Intro to Pych

Jeremy Homan

Introduction to Psychology

Position Paper

Are Today’s Youth More Self-Centered Than Previous Generations?

Previous generations didn’t have all the technology we do now, so with that technology have we as a society become more self-absorbed? When there weren’t any cell phones and “selfies” were done with Polaroid cameras, and you had to wait for the photo to develop fully; there was no uploading to Facebook or Instagram. Instead people put there pictures in a photo album and showed it to their kids and grandkids. Technology isn’t the only thing that has changed our generation; the trends that are becoming the “in” thing to do and wear also change our attitudes towards ourselves.

According to CBS news “College students are more narcissistic and self centered than their predecessors, which worries people that this trend of self centeredness could be harmful to personal relationships and American society” (Vries, 2007). It is said in the article that repeating “your special” is part of the reason our society has become so self-centered in this generation.

Keith Campbell took a different perspective on this situation and thinks that becoming self centered could be beneficial in the long run, for meeting new people and auditioning for big roles (Campbell, 2007). It could be beneficial for people who don’t have support systems to give them self-esteem, that way they are still thinking highly of themselves no matter the support system they have.

I personally have to agree with Vries, I think that today’s generation has become very self-centered because of multiple things that we have now that weren’t there in previous generations. Technology is what I believe to be the biggest influence on our society and the way we are perceived by others in our society. I think that the way technology has shaped our society plays a big role on how self-centered our generation has become. With technology we now seek attention through social media sites, which...