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Strauss and Howe (William Strauss and Neil Howe) are social historians known for their theory about a recurrent cycle of generations in American history. The two have co-authored seven books on generational history and founded a publishing, speaking and consulting company called LifeCourse Associates.[1]

History[edit]

Strauss and Howe’s partnership began in the late 1980s, when they began writing the book Generations, which tells the history of America as a succession of generational biographies from 1584 to the present. Each had previously written on generational topics: Strauss on Baby Boomers and the Vietnam War draft, and Howe on the G.I. Generation and federal entitlement programs.[2] The authors’ interest in generations as a broader topic emerged after they met in Washington, DC, and began discussing the connections between each of their previous work.[3] They wondered why Boomers and G.I.s had developed such different ways of looking at the world, and what it was about these generations’ growing up experiences that prompted their different outlooks. Strauss and Howe also wondered whether any previous generations had acted along similar lines, and their research showed that there were indeed historical analogues to the current generations. The two ultimately identified a recurring pattern in Anglo-American history of four generational types, each with a distinct collective persona, and a corresponding cycle of four different types of era, each with a distinct mood. The groundwork for this theory was laid out in Generations in 1991. Strauss and Howe expanded on the theory and updated the terminology in The Fourth Turning in 1997.[4][2]

Generations helped popularize the idea that people in a particular age group tend to share a distinct set of attitudes and behaviors because they all grow up and come of age during a particular period in history.[5] In the mid-1990s, the authors began receiving inquiries about how their generational insights could help solve strategic problems in organizations.[6] Strauss and Howe were quickly established as pioneers in a growing field, and started speaking frequently about their work at events and conferences.[5]

In 1999, Strauss and Howe founded LifeCourse Associates, a publishing, speaking, and consulting company built on their generational theory. As LifeCourse partners, they have offered keynote speeches, consulting services, and customized communications to corporate, nonprofit, government, and education clients. They have also written six books on how the Millennial Generation is transforming various sectors, including schools, colleges, entertainment, and the workplace.

In December of 2007, Strauss died of pancreatic cancer. Howe has continued to expand LifeCourse Associates and to write books and articles on a variety of generational topics.

Works[edit]

Strauss and Howe's first book, Generations (1991), tells the history of America as a succession of generational biographies from 1584 to present, and identifies a recurring generational cycle in American history. The authors posit a pattern of four repeating generational types and a recurring cycle of spiritual awakenings and secular crises from the founding colonials through the present day.[7] Generations gave rise to a number of terms that are now widely used, including "Millennial Generation" and the "G.I. Generation."

Generations[8]

Strauss and Howe followed in 1993 with their second book, 13th Gen: Abort, Retry, Ignore, Fail?, which examines the generation born between 1961 and 1981, "Gen-Xers" (alias "13ers", since they are literally the thirteenth generation since America became a nation). The book shows how 13ers' location in history--they were children during the Consciousness Revolution--explains their pragmatic attitude and lack of generational cohesion.[9]

In 1997, the authors published The Fourth Turning, which expanded on the ideas presented in Generations. Examining 500 years of Anglo-American history, The Fourth Turning reveals a distinct historical pattern: Modern history moves in cycles, each one lasting approximately the length of a long human life (about 80-90years), and each composed of four different types of mood eras, or "turnings." Offering a detailed analysis of the period from the Great Depression through today, the authors describe the collective persona of each living generation. These include the upbeat, team-playing G.I.s, the indecisive Silent, the values-obsessed Boomers, the pragmatic 13ers, and the new coming-of-age generation of upbeat, team-playing Millennials. By situating each living generation in the context of a historical generational cycle the authors claim to clarify the personality and role of each--and the inevitability of a coming crisis in America.[10] Their terminology of "turnings" and prediction of a U.S. "Crisis" continue to be quoted in the media, especially since the financial turmoil of 2008.

In 2000 the two authors published Millennials Rising: The Next Great Generation. This work investigated the personality of the generation currently coming of age, whose first cohorts were the high school graduating class of 2000. Strauss and Howe show how today's teens are recasting the image of youth from downbeat and alienated to upbeat and engaged. They also say Millennials are held to higher standards than adults apply to themselves; they are a lot less violent, vulgar, and sexually charged than the teen culture older people are producing for them, and, over the next decade, they will transform what it means to be young. According to the authors, Millennials could emerge as the next great generation.[11]

Strauss and Howe have published several application books on Millennials through their consulting firm, LifeCourse Associates. These include a Recruiting Millennials Handbook for the United States Army (2001), Millennials go to College (2003)[12] and Millennials and the Pop Culture (2005).[13] Millennials go to College: 2nd Edition[14] came out in 2007, along with Millennials Go to College: Surveys and Analysis, a study of college students and their parents by generation.[15] The authors published Millennials and K-12 Schools in 2007.[16] In 2010, after Strauss's death, Howe authored Millennials in the Workplace with Reena Nadler.[17]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "LifeCourse Associates". Retrieved 7 October 2010.
  2. ^ a b Howe, Neil; Strauss, William (1991). Generations:The History of America's Future 1584-2069. New York: William Morrow and Company. p. 14. ISBN 0-688-08133-9.
  3. ^ Millennials: A profile of the Next Great Generation (DVD). WMFE & PBS. ISBN 978-0-9712606-7-2.
  4. ^ Howe, Neil; Strauss, William (1997). The Fourth Turning. New York: Broadway Books. p. 338. ISBN 0-7679-0046-4.
  5. ^ a b "The Millennial Muddle". The Chronicle of Higher Education. 11 October 2009. Retrieved 6 October 2010.
  6. ^ "LifeCourse Associates: History". Retrieved 6 October 2010.
  7. ^ Howe, Neil; Strauss, William (1991). Generations:The History of America's Future 1584-2069. New York: William Morrow and Company. ISBN 0-688-08133-9.
  8. ^ "Key to Generations". Retrieved 12 October 2010.
  9. ^ Howe, Neil; Strauss, William (1993). 13th Gen: Abort, Retry, Ignore, Fail?. New York: Vintage Print. ISBN 0-679-74365-0.
  10. ^ Howe, Neil; Strauss, William (1997). The Fourth Turning. New York: Broadway Books. ISBN 0-7679-0046-4.
  11. ^ Howe, Neil; Strauss, William (2000). Millennials Rising. New York: Vintage Books. ISBN 0-375-70719-0.
  12. ^ Howe, Neil; Strauss, William (2003). Millennials Go to College: Strategies for a New Generation on Campus (1st ed.). American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers and LifeCourse Associates. ISBN 1-578-58033-1.
  13. ^ Howe, Neil; Strauss, William (2006). Millennials and the Pop Culture. LifeCourse Associates. ISBN 0-9712606-0-5. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  14. ^ Howe, Neil; Strauss, William (2008). Millennials Go to College: Strategies for a New Generation on Campus (2nd ed.). LifeCourse Associates. ISBN 987-0-971260-61-0. {{cite book}}: Check |isbn= value: invalid prefix (help)
  15. ^ Millennials Go to College: Surveys and Analysis. LifeCourse Associates. 2007. ISBN 978-0-9712606-2-7.
  16. ^ Howe, Neil; Strauss, William (2007). Millennials & K-12 Schools: Educational Strategies for a New Generation. LifeCourse Associates. ISBN 978-0-9712606-5-8.
  17. ^ Howe, Neil (2010). Millennials in the Workplace. LifeCourse Associates. ISBN 978-0-9712606-4-1. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)

Bibliography[edit]

  • Neil Howe, William Strauss, Generations: The History of America's Future, 1584 to 2069, 1991, ISBN 0-688-11912-3
  • Neil Howe, William Strauss, 13th Gen: Abort, Retry, Ignore, Fail?, 1993, ISBN 0-679-74365-0
  • Neil Howe, William Strauss, The Fourth Turning: An American Prophecy, 1997, ISBN 0-553-06682-X
  • Neil Howe, William Strauss, Millennials Rising: The Next Great Generation, 2000, ISBN 0-375-70719-0
  • Neil Howe, William Strauss, Millennials Go to College: Strategies for a New Generation on Campus, 2003, ISBN 1-57858-033-1
  • Neil Howe, William Strauss, Millennials and the Pop Culture: Strategies for a New Generation of Consumers, 2006,ISBN 0-9712606-0-5
  • Neil Howe, William Strauss, Millennials Go to College: 2nd Edition, 2007, ISBN 978-0-9712606-1-0
  • Neil Howe, William Strauss, Millennials Go to College Surveys and Analysis: From Boomer to Gen-X Parents, 2006 College Student and Parent Surveys, 2007, ISBN 978-0-9712606-2-7
  • Neil Howe, William Strauss, Millennials and K-12 Schools: Educational Strategies for a New Generation, 2008, ISBN 0-9712606-5-6

External links[edit]


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