Great work this week! I, too, am doing a program focusing on adult patients; different area of interest, but still considering people ages 18-64. I had whittled down my age range since 18-64 covers… many years as well as potential cross-generational issues; there could be a difference of 46 years between the youngest participant and the oldest participant. Consider something we already are somewhat aware of; generations that I had mentioned earlier, as arbitrary as generations may be in some people’s opinions. Someone who is 18 is categorized as a Gen-Z whereas someone who is currently 64 years old would be a Baby Boomer; we already see a large divide from simply one generation previous let alone several. Something that Hicks et al. (2018) describes that there is an issue with these changing demographics as it requires counselors to understand all of these different generational worldviews and their related historical events or experiences; a lot of these differences can create a rift between communication, values, skills, and concerns. For example, Baby Boomers have their generation defined through events like the Cuban Missile Crisis and the War on Drugs whereas Gen-Z have their generation define through events like the Black Lives Matter Movements and seeing legalization of marijuana. Of course, most of these generational differences are viewed through a very Western lense and generations are viewed differently and have different events in different cultures or countries, but my point remains. How do you think it would be possible to keep these differences and generational communication issues in mind with your experiment? I look forward to hearing from you!
