Millennials are digital natives? An investigation into digital propensity and age

What is it about?

The abundance of opinions about Millennials has made it very difficult to separate reality from conjecture, especially with regard to the suppositions made about their propensity towards technology. Labeled “digital natives”, Millennials are thought to possess traits never before seen as a result of growing up in the digital information age. This study (N = 580) explored the digital propensity of postsecondary students. Specifically, learning characteristics were examined that this group are said to possess that differentiate them from earlier generations, warranting the delineation believed to merit the digital native label.

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Why is it important?

Widespread interest in Millennials has turned them into an industry. Yet, even with the business generated from this group and all the information made available, a clear understanding of the Millennial Generation remains largely out of reach. Regrettably, as one delves deeper into specific aspects of this group, the subject becomes no clearer, but rather raises even more questions. In fact, one does not need to go any further than the suppositions made about their propensity toward technology to find contradictions and disagreement. Overall, the findings of this investigation do not substantiate the strong digital native claims made in past years about Millennials. While differences appear to exist, it cannot be said with any certainty that there is an unambiguous delineation that merits the digital native marker. At least not when examined solely from the standpoint of age.

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