From Gen Z to millennials to Gen Beta, what do these labels tell us? Experts weigh in
First there were baby boomers. Then there was Generation X, followed by Y, Z and Alpha. Now, a new cohort has emerged.
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Generation Beta, expected to span those born from 2025 to 2040, is already being discussed by demographers and sociologists, and the term is fast gaining traction in English-language media. But just how meaningful are these generational labels and what do they really tell us about the people they supposedly define?
'They are more of a popular science category,' says generational researcher and author Ruediger Maas.
Sociologist and youth researcher Klaus Hurrelmann says: 'The classifications have become very common [not only] in marketing and advertising but also in science.'
A new generation emerges on the scene roughly every 15 years:
baby boomers – those born after World War II up until 1964 – were followed by
Generation X , born from 1965 to 1979.
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