There has been considerable interest and concern about the mental health of school-age children, but perhaps we should Furthermore I worry about the mental health of adults in college (and beyond).
Rates of anxiety and depression among 18- to 25-year-olds are about twice the rate among teenagers, according to a report from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the Common Project on Communal Care, released in late 2023.
According to research, the top three causes of these mental health problems are:
- Lack of meaning, purpose, and direction.
- Financial worries and pressure to achieve.
- A perception that the world is unraveling.
In essence, this group experiences an understandable tension between the desire for a good and meaningful life and what they perceive as significant barriers to achieving such a life.
The other two main causes are ‘relationship deficits’ (feeling unimportant to others and feelings of isolation) and ‘social and political issues’ (concerns about issues such as gun violence and climate change).
It makes sense that this group would report greater anxiety than younger teenagers, given that they have been experiencing these worries for longer and are much closer to situations they will have to face in life rather than future worries. .
This research has recently sparked my interest. new york times An article about the attitudes of Gen Z students at a prestigious university toward the concept of “selling”, i.e. that such a thing does not exist. It's definitely not derogatory.
The big picture goal is a “bulge bracket internship.” This is a position at one of the large investment banks that will guarantee you a big salary upon graduation and access to even greater wealth in the future (e.g. running a hedge fund). Poll harvard crimson According to (student newspaper), more than 40% of the Class of 2023 will enter a career in finance or consulting, making this a widely shared goal.
According to Harvard graduate Aden Barton, “sellout” is not a derogatory term but a “descriptive term.” Barton wrote for: harvard crimson It is argued that careerist attitudes create a pre-professional hustle culture where all decisions are made with the prospect of future employment in one of these bulge bracket industries in mind, thereby neglecting intellectual pursuits such as learning.
Part of this dynamic appears to be a herd mentality, where it's easier to follow someone else's path if you don't have specific ideas of your own. This is especially true when the choice is attached to prestige, which is always a hot commodity in elite spaces.
Interestingly, while students recognize that these jobs come with high incomes, they don't necessarily seem to be driven by greed, at least for now. According to times “A surprising number of students explain their desire for corporate employment with a spirit of effective altruism.”
Concerns about a lack of meaning and purpose and concerns about financial pressures seem to have combined, at least in theory, into a “earn to give” mentality. Let's hope something better comes out for these people than the recently jailed Sam Bankman-Fried (perhaps the most famous public example of the EA movement).
I think there are worse ideas than trying to make a lot of money to preserve your financial security and freedom until you figure out what you want to do with your life. It is your core purpose and ultimate happiness.
But you will be rich.
As a Gen Xer, it's a bit strange to hear that 'sales' is no longer viewed in a negative light. It's not that no one my age is interested in making money, it's just that you have to be at least a little timid about it. It's also strange, considering what I know about the deep-rooted idealism of members of Generation Z, and what I know from the Harvard Graduate School of Education survey and other research. want Their lives have meaning.
To me, this is perhaps the highest level of an education system, and indeed of the wider society, premised on what I call “infinite future rewards”. For students, especially in school contexts, the present is a meaningless void, so it is important to keep an eye on the future in order to continue to move forward. It is not surprising that this works “better” in elite institutions where students are achievement-driven and where opportunities appear abundant, but it is notable that this access to opportunity does not lead to happiness.
This is nothing new. I tell stories in my books. Why they can't write About an in-class encounter with a student around 2008-2009, they expressed a strong desire to retire (at the age of 20) so they could start living a real life. This student could not imagine a happy marriage with the work he needed to do to live a real, fulfilling life.
I believe students have very little responsibility in maintaining this status quo. They are playing the cards they have been dealt. We are the ones responsible for dealing with the cards that need to be answered. Students are sending out all kinds of signals that they don't think their educational activities are of much value. (Outsourcing your writing assignments to ChatGPT is just one of those signs.)
We may see this as a failure of character, but if so, it is an almost universal flaw.
To me, this all sounds like very reasonable behavior. If you want students to do something differently, you need to give them a reason to do so.