Why Should You Care?

The public, as a whole, should care because not only will they likely go into a workplace and work with people who may be from a different generation than them, but the goods and services that are used every day come from such workplaces. In the workplace, managers may practice management tactics to address the differences in generations but little research supports that there is an effective way to approach diversity in generations.

Myth: Generations Need to be Managed at Work

1. Research generally does not and cannot support the existence of generational differences. There is no justification for managing individuals based on their supposed generational membership.
2. Management strategies that are based on generations have the potential to raise legal risks for organizations. Provisions of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 disallow the mistreatment of individuals from certain groups based on a variety of characteristics.

          (NASEM, 2020a, 2020b; Rudolph & Zacher, 2020)

Despite the existence of five generations in the modern workplace, research suggests that the actual differences in preferences and values between these generations are relatively small. There is a considerable variety of preferences and values within each generation. Age-related stereotypes refer to beliefs about people from a particular age group, while meta-stereotypes involve assumptions about what others believe about a specific age group. Research indicates that workplaces are filled with age-related stereotypes and meta-stereotypes, and these beliefs are often inaccurate.

Inaccurate beliefs about age can impact workplace interactions and behaviors. For example, stereotypes about older people’s ability to learn new tasks can lead to lower expectations and poorer training when working with them. People’s beliefs about what others think about their age group (meta-stereotypes) can lead to feelings of challenge or threat, affecting interpersonal behaviors at work.

To address these issues, the article suggests that managers should openly discuss these stereotypes and meta-stereotypes. Practices like perspective-taking, cooperation, and sharing stories among age-diverse employees can help raise awareness of these processes. Emphasizing shared goals can help create a sense of unity and reduce perceptions of generational divides. Managers should also recognize that employees’ needs and priorities change over time and engage in ongoing dialogues to meet their shifting needs for a more productive and harmonious workplace.

References

Harvard Business Review. (2021, August). How to Manage a Multi-Generational Team. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2021/08/how-to-manage-a-multi-generational-team

NASEM, 2020a, 2020b; Rudolph & Zacher, 2020