“Did you expect me to be a

Snooki or a Twihard?” How the portrayal of youth in

popular culture may hurt the credibility of young librarians

Laura LovedaySouthwest Florida

College

Generation Y

Millennials

Born:

Post-1980

Population:

70-80 million

Echo Boomers

TrophyGeneration

Young Professionals

Unemployment

- Marlar, Jenny. “Worldwide, Young Adults Twice as Likely to Be Unemployed.” Gallup, Inc., 27 April 2011. Web.

- “Young, Underemployed and Optimistic: Coming of Age, Slowly, in a Tough Economy.” Pew Research Center,

9 Feb. 2012. Web.

Gallup:

Pew Research Center: The percentage of employed 18-24 year

olds is the lowest its been in recorded data

Adults age 15-29 12% 27%

Adults age 30-49 5% 15%

Adults age 50-69 4% 14%

Unemployed Underemployed

Job Satisfaction

- Markgren, Susanne, Thad Dickinson, Anne Leonard, and Kim Vassiliadis. "The Five Year Itch: Are Libraries Losing Their Most Valuable Resources?" Library Administration & Management 21.2 (2007): 70-76. EBSCO. Web.

5-7 years

3-5 years

1-3 years

0% 50% 100%

Kept JobChanged Jobs

Change may be due to…BurnoutResistance to change by

administrationFinancial stabilityIncreased focus on technology

I was checking out books [at a college library] and a freshman asked if I was a librarian. When I said yes, he asked if he could check me out on a date. –Brittany, 26

A patron came in and asked if she could speak to a “real” librarian. When I said I was a “real” librarian, she looked at me for a minute and then asked if she could speak to the older librarian she had seen another day. I said she was out, and the patron said she’d come back another time. –Leonah, 25

Another librarian who works with me asked if I took my job [in reference] until I could take a young adult position. I said no and asked why, and she said she figured since I looked so young. –Adonis, 29

…or

The average American:

watches 239 videos online per month

watches 34 hours 39 minutes of TV per week

 is exposed to over 3,000 ads per day

What are we being shown?

Most Popular Google Searches: 2011

Searches included in the Top 10 for their categories:

Casey Anthony, Mean Girls 2, Ryan Dunn, Amy Winehouse, Beavis and Butthead, Kim Kardashian, Rebecca Black, Britney Spears, Thundercats, Pretty Little Liars, Pippa Middleton, Breaking DawnThe most searched for travel

location for U.S. and the U.K:Las Vegas, Nevada

BusinessWeek recently posted this question on its cover:

“Are Millennials the New Office Moron?”

Cultural Perception of Gen Y

What have we learned from what we’re being shown?

Workplace Options, Inc.: 77% believe Millennials have a different attitude

toward workplace responsibility 68% believe Millennials are less motivated to produce

quality work 46% believe Millennials are less engaged at work

Pew Research Center When asked their top priorities, 52% included being a

good parent, 30% included having a successful marriage, and the third most frequently included priority was helping others in need (21%)

Only 1% included “becoming famous” and 9% included free time

Changing the Face of Young Librarians

“There is a role here for our library associations to provide opportunities and

support systems for local mentoring groups. But there is also a role for the Millennial

librarian: If mentoring programs don’t exist in a particular city, then perhaps Millennial librarians should start one themselves.”

–Kate Davis