Generation Z Report: Catalysts of the Cultural Revolution

Culture Creators: Catalysts of the Cultural Revolution is a report on Generation Z from Wildness, a marketing firm in Los Angeles that specializes in youth culture. It describes findings based on a large-scale mixed-methods research operation. Wildness traveled to eight cities performing ethnographic research. They conducted thorough qualitative interviews with more than 50 people. Most of the interviewees were teens, but some teachers and parents were also interviewed.

Wildness immersed themselves in dozens of lives and used first-hand narratives to guide their research. They collected and documented art, poetry, videos, images and journal entries. They also conducted some quantitative research. They surveyed 3,000 people in the United States, evenly split across all demographics and the four regions of the nation.

Wildness claims the report is the largest and most ambitious data-collection of Generation Z to date. I’d love to buy it, but for now, I’ll just have to settle for a brief review of some of the report’s findings as shared by Social Times:

Findings by Wildness also conjured up the “teens don’t use Facebook” argument again:

• Respondents between the ages of 12 and 24 post 38 percent more on Snapchat on a daily basis than on Facebook.
• Just 44 percent of those 12 through 14 said they use Facebook on a regular basis, one-half the percentage of those 22 through 24.
• 66 percent of those 12 through 24 check other social platforms daily beyond Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, Yik Yak, Vine and Pinterest.
• Eight out of 10 12- through 24-year-olds use social media regularly, and nine out of 10 view videos on YouTube daily.
• 62 percent have posted original videos to social media, with 27 percent saying they do so weekly and 12 percent daily.
• 84 percent use social media as a form of entertainment.
• 82 percent use it to discover new and interesting things.
• 76 percent enjoy connecting with others.
• 77 percent “carefully” consider what they post and its potential impact on others.