Generation Squeeze
Family policy expert, Dr. Paul Kershaw, reports that young couples, the Generation Squeeze, are being squeezed for time at home, squeezed for income because of the high cost of housing and squeezed for services like child care that would help them balance earning a living with raising a family. He predicts that this group will be making less money and absorbing more stress than their parents did, and the effects will show up in generations to come.
For baby boomers with children in this group born between 1965 and 1980, Dr. Kershaw's observations are more than just a little unsettling. Not only does he highlight the widening economic gap between generations, as well as the challenging social environment these kids face as they create families of their own, but he reminds us that as potential grandparents, we are more than just a little ambivalent, or unable, to do much about it.
Although we may have struggled to fill our empty nests and longed for the days when grand-kids arrived, by the time they come our reality feels quite different. Many of us between the ages of 45-65 are facing our own financial stress, still working, saving for retirement and pinching pennies just to get by. Those more economically fortunate, have other ideas about how to spend their time and their money. Boomers want to maximize the years that lie ahead by enjoying the fruits of their labor. They are keeping themselves in shape, not simply to run after tiny tots, but to cross off their to do lists while they still can.
Some Boomers are busy reinventing themselves. According to AARP, there are more men and women starting new careers in their 50s and 60s, transforming hobbies into meaningful, and sometimes even profitable, professions. Boomers often feel they have put off fulfilling their true interests while raising the very children who are seeking their support now. They're squeezing in a little more me time now and that means putting themselves ahead of others for the first time in their adult lives.
If they're not busy reinventing themselves, many are off seeking new relationships. With the high rate of divorce and increasing number of those who have been single from the start, there are more middle-aged men and women interested in meeting mates than ever before. Online dating services for people over 50 are rising faster than for any other age group. So is participation in activities that attract other mid life singles, wine tastings, tennis clinics and senior travel adventures. These interests take time and energy, the kind of reserves once saved for reading Goodnight Moon to grandchildren.
The landscape of American culture , including family structure, parenting, the role of women, the gender gap and the whole experience of aging, has shifted so radically over the past 50 years, that biological, economic and social expectations have gone topsy-turvy.
We know that the divorce rate has stabilized or even slightly declined during these tough economic times, but the success of marriages among Generation Squeeze is yet to be determined. If they succeed, it will be in spite of their challenging environment and without those coveted squeezes from our grandparents.
in Face It
Psychology Today
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