The Voices of Generation-Z’s Silent Majority in the United States
(Warning: This academic writing is slightly political in nature)
Inspired by the writing with a similar title (Mr. USA)
Client Name: Urbain Sam Anderson (One of the many descendants of the Uncle Sam family tree)
Address: 0704 Silent Majority Dr. NW, Baltimore, MD 20500
Description of Client: Urbain Sam Anderson was born on July 4, 1998. He is the first of the Uncle Sam family tree to be born in the “Zoomer Generation,” or what is more commonly called “Generation-Z.” He was born into very strong traditions, beliefs, and embedded cultures of his family. He arrives at my office today comfortably dressed, and very much young and spry. However, I was keen to notice that despite a mirage of positivity in his eyes, there seems to be a level of anxiety that emanates from his aura. What can be described as a “lost soul within.” We sat down at the top of the hour and have grown closer in conversation. As we talked, he opened up a lot more, and I started to see that positive frame fade, and a sense of being lost and confused started to creep out.
Presenting Problem: Mr. Anderson made this appointment in light of many recent patterns he notices in the social landscape where he resides. Society for many of Mr. Anderson’s peers has been associated with and even centered on what has been going on social media. He feels like he has lost crucial critical thinking abilities that he had when he was growing up, especially when it comes to thinking about social issues and different poles of the political spectrum. He explains that he feels like “social media does the thinking for us now, and I feel like my generation is fearful to go against the mainstream.” He also states that there now emanates a social anxiety when politics or controversial issues are brought up. Everything seems to have become more political nowadays, and polar extremes from each other are drifting farther away. For Mr. Anderson, things are becoming more and more black and white in society, polar opposites, and he fears that if he can’t choose a side, he would get lost in the crossfire. Unfortunately, he also feels that if the country he lives in continues to be divided and have said crossfire, solving key issues in the country is less likely to be resolved.
History: Mr. Anderson, growing up in the early 00s, social media wasn’t even something imagined by people living in those times. For the most part, Mr. Anderson had a very similar childhood to the generations before him. He played outside with friends. When he was bored, he would talk with his parents or play with physical toys, and still very much be imaginative with the things that he was dealing with on a daily basis. He explains that he notices the differences in life now compared to the life before social media. He states, “it seems like as we gathered more information, we’ve lost more meaning.”
Personality and Character Structure: The client seems to no longer know what they value. Mr. Anderson grew up with parents and family members who value the typical US traditions of being patriotic, fighting for freedom, and the value of the “We The People” moniker. These are considered the more prominent beliefs from the Baby Boomer and Millennial generations. He considers this very much “Nationalist” and pro-USA in his perspective, and in some ways, Mr. Anderson still very much values some of these traditions and concepts. However, in light of recent events, and a strong uproar from voices on social media regarding the true and unfortunate events with cases of police brutality (like with George Floyd), the prominence of unequal rights, and the overturning of Roe v. Wade, which are often validly associated with the polar-right as the culprit for such unfortunate and hurtful events, Mr. Anderson now also sees the rationale and grounds for the strong beliefs of the polar-left, which are often seen as ideals against American norms. Mr. Anderson finds that his beliefs often lie in the center or in a neutral state. For some social issues, he may lean a little bit “right-winged,” and for some issues, he may lean a little “left-winged.” He mentions that he finds trouble from the ad hominems that he sees on social media and sometimes are directed at him. The ad hominems that he shared are in the nature of “If your stance is not consistently associated with the side of the political spectrum that I support, then you must be part of the political wing that I dislike,” which he sees as very black and white, and leads to a way of thinking that requires you to either put a “right-winged” or “left-winged” lens first before evaluating different social, political, and even medical issues. Mr. Anderson finds this problematic as now we lose the “tabula rasa” way of critical thinking, which is to think of something from a blank slate. He claims himself as “centrist,” which he described as now seeming to be a capital sin from the left and the right on social media. Mr. Anderson also feels like a lot of his generation are actually silently in this camp, confused and lost as well, but they fear to vocalize these feelings on social media (a very important aspect of life in Generation-Z) because they feel like they would be attacked or persuaded by people from either the left or right wings of the political scale.
Diagnosis: The client seems to be overly immersed in conversations, narratives, and debates on social media, creating a level of anxiety and confusion within themselves. The client puts a high level of value and even associates actual society with what is happening on social media.
Personal Strength: Mr. Anderson is very rational in his way of thinking, and despite his fears of being confused and lost, he is actually very self-aware and has a relatively good grasp of questioning things going on around him. This is often seen as the first step in resolving problems like these, and Mr. Anderson already has the first step covered (at least when it comes to the trait of having such).
Treatment Plan: A good treatment plan for Mr. Anderson would be to detox from social media as this has been one of the main sources of his anxiety. Especially, as political conversations are very much rampant at present time (for good reason). He fears that he has lost a lot of his critical thinking abilities, so a good course of action for this would be to write out his thoughts on a daily basis that are not influenced by media of any sort, just his own thoughts about issues that he thinks are important —amongst other things, and nothing more. As days in the treatment progress, Mr. Anderson should continue to reread his work from the day before so that he can rehear his thoughts in his head. I also encourage Mr. Anderson to create social connections outside of social media, have deep conversations (beyond small talk) with an elderly person at a restaurant, with a young person that he may see walking down the sidewalk, and try to connect with people who came from outside the United States. This may help the client disassociate his social reality from social media and more so equate it with what he sees in real life. This would help Mr. Anderson create tangible interactions and perspectives that, in turn, would also help him form his own perspective and beliefs, detached from the stronger voices found on social media. I also encourage Mr. Anderson to research the “political spectrum and compass,” which is a more common distinction in other countries, unlike in the United States where politics is often a line (left, center, and right).
Progress Milestones: As the client improves, they should feel a level of assurance within themselves and more security in their beliefs as a person, whether or not that falls “right, left, or center” of the political meter. They should also feel a “detach” from the need for validation of these opinions from social media. As we build personal security with Mr. Anderson, we can slowly reintroduce social media to him and see if old feelings of anxiety return. If a stronger sense of self is created from the treatment, limited social media interaction may be allowed.
Prognosis: As the primary source of anxiety is addressed, Mr. Anderson should experience improvements in overall self-esteem, mental health, and general well-being. The goal is to help him develop a stronger sense of self-assurance and a more positive outlook on life. As his therapist, or for any future professional working with Mr. Anderson, it is important to provide a supportive and encouraging environment, similar to how we would treat other clients experiencing anxiety and uncertainty. This hands-on approach will be crucial in helping him navigate and overcome his challenges.
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