Sandwiched between the two most well-known social generations in the United States, some refer to Generation X as the "forgotten" middle child. Even though Americans don't talk about them as much as other generations, Generation X has still impacted the world.

As the first generation who grew up in a labor force that demanded postsecondary education, they are far more educated than previous generations. By age 33, 18 percent of men in Generation X and 20 percent of women in Generation X had earned a four-year degree. This number is much higher than the Baby Boomer Generation, where only 17 percent of men and 14 percent of women had earned a four-year degree.

Who is Generation X?

Generation X, sometimes called Gen X for short, is the group of people born between 1965 and 1980. Generation X is the generation after the Baby Boomer Generation and preceding the Millennials. The Baby Boomers and Millennials are well-known generations, partially due to their size.

As of 2019, there were 65.2 million Gen Xers in the United States alone, which is fewer than the number of Baby Boomers and Millennials. One contributing factor to their size is that they only span 16 years, while other generations span up to 20 years. However, there isn't a specific reason for this span. In sociology, there are many varying opinions on defining a generation.

While Gen Xers were growing up, they experienced both parents working outside the home and parents getting divorced much more than the previous generation. This shift in family dynamics impacted the way this generation viewed the family unit and the rest of the world. Since both parents worked in many families, children in this generation had no choice but to come home to an empty house at the end of the day. As a result, many children were home several hours before either parent came home from work.

Considered more tech-savvy than the previous generations, Generation X was the first generation to grow up with personal computers in the home.

At times, members of Generation X have been called resourceful and independent. Other times, they have been referred to as cynical slackers. But, no matter their characteristics, this generation was part of the shift that happened both in family life and technology.

How did they get their name?

Those from Generation X have gone by several different names. They have been called the "latchkey" generation or they have been called the "MTV" generation.

"Latchkey" referred to the fact that the members of this generation had less adult supervision than other generations from when they returned home from school until their parents came home. Also, the name latchkey refers to the fact that their parents often gave them the key to the house to wear around their neck, or their parents hid it somewhere around the house.

MTV, otherwise known as music television, is a music channel that launched in 1981. When it first launched in New York City, the channel was known for playing music videos by popular artists. In the 1980s and 90s, MTV had a significant impact on the youth, hence the name MTV Generation.

Despite these other names, the name Generation X was popularized by author Douglas Copeland. Author of Generation X: Tales of an Accelerated Culture, this book published in 1991 is supposedly where the generation got its name. Copeland, a Canadian author, first used the phrase in an article he wrote for Vancouver Magazine. He then expounded upon his ideas in his book.

The naming of this generation isn't the first time the term "Generation X" has been used to describe isolated youth. The name Generation X was used initially by a Hungarian photographer named Robert Capa as the title of a photo essay. This essay and name were used to describe the alienated youth after World War II. Then, in 1976, musician Billy Idol used "Generation X" as the name of his rock band and claimed the name came from the book Generation X, which was a book on British youth culture published by journalists Jane Deverson and Charles Hamblett.

Author William Strauss, one of the creators of the Strauss-Howe Generational Theory, pointed out that by the time Copeland published his book, the letter X had been appearing a lot in popular culture. The X is meant to express resistance to being defined.

Neil Howe, the other creator of the Strauss-Howe Generational Theory, pointed out the delay in naming this generation. The generation didn't have a name for over 30 years after the start of the generation.

Many different opinions on what defines a generation and how long a generation can span exist. In the case of Generation X, the fertility rate dropping is typically considered an accurate measurement of when the generation started and ended.

Pew Research Center identifies Generation X as spanning from 1965 to 1980, the most popular span in academic circles. However, not everyone agrees with this period. The Brookings Institution, another research group, identifies the span of Generation X to be from 1965 to 1981. The United States Social Security Administration identified the span from 1964 to 1979.

In their book, Generations, William Strauss and Neil Howe identified Generation X as the generation-spanning from 1961 and 1981. However, they also believe the generation should be divided between an early wave and a late wave. Despite the inconsistency, Generation X is generally considered to span from the early 1960s to the early 1980s.

There's also another distinction between those born early on in the previous generation and those stuck in the middle. People born in the middle of or on the edge of two generations are called cuspers since they are on the cusp of a generation.

Those born at the end of the Baby Boomer Generation but the early years of Generation X are cuspers and are typically called Generation Jones.

Characteristics of Generation X

Generation X is the cohort following the post-World War II baby boom. Specifically in the United States, fertility rates started to decrease after the initial baby boom post-war. The low fertility rates are why sometimes they're also called the baby bust generation. The fertility rates weren't recovered until the 1980s. Unlike other social generations, Generation X lacks a lot of defining features. Members of this generation even tend to agree. A 2010 survey by Pew Research Center showed only half of Gen Xers believed their generation was unique, compared to six-in-ten Baby Boomers.

However, unlike other generations, such as the Baby Boomers and Millennials, Generation X hasn't consistently been spoken about in the media. The media has constantly spoken about Baby Boomers, who make up nearly half of America's wealth, or Millennials, who are considered the generation that thinks everyone should get a trophy. As small as it was, Generation X didn't get much time in the spotlight.

Those in Generation X tend to be more self-reliant than other generations and be risk-averse. However, due to the rising divorce numbers in the 1970s, many children in Generation X watched their parents get divorced. Single-parent households put both a financial strain on the parent trying to make ends meet and an emotional strain on the child dealing with their parents splitting up.

Baby Bust Generation

Generation X is also referred to as the Baby Bust Generation because of the declining fertility rates after the baby boom that created Baby Boomers. Part of what contributed to this decline was the introduction of the birth control pill in 1960. After the FDA approved the pill in 1960, it was prescribed as a contraceptive in 1964. As a result, over 1.2 million American women used the pill within the first two years.

Another factor in this was abortion. Abortion became legalized in the 1973 court case Roe vs. Wade. Roe vs. Wade was a decision of the United States Supreme Court that ruled the Constitution protects a woman's right to legal abortion. This decision fueled a debate about the conditions in which an abortion should be illegal. After Roe vs. Wade, abortion rates continued to rise. From 1970 to 1980, for every ten babies born in the United States, ten were aborted.

Education and labor

Members of Generation X attained college degrees at a much higher rate than the previous generations. However, they also saw the cost of college significantly increase. Since the 1980s, the cost of college has consistently surpassed inflation and the medium income, leaving many students in debt after taking out student loans. In the 1970s, a third of students going to college took out student loans. By 2000, 65% of college students took out loans.

Like the Silent Generation, Generation X is considered a middle or in-between generation. The finances of Gen Xers have been affected by several events, including the dot-com bust, the financial crisis in 2008, and the Great Recession.

One of the most significant changes in this generation concerning labor is how many women were also in the workforce. Generation X was the first generation to have nearly an equal number of men and women in the workforce. For many, this became necessary due to men's wages not being high enough to support their families.

Statistically, members of this cohort have made more money and had higher salaries than their parents before them. However, they are not necessarily wealthier than their parents. For example, when considering their assets and debt, 36% of Gen Xers have higher wealth than their family, but those with debt have six times more than their family.

The Great Recession did contribute to the financial trouble of many in this generation. However, members of Generation X were already behind other generations before the recession, and many Gen Xers bought houses during the housing bubble in 2008, when prices went up and then drastically decreased. As a result, many Gen Xers lost nearly half of their wealth.

Politics

Most of the members of Generation X were growing up during the Reagan Era, or the time when President Ronald Reagan influenced politics in the United States. Those in the Baby Boomer Generation primarily voted for President Ronald Regan; he was in office from 1981 to 1989.

In the early 1980s, another recession greatly impacted unemployment. Unemployment rates rose to 10.8% in 1982, which affected families by requiring both parents to work in most cases. During the early 1980s, one-in-five American children grew up in poverty. In addition, while President Reagan was in office, the United States federal debt tripled, having a long-term effect on the country's economy.

Those in Generation X were the first to grow up after the Civil Rights Movement and after schools were no longer segregated. They were the first generation to be bused to other areas to integrate students of different races into the public schools.

William Strauss, the co-author of Generations, claimed those in Generation X (who he called 13ers) were the least racist of all the generations back in the 1990s. For example, in an article titled "What Future Awaits Today's Youth in the New Millennium?" he pointed out that the number of black-white marriages in the United States had quadrupled over just one generation.

Strauss discussed how those in Generation X were far more conservative and independent than previous generations in the same article. A similar study showed three in four members of Generation X did not trust the government to take care of their basic needs. They also believed that choosing not to vote in an election is an acceptable choice, more so than previous generations, which looked at voting as a privilege.

According to Pew Research Center, they often fit in between the more conservative views of the Baby Boomers and the more liberal views of the Millennials. Generation X members find themselves in the middle of these two generations in more ways than one.

Music and entertainment

Generation X was the first group to come of age during the MTV era. As far as the music they were listening to, Generation X is responsible for the alternative rock movement, which took place in the 1990s and early 2000s. Alternative music is often also known as alt-rock or simply alternative. It first appeared on the scene in the 1970s but became popular in the 90s. Some of the musicians that were a part of this movement were Jane's Addiction, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and REM. In 1991, the Lollapalooza festival became the most successful music tour in North America. Generation X was also responsible for grunge music, a subgenre of alternative. The release of the band Nirvana's single "Smells like Teen Spirit" was the beginning of the grunge music phenomenon. Pearl Jam and Soundgarden were two popular grunge bands following Nirvana's footsteps.

By the late 1970s, punk rock had fully developed as a controversial movement in both music and culture. The punk rock genre helped create a punk subculture characterized by teen rebellion and anti-authoritarian ideas. The punk subculture eventually evolved to include distinct fashion trends, art, literature, and film.

 Hip Hop was another defining genre for Generation X. The 1980s to 1990s is considered the golden age of hip-hop, especially in the New York City area. LL Cool J, Run-D.M.C, Wu-Tang Clan, and the Beastie Boys are some of the most well-known artists. But, much like the punk movement, the hip-hop movement was about more than good music. Generation X used the music as a social protest, especially regarding Capitalism and President Reagan's effect on the economy. Even though hip-hop, even in the 2000s, can have negative connotations, most hip-hop artists wanted to bring attention to issues in their culture, such as urban poverty and drug use in their communities.

As far as films in the 1990s, Generation X is responsible for the indie film movement which took place during that time. Some members of Generation X were young film directors for indie films, but more members of the generation were fueling the need for indie films because of the demand. Indie films, short for independent films, are films produced outside of the major film productions. They typically have lower budgets and are generally limited to where they are shown once produced. Although director John Hughes was not a member of Generation X, he is known for creating some of the classic teen films to come out of this generation, including The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, Weird Science, and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.

Family Life

Besides their writings about Generation X in their first book, William Strauss and Neil Howe also wrote a book specifically on this generation titled 13th Gen: Abort, Retry, Ignore, Fail? published in 1993.

Strauss and Howe discussed how this generation focused more on adults than children in this book. In the mid-1960s, divorce rates doubled, which was a product of the marriage law reform that the Silent Generation pushed. However, the divorce rates peaked by the 1980s, which meant that many members of Generation X were children of divorce.

Previously, it was acceptable that even if a couple had issues, it was crucial to stay together for the kids' sake. But during this time in the 60s and 70s, a shift occurred in that mindset. Now, it is more important to many that people become individuals and do what makes them happy, even if it's challenging for children of divorce. Generation X spent less time with their parents than previous generations. This shift was often due to being a part of single-parent households or dual-income households where both parents worked. This reality caused the members of Generation X to become more self-reliant at an earlier age than previous generations. As a result, there was a stark contrast between the characteristics they developed and the characteristics the next generation, Millennials developed. Millennials are more dependent on their parents and less independent than Generation X.

It had also become much more common for a woman to juggle work outside the home and home life, either because she was a single mom or she was forced to work outside the home for financial reasons.

While Generation X was growing up, the divorce rates greatly impacted children's relationships with one or both parents. In the 1970s, out of all fifty states, only nine of them allowed joint custody, and custody often favored the mother. Generation X was the first generation where divorce was common for families, and this generation mostly responded to this by staying married as they entered adulthood. Those from Generation X remained married at higher rates than the preceding generation.

Many members of Generation X were children during the sexual revolution of the 1960s. For those whose parents were a part of it, it could be very confusing for those whose parents were bringing home multiple partners in a week. Parents were enjoying their liberation, but it felt damaging to the kids. So even though Generation X was not aware of it at the time, they faced the effects of the sexual revolution as they got older.

One effect that Generation X had to deal with was the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The first cases of AIDS, although the disease was unknown at the time, was reported in 1981. HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, made its way to the United States in the 1960s, but it was not discovered until the 1980s.

Work/life balance

Perhaps it is the effect of Generation X being the "latchkey" generation that caused them to find better working habits for themselves. In mid-life, Generation X was the first to lead the charge for finding a work/life balance. In 2011, a study was done by the Longitudinal Study of American Youth, which had been studying Generation X since 1987. In the 2011 study, they surveyed over 4000 members of Generation X.

The survey also asked to rate their level of happiness, with zero meaning very unhappy and ten meaning very happy. 29% of the Generation X adults in the study rated themselves as a 9 or 10 on the scale. When it comes to work and characteristics of this generation, they have been portrayed as independent, educated, and proficient with technology. They are active in their home and work communities and achieve a balance between work life and home life.

Part of balancing work and home life is spending time with family. Two-thirds of the Gen Xers in the study were married, and 71% had children. The study showed that the majority of these parents were helping their children with homework for five or more hours each week. The amount of time spent is a drastic change from the forced independence of their childhood. While those in Generation X were coming home from school to empty houses, starting on their homework, and fending for themselves, those from Generation X were able to establish more of a balance that allowed them to be involved in their communities and their children's lives.

Staying out of the spotlight

Generation X may be known as one of the forgotten generations, but it also seems to prefer to stay out of the spotlight. Yet, members of Generation X have made many significant contributions to the world, especially when it comes to technological advancements. Google, Wikipedia, Amazon, and YouTube are some of the most notable contributions. In his book, X Saves the World: How Generation X Got the Shaft but Can Still Keep Everything from Sucking, author Jeff Gordinier talked about this in 2008. This book started with the essay "Has Generation X Already Peaked?" in Details magazine. In his book, Gordinier compares Generation X to the Baby Boomer Generation, stating that Baby Boomers are more likely to seek appreciation and recognition for their accomplishments.

Even authors and researchers William Strauss and Neil Howe recognized Generation X's independence and entrepreneurial spirit. They expressed this in a 2007 article in the Harvard Business Review. Strauss and Howe expressed that growing up in a world of failing marriages and schools will affect how they enter their midlife. Still, they will remain highly effective at pushing new ideas, especially throughout the world of technology.

Technology

Generation X was the first generation to experience advancements in technology while also remembering a world without it. Members of this generation are typically tech-savvy and not afraid to learn new methods or devices. The generation you're a part of defines how you deal with technology throughout your life, and Generation X is no exception. This group of people was growing up right before the technology boom and got to experience the perks of that at an early age.

From movies like Star Wars to video games, technology developed like never before as Gen Xers were adolescents. They experienced the Mac while many were in their teen years, and the pager came out when they were in their 20s. Unlike later generations, such as later Millennials, Generation Z, and Generation Alpha, the members of Generation X experienced the perks of technology without being dependent on it from an early age. In addition, their knowledge of technology contributed to them being valuable in the workforce. They could adapt to technological changes faster than older generations but were still considered self-reliant and hardworking, unlike some younger generations.

Although Generation X is still considered digital immigrants, they grew up right when everything in our world became digital. A digital immigrant refers to a person brought up before digital technology was widespread. As a result, generation X began using social media faster than other generations of digital immigrant generations. 74% of Generation X uses social media in some way. Facebook is the favorite of Gen Xers out of all the social media platforms. However, they haven't ultimately left their MTV roots, and they spend an average of 165 hours a month watching TV.

Based on a study by Pew Research Center in 2019, 90% of Generation X claimed to own a smartphone, and 53% owned a tablet. They also asked members of the study how they viewed the societal impact of the internet. Out of all the generations studied, Generation X's view of the societal impact of the internet declined the most over four years. Previously, 80% of Gen Xers believed the internet positively impacted society, but that number dropped to only 69% four years later.

Overview

Generation X may sometimes be considered a forgotten generation. However, with at least 65 million members of Generation X in the United States alone, they certainly are still impacting the world. Named after a book by Douglas Copeland, the X represents a sense of not being defined. They were keen on pushing against traditional values and were present for many countercultural movements of the sixties, such as the sexual revolution. However, they didn't see the effects of these revolutions until later.

After the Civil Rights Movement, Generation X grew up without segregation in schools. In the 1990s, author William Strauss stated that Generation X was the least racist of all the current generations. But even though they grew up post the Civil Rights Movement and many of the wars the previous generations had to deal with, they still had difficulties in their life. Known often as the "latchkey" generation, they not only had both parents working more than other generations, they were also the children of divorce.

With the Silent Generation pushing for marriage reform, divorce rates skyrocketed and nearly doubled between the 1960s and 1980. Divorce had a significant impact on Generation X. However, aside from the damaging effects, it also impacted how they viewed family life as adults. Generation X stayed married to their spouses at higher rates than the previous generation. They also were spending more time with their children, which was likely a response to how much time they had to spend alone as kids.

Overall, in adulthood and midlife, members of Generation X are hardworking, happy, and leading fulfilling lives. Despite the events that have impacted them, such as the HIV/AIDS epidemic and the Great Recession, they have persevered to achieve what they want.

1. Jeff Bezos (b. 1964): The founder of Amazon, Bezos is a significant figure in the rise of e-commerce and is known for revolutionizing online shopping.

2. Barack Obama (b. 1961): The 44th President of the United States, Obama was the first African American to hold the office. His presidency is noted for significant health care reform and a focus on inclusive policies.

3. Maya Rudolph (b. 1972): An American actress, comedian, and singer, Rudolph gained prominence with her stint on Saturday Night Live and is known for her versatile acting roles.