A01=Ellie Lee
A01=Jennie Bristow
alienation of children from their parents
Author_Ellie Lee
Author_Jennie Bristow
Category=JB
Category=JBSP1
cultural dynamics corroding relationships between generations
defensiveness of boomer generation
eq_bestseller
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
eq_society-politics
forthcoming
Gen Alpha
Gen X
Gen Z
gender wars and children
generational conflict
gentle parenting
how do younger and older people relate to each other in the modern world
how the culture wars are bad for mental health
how the culture wars harm societu
how to get the generations talking to each other again
indulgence of younger people
intergenerational relationships have historically provided the basis for development of maturity
isolation and insecurity of young people
millennials
over-dependence on identity
parenting cultures
permissive parenting
questioning the value of performative identity
snowflake generation
why adult authority is key for the development of stable identity in young people
why generational labels are a bad idea
Product details
- ISBN 9781509567065
- Publication Date: 23 Oct 2026
- Publisher: Polity Press
- Publication City/Country: GB
- Product Form: Paperback
Secure
checkout
Fast Shipping
Easy returns
Today, many criticisms of young people in the West excoriate a self-obsessed, 'snowflake' generation and the indulgent parents and teachers who enable them, cowed by fears of offending, upsetting, or alienating the kids. But, as sociologists Jennie Bristow and Ellie Lee show, the real roots of the problem lie elsewhere. Pressure to positively affirm young people's views of themselves does not come from the organic relationships between adults and children, formed in families, schools, and communities, but from wider political and cultural dynamics that corrode these relationships. This has consequences both for adult authority, and for young people's ability to develop a rounded, grounded sense of themselves.
Strong ties between the generations are essential for inducting young people into society. Today, the cultural obsession with identity incites teenagers and emerging adults to short-circuit the dynamic process of growing up by adopting fashionable badges of self-presentation. But these identity badges stymie young people's access to the intimate, intergenerational relationships that have historically provided the basis for development of maturity. And this process is fuelled by the defensiveness of older generations, who find themselves on 'the wrong side of history'. The result is estrangement between generations and growth in young people's sense of isolation and insecurity.
How can we restore generational health to our societies? In this sensitive, optimistic and ambitiously broad intervention, Bristow and Lee advocate laying the conditions for ongoing conversations with the young that absorbs the necessary friction within relationships of love, commitment, and care. But to do so with confidence requires a cultural narrative that supports adults' ability to say no to our children, with a smile.
Strong ties between the generations are essential for inducting young people into society. Today, the cultural obsession with identity incites teenagers and emerging adults to short-circuit the dynamic process of growing up by adopting fashionable badges of self-presentation. But these identity badges stymie young people's access to the intimate, intergenerational relationships that have historically provided the basis for development of maturity. And this process is fuelled by the defensiveness of older generations, who find themselves on 'the wrong side of history'. The result is estrangement between generations and growth in young people's sense of isolation and insecurity.
How can we restore generational health to our societies? In this sensitive, optimistic and ambitiously broad intervention, Bristow and Lee advocate laying the conditions for ongoing conversations with the young that absorbs the necessary friction within relationships of love, commitment, and care. But to do so with confidence requires a cultural narrative that supports adults' ability to say no to our children, with a smile.
Jennie Bristow is a Reader in Sociology at Canterbury Christ Church University.
Ellie Lee is Professor of Family and Parenting Research at the University of Kent.
Ellie Lee is Professor of Family and Parenting Research at the University of Kent.
