Generation Me: Why Today's Young Americans Are More Confident, Assertive, Entitled--And More Miserable Than Ever Before

by Jean M. Twenge

Book Overview

A revealing examination of the generation born between the 1970s and the 1990s, called "The Entitlement Generation," gives Boomers new insight into their offspring and help those in their teens, 20s,... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0743276973
• ISBN13: 9780743276979
• Release Date: April 2006
• Publisher: Free Press
• Length: 292 Pages
• Weight: 0.63 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.3" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

YOU WILL LOVE THIS BOOK!!

Reason being; any person with a minute sense of intelligence will enjoy this book. It is a great read and never gets dull. The information is supported very well. It is obvious that Dr. Twenge took her time with her research and studies. As a younger make of twenty years old, I found that she is dead on in her analysis of what she labels generation me. There are few books I consider must reads. This one just made it onto the list. If you're interested, the others are; amusing ourselves to death by Neil Postman, and 1984. If you're young, this may help you make sense of some of the life around you and even sort out the mess and depression that we are so susceptible to. If you are older, then it will certainly give you some reasoning to the madness that is taking place in our young generation. I honestly believe this book should be read by everyone. Those who are part of my (I'm 20) generation, and even those who are not, so they can understand what they are dealing with.

I am very grateful for the book

I was born in 1959 and my son in 1984. The book helped me to see myself as a member of my generation. I was born and spend first 30 years of my life in Russia and would never expect to fit description of American baby boomers. Never-the-less a lot of things are pretty true for me. The book helped me to understand why my son does what he does. Even though he is pretty intelligent, his expectations do not correspond to the reality. I am giving this book to him, hoping it will help him come to earth sooner. I think that having so many enlightening stories about similar young people will help him see himself in more real light. I value this book as a parent/child/understanding toolkit. I don't have an opinion on how much input it added to psych research, neither do I care about this view. Having a lot of negative reviews (from my perspective) often illustrates that the truth hurts. A natural way to deal with pain is denial.

From a Middle School Teacher

Excellent read addressing issues of the teens today. As a teacher of 11-14 year olds and being in my 20s, I identify with this book on almost all levels. I also find myself quoting this and recommending to everyone. It's definitely being a Christmas gift for some colleagues and family members this year!

Powerful message - everyone should read this book

This intriguing book sends a powerful and controversial message: if we don't want our kids to grow up being conceited, selfish, self-centered, egomaniacs who can't deal with rejection or hardships in their life, then we need to stop telling them that they are special and that they are the center of the universe. This is, of course, in direct contradiction to everything you hear nowadays everywhere from schools to the media. Messages like: "You can do anything/be anything if you put your mind to it/if you just try," "You are special," "Having high self-esteem is important," "Love yourself first," etc. The book challenges these kinds of statements and shows how they are detrimental to our youth. I found this book to be highly readable and a real page-turner, full of interesting (if not shocking) facts and statistics and lots of references to pop culture and current events that most young people can relate to. It is a book both for Generation Me-ers and their parents. We are indeed in a dire state of things when most kids believe that they are special above everyone else, that self-esteem is the most important quality, that loving yourself is more important than loving others, and that to heck with everyone else at the expense of yourself. This book argues convincingly that our constant barrage at telling kids that they are special and #1 in everything (even when they're not) is actually detrimental to them. These kids with such supposedly high self esteem and independent minds are bound to end up alone and lonely because nobody will be able to stand them. Although the book does an excellent job at outlining the problem in painstaking detail, I wish it would do more to suggest solutions to these problems. I found myself asking, "OK, I am outraged - now what do we do about this as parents?" The author suggests stopping these self-esteem movements at the school level, but what can you do in the home? Is it really realistic to tell parents not to tell their kids they are special, not to proudly hang up their "works of art" on the fridge, not to have personalized items in their rooms celebrating their names, their achievements, and their personalities? What is the alternative? The only possible solution that I could glean from this book is to tell your kids that sure, they are special - but so are others. Overall, the book offers a positive message and I love how it contradicts and goes against modern wisdom to offer a new perspective. I wish it offered more answers to its own questions, but this is definitely a must-read for anyone interested in the state of our youth today - from parents, to educators, to the kids themselves. I think everyone would benefit from reading this book.

The Self-Esteem Movement is Setting Our Kids up for Failure

This is a well-written and well-researched book that shows how detrimental our focus on self-esteem and self-fulfillment has become for the current generation. Some excerpts: "Self-esteem programs are empty and shortsighted. Self-esteem based on nothing does not serve children well in the long run. It is better for children to develop real skills and feel good about accomplishing something." "Extensive review of the research on self-esteem found that self-esteem does not lead to better grades, improved work performance, decreased violence, or less cheating. People with high self-esteem are often more violent and more likely to cheat." "Instead of creating well-adjusted, happy children, the self-esteem movement has created an army of little narcissists. Narcissism is a very negative personality trait linked to aggression and poor relationships with others. Children are naturally self-centered; growing up is the process of learning how to empathize with other people." 5 things parents and teachers can do: 1. Get rid of the phrases, "You can be anything you want to be" and "Never give up on your dreams." Both statements are totally untrue. You can't be good at everything... no one is. And, sometimes you have to put true desires on hold while you deal with practical matters such as paying the bills and managing unexpected events. Even a very skilled baseball player is unlikely to make it all the way to the major leagues. An incredibly talented actress probably won't become a movie star. Young people shouldn't be discouraged from these professions, just made aware of how difficult it probably will be. 2. Get rid of "You must love yourself before you can love others." Narcissists are horrible relationship partners... duh! We develop a sense of ourselves from our relationships with others, and people who have good relationships with others are happier, less depressed, and have higher self-esteem. 3. Do not automatically side with your child. If a child says she failed a test because the teacher was unfair, defending her by going after the teacher shows her that she can blame others for her problems. Instead, children should learn to identify what they could have done to get a better grade. Children who believe that the grades are just arbitrarily decided by the teacher may not see any point in studying. 4. Limit exposure to violence. Huge amounts of scientific evidence show that kids exposed to violent media go on to act aggressively in real life. Some will say, "I played violent video games, and I am not a violent person." That may be true, but science shows average effects across hundreds of people, not individual experiences. 5. Junk the self-esteem movement, and instead teach self-control and good behavior. Self-control is linked to success in life. Help your children to see the consequences of the actions in their lives. If a child cries for a piece of candy at the store, and you give it to her, she has just learned