All You Need to Know About Generation Alpha

The children born to General Alpha will grow up with smartphones in their hands. What’s more, from a young age, they’ll be able to transfer their thoughts online in just seconds.

Today’s enormous technological advances – as well as other factors – make them one of the most prepared and transformed generations ever.

This new climate of connectivity makes the generational shift one of the biggest in history. While past generations have simply had access to technology, Generation Alpha will spend the majority of their lives completely immersed in it.

The first generation of the 21st century

Generation Alpha are those children born between 2010 and 2025. In most part, they’re the sons and daughters of millenials . 

The concept of Generation Alpha was created by Australian demographer Mark McCrindle. He was the first to attribute this title to the first generation born entirely during the 21st century.

This generation succeeds Generation Z, which began during the mid 1990s, making them the beginning of something new.

The future that Generation Alpha will create will be built upon the changes that we’re experiencing today. They’re born to older parents and are more likely to belong to smaller family units. Many of them are only children.

On average, worldwide, this generation will experience more wealth and more material goods than previous generations. This first generation of the 21st century is growing up immersed in technology from the day they’re born. They’ll never know a world in which applications don’t exist.

The common characteristics of Generation Alpha

1. Experts in technology

Without a doubt, children belonging to Generation Alpha will be experts in technology. They’ll never know a world without social media. Most of them will have mobile devices that are so sophisticated they’ll hardly need to use desktop and laptop computers.

As if that weren’t enough, their consumer habits will also change with the use of technology. They’ll shop mainly online and have less human contact than generations of the past.

2. Prepared for challenges

Generation Alpha will be more self-sufficient and prepared to face big challenges. They’ll obtain online education and have their own way of learning.

At the same time, Generation Alpha will be better equipped than any other generation to face the problems we can’t solve today. This is thanks to the fact that they’re born into a jam-packed, intelligent and connected world.

3. Less able to pay attention

Children that belong to Generation Alpha get bored very quickly. This is because they’re used to flipping between screens and windows, and scanning information quickly to find what they’re looking for.

They jump from application to application, screen to screen, video to video, in search of something that catches their interest. This reduces their attention span.

4. Changes in interest

Experts expect that members of Generation Alpha will be interested in physical games, but not in the way we understand them today. Studies show that alphas will have a major interest in portable devices and gestural interfaces.

This will affect the number of hours that children practice sports throughout the week. Their interests and priorities are prone to change the world, especially in regards to technology.

In conclusion, don’t forget that this generation will also face clear psychological challenges. They’ll experience more feelings of loneliness, despite being constantly connected. This is part of the natural consequences of the evolution of technology and society itself.