Generation Jones

Generation Jones is the social cohort[1][2] of the latter half of the Baby Boomers to the first years of Generation X.[3][4][5][6] The term was first coined by the cultural commentator Jonathan Pontell, who identified the cohort as those born from 1954 to 1965 in the U.S.[7] who came of age during the oil crisis, stagflation, and the Carter presidency, rather than during the 1960s, but slightly before Gen X.[8][9] Unlike Boomers, most of Generation Jones did not grow up with World War II veterans as fathers, and for them there was no compulsory military service and no defining political cause, as opposition to United States involvement in the Vietnam War had been for the older Boomers.[10] Also, by 1955, a majority of U.S. households had at least one television set,[11] and so unlike Boomers born in the 1940s, many members of Generation Jones have never lived in a world without television – similar to how many members of Generation Z (1997–2012) have never lived in a world without personal computers or the internet (which a majority of U.S. households had by 2000 and 2001 respectively),[12] or mobile phones (which a majority of U.S. survey respondents reported having by 2002).[13] Unlike Generation X (1965–1980), Generation Jones was born before most of the Sexual Revolution of the 1960s and '70s.

The name "Generation Jones" has several connotations, including a large anonymous generation, a "keeping up with the Joneses" competitiveness and the slang word "jones" or "jonesing", meaning a yearning or craving.[14][15][16][17] It is believed that Jonesers inherited an optimistic outlook as children in the 1960s, but were then confronted with a different reality as they came of age during the shift from a manufacturing to a service economy, which ushered in a long period of mass unemployment, and de-industrialization arrived full force in the mid-late 1970s and 1980s, leaving them with a certain unrequited "jonesing" quality for the more prosperous days of the past.

Generation Jones is noted for coming of age after a huge swath of their older brothers and sisters in the earlier portion of the Baby Boomer population had come immediately preceding them; thus, many complain that there was a paucity of resources and privileges available to them that were seemingly abundant to older Boomers. Therefore, there is a certain level of bitterness and "jonesing" for the level of freedom and affluence granted to older Boomers but denied to them.[18]

The term has enjoyed some currency in political and cultural commentary, including during the 2008 United States presidential election, where Barack Obama (born 1961) and Sarah Palin (born 1964) were on the presidential tickets.

Cultural, economic and political dimensions

Many came of age during the 70s and early 80s. They shared similar pop culture and MTV with Gen X'ers. They were young adults navigating the workforce in the 80s and 90s, but still felt the 2008 economic crisis. This hit them hard because they had to help and advise their older Millennial children while also providing for their younger Gen Z kids.

Generation Jones has been covered and discussed in newspapers and magazines and on TV and radio shows.[19][20][21][22] Pontell has appeared on TV networks such as CNN, MSNBC, and BBC, discussing the cultural, political, and economic implications of this generation's emergence.[23][24][25]

In the business world, Generation Jones has become a part of the strategic planning of many companies and industries, particularly in the context of targeting Jonesers through marketing efforts.[26][27][28][29][30][31] Carat UK, a European media buying agency, has done extensive research into Generation Jones consumers.[32][33]

Politically, Generation Jones has emerged as a crucial voting segment in Western elections.[34][35] In the U.S. 2006 congressional and 2004 presidential elections, and the 2005 U.K. elections, Generation Jones's electoral role was widely described as pivotal by the media and political pollsters.[5][20][36][37] In the 2008 U.S. Presidential election, Generation Jones was again seen as a key electoral segment because of the high degree to which its members were swing voters during the election cycle. Influential journalists, like Clarence Page[34] and Peter Fenn,[35] singled out Generation Jones voters as crucial in the final weeks of the campaign.[38] Numerous studies have been done by political pollsters and publications analyzing the voting behavior of Gen Jonesers.[39][40][41]

The election to the presidency of Barack Obama, born in 1961, plus Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, born 1964, focused more attention on Generation Jones. Many journalists, publications, and experts -- including Jonathan Alter (Newsweek),[42] David Brooks (The New York Times) and Karen Tumulty (Time) -- have characterized Obama as a member of Generation Jones.

Key characteristics assigned to members are pessimism, distrust of government, and general cynicism.[40][43]

Though studies on voting behavior with respect to Gen Jonesers during the 2016 and 2020 election cycles are few and far in between, a general distrust of the government and cynical voting behavior tracks well with this cohort's support for Donald Trump, who many viewed as a political outsider.

See also

References
  1. Howe, Neil (December 7, 2008). "Who is the Real 'Dumbest Generation'?". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on January 2, 2017. Retrieved February 7, 2019.
  2. Hendricks, Jon (March 1, 2012). "Considering Life Course Concepts". The Journals of Gerontology. B. 67B (2): 226–231. doi:10.1093/geronb/gbr147. PMID 22391748.
  3. Jensen, J. B. (2007). Future consumer tendencies and shopping behaviour: The development up until 2015-17. Research paper No. 1. Denmark: Marianne Levinsen & Jesper Bo Jensen. pp. 13–17. Archived from the original on 2013-01-22.
  4. Seigle, Greg (April 6, 2000). "Some Call It 'Jones'". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 18, 2007.
  5. "Press Release: Generation Jones is driving NZ Voter Volatility". Scoop Independent News (NZ). September 13, 2005. Retrieved February 18, 2007.
  6. Wastell, David (October 15, 2000). "Generation Jones comes of age in time for election". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved June 12, 2009.
  7. Williams, Jeffrey J. (March 31, 2014). "Not My Generation". The Chronicle of Higher Education. Archived from the original on October 9, 2017. Retrieved January 27, 2019.
  8. "Jump up". The Frederick News-Post. December 19, 2008. Archived from the original on February 21, 2010. Retrieved August 2, 2010.
  9. "In Obama, many see an end to the baby boomer era". Chicago Sun-Times. January 11, 2009. Archived from the original on January 25, 2009. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
  10. Buck, Stephanie (November 3, 2017) "This niche generation within the Baby Boom is a highly coveted—and persuadable—voting bloc".
  11. Stevens, Mitchell. "History of Television". New York University.
  12. File, Thom (May 2013). Computer and Internet Use in the United States (PDF) (Report). Current Population Survey Reports. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved February 11, 2020.
  13. Tuckel, Peter; O'Neill, Harry (2005). Ownership and Usage Patterns of Cell Phones: 2000-2005 (PDF) (Report). JSM Proceedings, Survey Research Methods Section. Alexandria, VA: American Statistical Association. p. 4002. Retrieved September 25, 2020.
  14. Anne, Braly (January 18, 2009). "'Generation Jones' soon to have its man in Washington". Chattanooga Times Free Press.
  15. Button, Eileen (April 5, 2009). "Generation Jones has a few good reasons to be suspicious of technology". The Community Newspapers.
  16. Stuart Wells, Amy (4 March 2009). "Commentary - From Obama's Generation The Audacious Hope of More Racially Diverse Public Schools". Education Week.
  17. Rohan, Virginia (June 30, 2008). "Baby Boomers ready for next challenge". North Jersey Media Group.
  18. Pontell, Jonathan (2007). "Generation Jones". The Jonathan Pontell Group. Archived from the original on July 13, 2011. Retrieved October 30, 2012.
  19. Lang, John (January 8, 2000). "Generation Jones: Between the Boomers and the Xers". The Cincinnati Post. E. W. Scripps Company. Archived from the original on January 15, 2005.
  20. Rowan, David (May 2005). "A guide to electionspeak". Archived from the original on April 7, 2007.
  21. "Political analyst Jonathan Pontell on what political party different generations vote for and why". Talk Radio News Service. October 30, 2006. Archived from the original on September 11, 2011. Retrieved December 7, 2008.
  22. Aguilar, Louis (December 2000). "Many in the 35-46 Age Bracket Identify with 'Generation Jones'". Denver, Colorado: The Denver Post.
  23. Generation Jones discussion on CNN day before ElectionDay'08. YouTube. January 15, 2009. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
  24. Generation Jones conversation on Canada's most popular national TV talk show. YouTube. February 27, 2009. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
  25. Ollivier, Debra (December 15, 2011). "So You Think You're A Boomer? Think Again". The Huffington Post. Retrieved February 10, 2014.
  26. Campanelli, Melissa (September 20, 2007). "How to Reach 'Generation Jones' Online". eMarketing & Commerce. Archived from the original on December 13, 2019. Retrieved July 9, 2009.
  27. Wells, Ellen C. (September 2005). "Keeping Up With The Jonesers" (PDF). Today's Garden Center: 44–45. Retrieved July 9, 2009.
  28. Green, Brent (2006), Marketing to Leading-Edge Baby Boomers, Paramount Market Publishing, ISBN 978-0-9766973-5-0
  29. Welch, Jim; Bill Althaus (2007). Grow Now. The Growth Leader, Inc. p. 204. ISBN 978-1-934144-02-2.
  30. Stroud, Dick (2007). The 50 plus market. Kogan Page Publishers. p. 314. ISBN 978-0-7494-4939-1.
  31. "Toops Scoops: Keeping up with the Jonesers". foodprocessing.com. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
  32. "Who is Generation Jones?". Project Britain. Carat UK. Archived from the original on February 15, 2005. Retrieved February 10, 2014.
  33. Dutta, Kunal (January 23, 2006). "Carat taps into singleton spending". MediaWeek. Retrieved February 10, 2014.
  34. Page, Clarence (October 22, 2008). "Generation Jones is in play". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on December 1, 2008. Retrieved December 7, 2008.
  35. Fenn, Peter (October 23, 2008). "Why the 'Generation Jones' Vote May Be Crucial in Election 2008". The Hill's Pundits Blog. Archived from the original on January 30, 2009. Retrieved December 7, 2008.
  36. "Key to election is 'keeping up with Joneses'". epolitix.com. Archived from the original on October 13, 2008. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
  37. "Pollster says Generation Jones tipped election for Bush". publicradio.org. December 9, 2004. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
  38. Paulsen, David (October 26, 2008). "Attention GenY'ers! Talk To Your Parents! Don't Let GenJonesers Vote Against Themselves!". Politics. The Huffington Post. Retrieved December 7, 2008.
  39. "Generation Jones could be key to 06 midterm election results". research2000.us. November 1, 2006. Archived from the original on February 6, 2009.
  40. Rentoul, John (April 10, 2005). "Introducing Generation Jones voters who hold the key to No 10". The Independent. London.
  41. "Generation Jones Women are Swing Voters". Rasmussen Reports(TM). October 27, 2004. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
  42. Alter, Jonathan (February 11, 2008). "Twilight of the Baby Boom". Newsweek. Retrieved December 7, 2008.
  43. Derbyshire, David (November 24, 2004). "Generation Jones is given a name at last". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved May 3, 2010.
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