Okay, boomer
The term ‘snowflake’ has risen to popularity in recent years. Older generations often employ it to put down anyone seen as overly politically correct or extremely sensitive to sociological issues. You can most often see it in Facebook rants, right-wing columns, and coming from the mouth of Piers Morgan.
However, in the largest ever narcissism study, the results show a trend most would not expect. The research shows that despite popular belief, the baby boomer generation is typically more sensitive than millennials.
Though ‘snowflake’ is undoubtedly a popular term, members of younger generations often quip back with the increasingly popular ‘okay boomer.’
The study in question used a group of 750 people, all between the ages of 13 and 77. The subjects experienced a comprehensive interview, in which they were asked questions on their family, jobs, and personalities.
Researchers also examined six previous studies to build a comprehensive view of how narcissistic traits vary among the generations. The previous studies did not consider both generational and individual factors, but this newest paper does.
After the initial questions, and as baby boomers calmed down from the invasive questions, researchers ranked the subjects on a scale from 1 to 5, with 5 having the most narcissistic traits. Such personality traits include defensiveness, authoritativeness, and stubbornness.
The studies findings will undoubtedly offend baby boomers since they have now officially been crowned as the most sensitive generation. But they can’t argue, science has declared it so.
William Chopik, the lead researcher, believes that a boomers hypersensitivity could be a result of life experience. The study confirms that: “there’s weak evidence that this [younger] generation is the worst in human history,” Chopik said.
The research did confirm, however, that younger generations are typically more narcissistic. This naturally decreases as a person matures.
To any Baby Boomers reading this, just know that being a snowflake isn’t a bad thing. But just remember, the next time you call someone a snowflake, you are actually one too. But it’s okay, this is a call for millennials to pass tissues to the nearest boomer.
