question of where the drive for the in-person revolution is coming from.

Unless we return to Iggy and his Connection Generation theories. Much as the entry into the online world was driven by those compelled to connect and engage, in my opinion, our escape from it also lies in their hands, regardless of generation.

Every generation has those who have always been the connectors and the builders of community, the people we can rely on to bring us all together. And this is a good thing, because every generation needs to break free from our algorithmic captor and spend some regular time having a conversation with real humans – preferably with an intergenerational group around a table enjoying a delicious meal!