Ariel Chen (AC47386)

SDS 328M
10/15/15
Lab: Mon 10am
Critique #1
Introduction
Pew Research Center reported the results of a study of different
generations within the United States. The data was collected as a part of
the American Trends Panel, in which a random and nationally
representative sample of adults were surveyed online as well as by mail
and by telephone. They conclude that the Millennial generation, or those
who are ages 18 to 34 in 2015 resist the label of Millennials and sees
their own generation in a more negative light than those in older
generations.
Methods they used to make this point were, firstly, the collection of
data through randomly selecting 3,147 adults living in households and
administering a survey, and then presenting the data in a detailed report
with five different graphs that easily reveal that Millennials (as defined by
the researchers) identify as such at the lowest rate and also attribute
positive qualities to their own generation at the lowest rate.
Discussion
A general, overarching issue that is immediately apparent in this
study of generations is that there are no hard lines drawn as to where
each generation ends and another begins. There is no consensus on this in
the general public, nor has there been an authority that clearly defines the
years in which each generation was born. The researchers assigned birth
years to each generation by their own accord, and determined whether or
not the individuals studied essentially agreed with the parameters the
researchers set. This skews the results of the data concerning
generational identity, because the researchers sorted the ages almost
arbitrarily.
The second point the study makes is that those ages 18 through 34
tend to view their own generation in a more negative light than those in
older generations. They gathered results by presenting eighteen
description words in the survey and asking respondents if they thought
that the descriptors describe their generation overall. Words such as
patriotic, responsible, hard-working, willing to sacrifice, religious,
self-reliant, politically active, idealistic, and tolerant were included.

The issue with these descriptors is that most can be categorized as

positive, negative, or neutral, as the researchers did, but the
categorization of these descriptors is extremely subjective in itself. For
example, patriotic, religious, idealistic, and willing to sacrifice are
categorized as positive traits in the study, but because of differing
generational values, all the respondents may not see these traits as
positive. Because of the subjectivity of this area of the survey,
generalizing that Millennials tend to view their own generation negatively
seems slightly misleading.
Recommendations
The study does not explain how they selected the random and
nationally representative sample, so it is more difficult to provide
recommendations on selecting the sample. A methodology section was
provided separate from the results article, which showed that of the over
three thousand people surveyed, those categorized as Baby Boomers
had 1,305 individuals responding to the survey as opposed to only 601
Millennials, the second lowest proportioned generation in the survey
sample. Perhaps it would be more accurate to draw a sample that was
more representative of each generation as a proportion of the population
to get better results.
Additionally, the subjective description words presented to
respondents in the survey could be altered to be less ambiguous and
whether the researchers intend the descriptions to be positive, negative,
or neutral should also be apparent to the respondents.