The Cultural Script of the Baby Boomer Problem

Abstract

A sociological account of the history of generations shows that it is impossible to disentangle the meaning ascribed to the concept, or to particular generations, from their wider social and political context. The generation to which one belongs can be in part explained by biological happenstance — the date when you were born. But a far more significant part of one’s generational location is given by wider social forces operating at the level of culture, politics, demography, and the economy. How these changes influence and intersect with the actions of some members of a particular age cohort, or those oriented towards that cohort, will shape the meaning of the generation forged in those times.