• by Todd Wasserman , April 20, 2023

The youngest teens in 2023 are part of Generation Alpha, the generation born after 2010 and through 2025.

Considered the first truly digitally native generation, Generation Alpha is among the generation that were raised on screens.

Marketing Daily talked with Jean Twenge, Ph.D., a professor of psychology at San Diego State University and author of books including “Generations: The Real Differences Between Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X, Boomers, and Silents-and What They Mean for America's Future,” which will be released on April 25. Below are excerpts from the conversation.

Marketing Daily: What is different about Generation Alpha?

Jean Twenge: Gen Alpha, or as I call them, Polars, are the first generation that will not remember a time before COVID-19. They spent their early elementary school years during the pandemic but are now bouncing back. I call them Polars after the melting polar ice caps and political polarization, two forces that will shape their generation as they grow older.

Marketing Daily: How is Gen Alpha’s relationship with technology and social media notable?

Twenge: Gen Z was the first generation to spend their adolescence with smartphones and social media. Polars are the first whole generation to know them from birth. That might be why they get less exercise than previous generations as children -- they are spending more time with screens.

Marketing Daily: Which marketers are having the most success with Gen A so far, and why?

Twenge:I can't answer this one -- I don't know of any published research or data on this question.

Marketing Daily: How is Gen A different from Gen Z?

Twenge: Polars are getting on social media, especially TikTok, in elementary school. Most of Gen Z didn't use social media until middle school or high school. The amount of time Polars are spending with screens at such a young age is concerning. As just one example, childhood obesity rates are soaring.

Marketing Daily: Are there really significant differences between people of different generations, even if they were born just two or three years apart?

Twenge: For the most part, no. But it might be significant that most Gen Z-ers will remember a time before the COVID-19 pandemic, and few Polars will, and that Polars are using social media at earlier ages. Overall, though, generational changes build year after year, so knowing the exact year someone is born will give you more information about what they experienced than just knowing which generation they belong to.