美好的往日時光可能要到你老了才會發(fā)生,至少在美國是這樣。在我們每月一次對“孩子們(或者年輕人)過得好不好”的調(diào)查中,答案似乎依舊在告訴我們他們過得并不開心。
《世界幸福報告》(World Happiness Report)每年根據(jù)自我報告的幸福評分對140多個國家進行排名。今年,該報告首次對數(shù)據(jù)進行了代際分析。報告的作者發(fā)現(xiàn),在大多數(shù)地區(qū),年輕人是最幸福的群體。但這個規(guī)律卻并不適用于美國、加拿大、澳大利亞和新西蘭等英語國家的年輕人。在這些地區(qū),年長受訪者的幸福評分遠高于年輕人。在美國,年輕人非常不開心,甚至拉低了全美的平均評分。
自十多年前該報告首次發(fā)布以來,美國今年的幸福排名首次跌出前20名。美國各年齡段的成年人給出的評分都較低,但最沮喪的則是年輕人。嬰兒潮一代正在相對開心地玩賓果游戲,大聲喊出《危險邊緣》(Jeopardy)的答案——美國60歲以上人群的幸福排名為第10名。但按照30歲以下年輕人的幸福評分,美國排在了第62名。
報告的合著者、溫哥華經(jīng)濟學(xué)院(Vancouver School of Economics)教授約翰·海利維爾向《紐約時報》談到了年輕人和老年人反轉(zhuǎn)的幸福評分。他表示:“我從未見過這種極端的變化。這一切都發(fā)生在過去10年,而且主要發(fā)生在英語國家。整個世界并沒有出現(xiàn)這種變化。”
出現(xiàn)這種變化的部分原因可以歸咎于孤獨流行病,即在疫情之后年輕人表示孤獨感升高。在年輕人的幸福感低于年長者的四個國家,千禧一代的孤獨感幾乎是1965年前出生的年長者的兩倍。盡管如此,報告發(fā)現(xiàn)在現(xiàn)實中,千禧一代的社交聯(lián)系實際上比嬰兒潮一代更頻繁。與此同時,“中東歐轉(zhuǎn)型國家”的年輕人比年長者的幸福感更高。(差異最大的國家是克羅地亞,報告的作者表示該國許多老年人“承受了20世紀90年代初前南斯拉夫解體后的戰(zhàn)爭和種族屠殺所留下的傷疤”。)
另一方面,這些以英語為主要語言的國家的年輕人卻感覺沒有取得他們認為應(yīng)得的相對進展或成功。
一位Z世代農(nóng)民瑞恩·巴克對《財富》雜志談到他的同齡人發(fā)現(xiàn)大學(xué)畢業(yè)后很難找到一份薪酬豐厚的工作。他表示:“曾經(jīng)有一條職業(yè)發(fā)展路徑,這條路徑雖然沒有消失,但它變得更加漫長和艱難。”
至少對于千禧一代或Z世代而言,這并不完全是可怕的結(jié)果。許多年輕人難以維持生計,同時還要在人生中特別脆弱的一段時期承受經(jīng)濟衰退的影響,因此面對長達數(shù)年的通貨膨脹和日益沉重的學(xué)生貸款,他們不得不依靠長輩。
作為親眼見證傳說中的美國夢真正破裂的一批人,74%的千禧一代和65%的Z世代對《今日美國》(USA Today)報告稱,他們感覺“他們在財務(wù)上的起點已經(jīng)遠遠落后于”其他代際在相同年齡時的水平。買房這種積累財富的傳統(tǒng)途徑,對于許多美國年輕人而言似乎已經(jīng)是一個破碎的夢想(除非你期望繼承遺產(chǎn))。一旦千禧一代終于攢夠買房的資金,他們卻被全款買房的嬰兒潮一代擠出了市場。報告的作者指出,在年輕人幸福感下降的國家,“千禧一代感覺比嬰兒潮一代獲得的社會支持更少”。
對于許多年輕人而言,退休也變得難以實現(xiàn)。嬰兒潮一代和Z世代已經(jīng)表示他們的儲蓄難以維持退休生活,而且年輕人要面臨同樣艱難的局面,卻沒有退休金或社會保險作為保障。年長的美國人掌控了政界和公司管理層:美國本屆國會的中位數(shù)年齡為59歲,而即將舉行的大選則是美國歷史上年齡最大的兩位總統(tǒng)候選人的對決。隨著不平等加劇,嬰兒潮一代成為獲勝的一方,他們掌握了全美一半的財富。
年輕一代幸福感更低是理所當(dāng)然的,因為他們擁有的權(quán)利更少。當(dāng)然,社交媒體讓年輕人更容易了解到地緣政治動蕩。經(jīng)濟困境、日益加劇的氣候變化和新冠疫情,都加劇了年輕人的不滿情緒。
Z世代內(nèi)容創(chuàng)作者阿耶姆·克朋坎在2023年對《財富》雜志表示:“當(dāng)我們看到世界正在眼前崩潰時,我們就不會過度關(guān)注工作。電子郵件甚至TiKTok數(shù)據(jù),與我們每天看到的那些氣候新聞相比顯得微不足道。”
OnePoll代表國家債務(wù)減免組織(National Debt Relief)開展的一項調(diào)查顯示,大多數(shù)(65%)Z世代和千禧一代表示擔(dān)心嬰兒潮一代對他們的財務(wù)未來的影響。該項調(diào)查有2,000名受訪者,每個主要代際各有500人。
幸福感的不平衡最終會讓所有人感到沮喪,因為正如報告發(fā)現(xiàn),在幸福程度更平衡的國家,人們的幸福感更高。這或許是加劇年輕人危機的原因,就像在北美一樣,幸福不平等加劇了,但受影響的卻只有年輕人。(財富中文網(wǎng))
翻譯:劉進龍
審校:汪皓
美好的往日時光可能要到你老了才會發(fā)生,至少在美國是這樣。在我們每月一次對“孩子們(或者年輕人)過得好不好”的調(diào)查中,答案似乎依舊在告訴我們他們過得并不開心。
《世界幸福報告》(World Happiness Report)每年根據(jù)自我報告的幸福評分對140多個國家進行排名。今年,該報告首次對數(shù)據(jù)進行了代際分析。報告的作者發(fā)現(xiàn),在大多數(shù)地區(qū),年輕人是最幸福的群體。但這個規(guī)律卻并不適用于美國、加拿大、澳大利亞和新西蘭等英語國家的年輕人。在這些地區(qū),年長受訪者的幸福評分遠高于年輕人。在美國,年輕人非常不開心,甚至拉低了全美的平均評分。
自十多年前該報告首次發(fā)布以來,美國今年的幸福排名首次跌出前20名。美國各年齡段的成年人給出的評分都較低,但最沮喪的則是年輕人。嬰兒潮一代正在相對開心地玩賓果游戲,大聲喊出《危險邊緣》(Jeopardy)的答案——美國60歲以上人群的幸福排名為第10名。但按照30歲以下年輕人的幸福評分,美國排在了第62名。
報告的合著者、溫哥華經(jīng)濟學(xué)院(Vancouver School of Economics)教授約翰·海利維爾向《紐約時報》談到了年輕人和老年人反轉(zhuǎn)的幸福評分。他表示:“我從未見過這種極端的變化。這一切都發(fā)生在過去10年,而且主要發(fā)生在英語國家。整個世界并沒有出現(xiàn)這種變化。”
出現(xiàn)這種變化的部分原因可以歸咎于孤獨流行病,即在疫情之后年輕人表示孤獨感升高。在年輕人的幸福感低于年長者的四個國家,千禧一代的孤獨感幾乎是1965年前出生的年長者的兩倍。盡管如此,報告發(fā)現(xiàn)在現(xiàn)實中,千禧一代的社交聯(lián)系實際上比嬰兒潮一代更頻繁。與此同時,“中東歐轉(zhuǎn)型國家”的年輕人比年長者的幸福感更高。(差異最大的國家是克羅地亞,報告的作者表示該國許多老年人“承受了20世紀90年代初前南斯拉夫解體后的戰(zhàn)爭和種族屠殺所留下的傷疤”。)
另一方面,這些以英語為主要語言的國家的年輕人卻感覺沒有取得他們認為應(yīng)得的相對進展或成功。
一位Z世代農(nóng)民瑞恩·巴克對《財富》雜志談到他的同齡人發(fā)現(xiàn)大學(xué)畢業(yè)后很難找到一份薪酬豐厚的工作。他表示:“曾經(jīng)有一條職業(yè)發(fā)展路徑,這條路徑雖然沒有消失,但它變得更加漫長和艱難。”
至少對于千禧一代或Z世代而言,這并不完全是可怕的結(jié)果。許多年輕人難以維持生計,同時還要在人生中特別脆弱的一段時期承受經(jīng)濟衰退的影響,因此面對長達數(shù)年的通貨膨脹和日益沉重的學(xué)生貸款,他們不得不依靠長輩。
作為親眼見證傳說中的美國夢真正破裂的一批人,74%的千禧一代和65%的Z世代對《今日美國》(USA Today)報告稱,他們感覺“他們在財務(wù)上的起點已經(jīng)遠遠落后于”其他代際在相同年齡時的水平。買房這種積累財富的傳統(tǒng)途徑,對于許多美國年輕人而言似乎已經(jīng)是一個破碎的夢想(除非你期望繼承遺產(chǎn))。一旦千禧一代終于攢夠買房的資金,他們卻被全款買房的嬰兒潮一代擠出了市場。報告的作者指出,在年輕人幸福感下降的國家,“千禧一代感覺比嬰兒潮一代獲得的社會支持更少”。
對于許多年輕人而言,退休也變得難以實現(xiàn)。嬰兒潮一代和Z世代已經(jīng)表示他們的儲蓄難以維持退休生活,而且年輕人要面臨同樣艱難的局面,卻沒有退休金或社會保險作為保障。年長的美國人掌控了政界和公司管理層:美國本屆國會的中位數(shù)年齡為59歲,而即將舉行的大選則是美國歷史上年齡最大的兩位總統(tǒng)候選人的對決。隨著不平等加劇,嬰兒潮一代成為獲勝的一方,他們掌握了全美一半的財富。
年輕一代幸福感更低是理所當(dāng)然的,因為他們擁有的權(quán)利更少。當(dāng)然,社交媒體讓年輕人更容易了解到地緣政治動蕩。經(jīng)濟困境、日益加劇的氣候變化和新冠疫情,都加劇了年輕人的不滿情緒。
Z世代內(nèi)容創(chuàng)作者阿耶姆·克朋坎在2023年對《財富》雜志表示:“當(dāng)我們看到世界正在眼前崩潰時,我們就不會過度關(guān)注工作。電子郵件甚至TiKTok數(shù)據(jù),與我們每天看到的那些氣候新聞相比顯得微不足道。”
OnePoll代表國家債務(wù)減免組織(National Debt Relief)開展的一項調(diào)查顯示,大多數(shù)(65%)Z世代和千禧一代表示擔(dān)心嬰兒潮一代對他們的財務(wù)未來的影響。該項調(diào)查有2,000名受訪者,每個主要代際各有500人。
幸福感的不平衡最終會讓所有人感到沮喪,因為正如報告發(fā)現(xiàn),在幸福程度更平衡的國家,人們的幸福感更高。這或許是加劇年輕人危機的原因,就像在北美一樣,幸福不平等加劇了,但受影響的卻只有年輕人。(財富中文網(wǎng))
翻譯:劉進龍
審校:汪皓
The good ole’ days might not happen until you’re old, at least if you live in the United States. In our monthly temperature check of if the kids (or young adults) are alright, the answer seems to remain a resounding no, not really.
The World Happiness Report, which annually ranks more than 140 countries based on self-reported happiness scores, took a generational dive into data for the first time. The authors found young people tend to be the happiest in most regions. But that pattern doesn’t hold for the youth in four English-speaking countries including the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. In these regions, happiness rankings for older respondents are much higher than for the young. In America, young adults are so bummed out that it’s driven down the national average ranking.
This year, the United States dropped out of the top 20 ranking in happiness for the first time since the report began a little more than a decade ago. Adults across all ages in the nation reported lower scores, but the youth appeared to be most dejected. Baby boomers are having a relative blast playing bingo and yelling out Jeopardy answers— as the U.S. ranked No. 10 for those 60 and older. But the country plummets to number 62 for those under 30.
“I have never seen such an extreme change,” John Helliwell, a co-author of the report and professor at the Vancouver School of Economics told the New York Times, when speaking about the inverted youth and elder happiness scores. “This has all happened in the last 10 years, and it’s mainly in the English-language countries. There isn’t this drop in the world as a whole.”
Part of what might be happening can be attributed to the loneliness epidemic, as younger generations report heightened isolation after the pandemic. Millennial loneliness was almost double that of those born before 1965, in the four countries where young people was not as happy as their older peers. Even so, the report finds that in reality, millennials actually have more frequent social connections than boomers. Meanwhile, the young adults in “the transition countries of Central and Eastern Europe” are much happier than older generations. (The biggest divide is in Croatia, the authors note many of the elders there “bear the most scars from the early 1990s wars and genocide following the breakup of the former Yugoslavia.”)
On the other hand, young people in these largely English-speaking countries are dealing with the feeling of a lack of relative progress or a lack of success they believe was promised to them.
“There was a path, and that path was not necessarily taken away, but the path became a lot longer and harder,” Ryan Buck, a Gen Z farmer, tells Fortune, referring to his peers finding it difficult to find a well-paying job after college.
This is not an entirely shocking result, at least if you’re a millennial or Gen Zer. Struggling to make ends meet while weathering recessions during an especially vulnerable time in their lives, many in these cohorts have been pushed to depend on older generations as they deal with years of inflation and ballooning student loans.
Living to see the fabled American Dream truly fray, 74% of millennials and 65% of Gen Zers report to USA Today they feel that they’re “starting further behind financially” than other generations at the same age. The traditional avenue of building wealth—buying a house—seems to be a dead dream for many young adults in America (unless you’re expecting an inheritance). Once millennials finally were able to scrape together enough to buy a house, they were priced out by baby boomers with all-cash offers. “Millennials also feel less socially supported than Boomers” in the countries where youth happiness dipped, the report’s authors noted.
Retirement, too, has begun to feel untenable for many younger generations. Boomers and Gen Xers already report difficulty in outliving their savings, and young adults are navigating the same uphill climb but without the safety of a pension or guarantee of social security still being around. In politics and the C-suite, older Americans are holding court: The current class of Congress has a median age of 59 and the upcoming election is a fight between the two oldest presidential candidates in the nation’s history. As inequality intensifies, baby boomers are winning out, accounting for half of the nation’s wealth.
It stands to reason that younger generations feel less happy because they’re less empowered. Of course, they’re also incredibly informed of geopolitical unrest by nature of social media. Economic straits, intensifying climate change, and a pandemic all fuel the generation’s discontent.
“It’s hard to stress too much over work as we can see the world crumbling in front of us,” Ayem Kpenkaan, a Gen Z content creator, told Fortune in 2023. “Emails or even TikTok numbers seem pretty small compared to all the climate news we receive on a daily basis.”
Most (65%) Gen Zers and millennials report feeling worried about boomers’ effect on their financial future, per a survey by OnePoll on behalf of National Debt Relief, which polled 2,000 Americans, 500 from each of the four dominant generations.
The imbalance in happiness ends up bringing everyone down in the end, as the report finds that people tend to be happier living in countries where there is a greater equality in happiness. Perhaps that is what is adding to the youth’s crisis, as in North America, happiness inequality has increased—but only for younger generations.