Lengthy report on the “Millenial” generation, now said to be 18 to 33 years old, from PEW foundation. Lots of graphs. Lots of “facts” that show how different this generation is from other older generations, including unsurprisingly much higher levels of social media and mobile tech use.
They have also taken the lead in seizing on the new platforms of the digital era—the internet, mobile technology, social media—to construct personalized networks of friends, colleagues and affinity groups.
They are “digital natives”—the only generation for which these new technologies are not something they’ve had to adapt to. Not surprisingly, they are the most avid users. For example, 81% of Millennials are on Facebook, where their generation’s median friend count is 250, far higher than that of older age groups (these digital generation gaps have narrowed somewhat in recent years).
Millennials are also distinctive in how they place themselves at the center of self-created digital networks….fully 55% of Millennials have posted a selfie on a social media site.