Gen Z has spoken. Side hair parts, skinny jeans and laughing crying emojis are out. Oh. And you can call them Zoomers. (Bansal, 2021)
Each generation has to follow its own path if only to differentiate themselves from those older and less cool. And right now it's game on between Gen Z and Millennials.
But where do these directives come from, who issues them and why?
Apparently it's the folks on TikTok. And they think that a side part makes someone looks old.
Maybe that's true.
But another person posted this - "As a teen on TikTok I'm going to say it's because we've noticed that Democrats have middle parts and Republicans have side parts."
Now that's unexpected. Or is it?
The polarization of politics in America has taken a frightening new turn as the need to belong to a tribe has become so intense that people are willing to believe and do just about anything to stay in the tribe.
In a poll taken earlier this month, 23% of Republicans say they will definitely not get vaccinated, and another 21% says they will probably not get vaccinated. That adds up to 44%. Meanwhile only 7% of Democrats say they will not get vaccinated. (Beer, 2021)
Why is there such a big difference? Because people with different party affiliations rely on different sources for their news. According to Pew Research, 93% of Republicans get their news from Fox, while 95% of Democrats get their news from MSNBC. Adults 18-29, 29% prefer the New York Times. (Grieco, 2020)
And then there are those that get their news from social media - 18% of Americans are willing to admit it - they are less engaged and less knowledgeable than those who use other sources. (Mitchell, Jurkowitz, Oliphant & Shearer, 2020)
What have you seen people do to belong to a tribe? What tribes do you belong to? What have you done to bond with the tribes that you belong to? Anything you regret?
What determines how willing someone is to follow the dictates of the tribe? Will you change your hair to a middle part and switch to yoga pants and skull emojis? Why or why not?
Bansal, S. (2021, February 5) Gen Z is Roasting Millennials for Their Side Parts and Skinny Jeans. vice.com. Retrieved February 22, 2021, from https://www.vice.com/en/article/5dp4w5/genz-millennials-skinny-jeans-generation-wars
Beer, T. (2021, February 10) Nearly 1 in 4 Republicans 'Definitely' Won't Get Covid-19Vaccine, Survey Finds. forbes.com. Retrieved February 22, 2021, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/tommybeer/2021/02/10/nearly-1-in-4-republicans-definitely-wont-get-covid-19-vaccine-survey-finds/?sh=53897ea2b68f
Grieco, E. (2020, April 1) Americans' main sources for political news vary by party and age. pewresearch.org. Retrieved February 22, 2021, from https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/04/01/americans-main-sources-for-political-news-vary-by-party-and-age/
Mitchell, A., Jurkowitz, M., Oliphant, J., & Shearer, E. (2020, July 30) Americans Who Mainly Get Their News on Social Media Are Less Engaged, Less Knowledgeable. Pew research center. Retrieved Feburary 22, 2021, from https://www.journalism.org/2020/07/30/americans-who-mainly-get-their-news-on-social-media-are-less-engaged-less-knowledgeable/
6 comments:
I am interested in American fashion designer Rick Owens. I have loved his design for over ten years. And I am a collector of his archive pieces from the late '90s to the 2008 period. There are numerous his fans online, and I share Rick Owens' information with them. I follow several fan accounts on Instagram, and I check fan pages on Reddit as well. In fan pages and Instagram accounts, we share how they wear Rick Owens pieces in real life. They share information about fitting, design details, fabric, etc. I am really excited about communicating with the fans because I feel like we are old friends who can talk continuously.
For us, Rick Owens, the designer, is our god and dictator. But he is a good dictator, and we love his characteristics and designs so much. When he held a signing event for his new fashion book at his flagship store in Soho, I waited in line for three hours outside of the store to meet him in person and get his signature. At the event, I was happy to see our online tribe members in person and made many good friends there. That event was one of my best memories in New York so far. The only thing I regret is I spent too much money on collecting his pieces. However, it makes me happy when I see those pieces, so it is fine, and I'll collect them continuously. When I buy his archive pieces, I use the website grailed.com. At there, people buy and sell their favorite designer pieces. When I buy Rick's old rare pieces, I talk with the sellers about how they found those pieces, why they decided to sell, what behind stories they have with those pieces, etc. I never get bored with my tribe members when I talk Rick Owens, and I might do this continuously. -Hanjo Mok-
It does seem apparent more now than ever in my life that most people subscribe to a tribe. The United States seems to display a polarization in its citizen's political views and what they subscribe to. I have seen this play itself out in the political realm. Most people are zealous about which political party they support and subscribe to EVERYTHING that their preference of parties promotes. The issue is there doesn't seem to be much individual discernment nor moderation. Personally, I am not much into tribalism. I try to be as objective as possible and look at the grey area now that I am older. I am sure that there was a time in my life where I was aligned with certain tribalistic views, but not so much anymore. I will oppose my family and friends if I feel that they are following the crowd too much. I feel that people need to become independent thinkers and use their powers of discernment.
It is notable that news about politics and the government varies depending on whether one is a liberal or a conservative. Based on the current media environment, the sources vary by the settings of news media, social media, and conversations with family and friends. These different outlets provide the information they can use to discuss their opinions and have their views. Within the government of President Trump, we noted how much each side relied on a certain outlet. For instance, the Republicans relied on Fox News for political and election news while the Democrats used a variety of other sources. These choices are based on the trust they place on the outlets. However, these sources are biased because they choose to provide information to cater to their particular audiences and not necessarily to provide the ultimate truth about issues. People have risked their lives and even those of others just to belong to a tribe, airing out their views in such ways that ensure they can be identified as such. In my case, I think that it is not worth the effort to change who I am so I can belong to a group of people. My views and my personality should take me where I should belong and not what I change about myself. I don't think I can switch to a side part then.
Different generations follow specific directives due to the environment a person is living within. Through interactions, individuals tend to copy the behaviors from one another since they find them cool. Those close individuals' behavior brings changes that may lead to the same decision-making because of the influence. For one to belong to a specific tribe, the most probable cause is the same behavior that makes one match the other. For instance, a smoker will be comfortable living with fellow smokers compared to non-smokers. In consumer behavior, a particular tribe might decide not to buy a specific brand in the market for it does not match their interests. Such a move will lead to low business. For instance, the US's vegetarians don't take meat products due to their moral and religious beliefs. To make the tribe strong, keeping up with the behaviors and following their faith brings more unity. I don't regret being part of my tribe since all I am comfortable with takes place in it. The determinant of what makes one change is the level of influence towards the tribe. Having a positive effect will lead you to be part of the tribe you match. Due to my firm belief, I won't change my hair to a middle part and switch to yoga pants and skull emojis.
I have witnessed people go to great lengths in terms of fitting into a tribe; they've lied and sold out their morality for the group. I don't consider myself fitting into any one tribe as of late - I'm more of a lone wolf. Although, I was part of the US Army tribe for some time because I did not have a choice. When bonding with my tribe, I followed the ethos of that tribe, our core principles as did almost everyone else because we depended on each other.
I think the greater cause of a certain tribe will be the deciding factor in how people associate and align themselves with a specific tribe. In most cases; that greater cause is really hard to decipher to what the goal or end-state is of that tribe; especially nowadays with younger generations and the infatuation with social media.
Belle:
I have seen people change the style of their clothing or the music they listen to belong to a tribe. I belong to international students, just like other Chinese international student stereotypes, I would start to purchase luxuries like others to get belonging to. And I definitely regret this decision, even though I do part-time jobs, the money I got could go to investment or other more educational goods, rather than things that can only get you vanity. I would say how much one respects or wants to get into the tribe would determine how willing they would like to change or satisfy themselves. Only the outsiders would want to belong to change themselves, the insiders are comfortable to be who they want to be. If I am still in high school, maybe I would change my clothing to get fit in, but now I would not. Because I know that “tribe” should not be defined by others, but to get defined by ourselves. Self-esteem should also be built by ourselves recognizing us, but not others recognizing us.
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