Is Generation Y Too Hooked On 'Tronics?

CBS Evening News: How Always Being Connected Online Impacts Real-World Interaction

(CBS)  Facebook, MySpace, texting, Blackberry, Crackberry! They're the tools of Generation Y. These 20-somethings have been raised with a mouse in one hand and an iPod in the other - and the talent for driving a lot of people crazy, CBS News science and technology correspondent Daniel Sieberg reports.

And it has managers at companies complaining: "They spend too much time in front of the computer," or, "They don't want to have phone conversations, they want to have text conversations," or "When it comes to social face-to-face they'll freak out: 'oh my God, somebody's looking me in the eye,' and they can't handle it!"

"A lot of older managers view them as spoiled brats," said author Ron Alsop, who calls this generation "Millenials." They're savvy about using technology, but kind of clueless when it comes to communicating face-to-fact. Their cloting is casual - think flip-flops to meet the president, and their language - acronyms for everything: like BRB and LOL.

"Some millennials will put this text-messaging shorthand in formal memos and business reports, might even put in a happy face," Alsop said.

What about face time at the office?

"They feel as long as they get the work done, when they come in, when they leave, should be up to them," he said.

Even they admit they're often better at reading on-screen emoticons than real-life emotions.

"We always need to check out e-mail, we always need to be on the Internet, we always have to be on instant messaging with our friends," said 20-something Gina King. "It's the same thing with music. Without music for us, it's just another boring day."

Like it or not, we may be watching evolution in action, caused by prolonged exposure to technology.

"It's clearly changing our lives but it's also changing our brains," said neuroscientist Dr. Gary Small.

He says all that time staying connected has strengthened some brain pathways - at the expense of others.

---

Read more by Daniel Sieberg at Tech Talk
Watch online-only extra video from this story

---

Just compare an offline experience. Your brain on a book looks a lot different than your brain on Google.

Accounting giant Ernst & Young says by 2010, 60 percent of its employees will be Generation Y. So it's holding "generational dynamics workshops" as well as scheduling a face-to-face meeting with each new hire to introduce concepts like … meeting face-to-face.

"That is our workforce, that is what we are going to build our firm on - they're the leaders of tomorrow," said Ernst & Young's Billie Williamson.

It's all about flexibility and teamwork. In other words, Generation Y-ers could lose the stereo headphones once in a while, and the rest of us could lose the stereotypes.

[barbaram99]

I miss the greeting of each other. I was not raised on tech things. I can''t read and write that well. I love the computer. I can''t use them small devices. The young into their own world. I am 54. I hate the cell but will carry one to call home. I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE A NOTEBOOK TO GO WITH MY PC. OTHER THAT i COULD CARELESS . Next they want a smart house, Vista took a walk and would not let me in and I used the right password. I HAD TO DO A SYSTEM RECOVERY. I think they need to learn to talk to others. I don''t text.

[clathrate]

There is nothing inherently wrong with using any of this technology, it''s just that it is WAY overused.

The trouble with the current crop of kids is they are hyper self-centered, narcissistic, and bad mannered. They have been raised with the mantra that they are super super special, and that mommy and daddy will take care of everything. They''ve never been disciplined, and they have never been expected to share or behave well in public.

The fault lies with the parents, though. It''s not the Blackberry that does the damage, it''s the infalted ego using it, and that inflated ego is a direct product of narcissist parents.

[hypnotoad72]

and employers will turn down people who don''t use these things either. A friend in a job assistance agency told me of a company rep who came in, ultimately offered a job, and when the candidate whipped out her... paper based calendar/journal rather than some electronic gadget, he withdrew his offer.

Nothing wrong with electronic gadgets; I''d be lost without my Windows Mobile powered PDA.

Not that others'' points of view are wrong, but I don''t think this one has been yet - correct me if I am wrong.

[omnibus66]

The dumbing down of America is a fact. The causes are not necessarily clear, but electronic devices may indeed play a part.

When I took higher level mathematics and engineering courses many years ago, electronic devices were banned from the classroom. We had to use our brains to solve the problems. Today every student has a laptop on his desk.

Many young adults have difficulty putting together a complete sentence. I completely understand that using actual sentences is not necessary, and even discouraged, in communications between their own peer group. But the inability to put together a sentence when necessary points to a failure of our educational system.

[neo269]

Shows how out of touch those managers are.

[shanev137]

I saw this kid yesterday in Subway with the waist belt of his shorts/pants down around his thighs, listening to his ipod, and texting, while the guy behind the counter tried to figure out what he wanted on his sandwich. The kid was so out of touch with reality it took 3 times as long to move him through the line.

[germanmom]

differnet: You are so right!

[differnet]

I work with college students all day long. Some of their behavior is fine. They all keep their IMs up at their deak and I sometimes these electronic gadgets keep them from focusing on OUR WORK. I''ve had to fire one young lady for not being able to get the fact that when you are told that no IM programs are allowed downloaded to a particular computer that is exactly what it means. Doing so repeatedly terminated her position. On the other hand, some of these students use all this technology fabulously and it improves their work productivity.

My biggest concern is the end between work time and personal time and family time. Children will still need focused attention. As this generation moves into their parenting years will they be able to put down their mp3 players and cellphones long enough to actually take care of their children? If your mp3 player is too loud will you be able to hear your baby crying? When you are texting can you really listen to your 9-year-old tell you how lonely he is or that she''s being bullied? While this generation grew up with "helicopter parents" who hovered about taking care of every little detail of their lives; will they become "free-range parents" so hooked into their electronica that they will fail to provide the structure, nuturing and undivided attention that children require?

[roxc2]

Typo 3... "Their CLOTING is casual". As an English teacher, this is my daily challenge with students. When a respected news organization doesn''t care to proofread, it''s hard to explain the value of it to kids in the classroom.

[idougit]

Unbelievable, two typos in this story. Is this CBS News or "Joe Blow''s Blog?" Was this story written by some teched-out twenty-something, or a 40-something on too many pharmaceutical "medications."

1...."but kind of clueless when it comes to communicating face-to-fact." (face-to-FACE)

2...."We always need to check out e-mail, we always need to be on the Internet." (check OUR e-mail).

[greeneyes222]

""That is our workforce, that is what we are going to build our firm on - they''re the leaders of tomorrow," said Ernst & Young''s Billie Williamson."

Scary prospect.

And they''re not even good at tech. They can push the buttons and use the mouse, but they simply don''t understand the underlying concepts.