National Researcher Explores the Smartphone Generation and the Future at SBCC Lecture Nov. 5

The stereotypical depiction of Generation Z – those born after 1995 – often involves a teenager with eyes inches from a smartphone and thumbs furiously tapping at the screen. But as Dr. Jean Twenge will explore November 5 as part of SBCC School of Extended Learning’s Mind & Supermind lecture series, these devices are leading many in the “iGen” to grow up more slowly and with higher rates of depression.

iGen: The Smartphone Generation and the Future is coming to the SBCC West Campus, 7:30-9:30 p.m. Monday November 5. A headline-making psychologist, researcher and author, Dr. Twenge will discuss how smartphones are impacting the mental health and happiness of those born after 1995. 

“As this new group of young people grows into adulthood, we all need to understand them,” said Dr. Twenge. “Friends and family need to look out for them; businesses must figure out how to recruit them and sell to them; colleges and universities must know how to educate and guide them. And members of iGen also need to understand themselves as they communicate with their elders and explain their views to their older peers.”

The first generation to spend its entire adolescence with smartphones, iGen adolescents spend more time communicating electronically and consume information online at a rapid pace. They also spend less time with their friends in person and are more likely to experience unhappiness, anxiety and depression.

iGen is also taking longer to assume both the responsibilities and pleasures of adulthood, taking fewer physical risks and has more realistic expectations for the workplace. Why? Join Dr. Twenge to explore iGen psychology and to consider what can be done to help iGen reach their potential.

Tuition and fees for this lecture have been partially covered through private donations. Dr. Spence Sherman will be the evening’s moderator.

WHAT: SBCC School of Extended Learning Mind & Supermind lecture, “iGen:
The Smartphone Generation and The Future” 
WHEN:               Monday, Nov. 5, 2018, 7:30 – 9:30pm
WHERE:            Garvin Theatre, SBCC West Campus
ADMISSION:     $25
PARKING:         Free for attendees – West Campus Parking lots 4A through 4D from 5 p.m.
EVENT INFO:(805) 687-0812

Please register here. 
Course number: 21992

About Dr. Jean M. Twenge
Dr. Twenge, Professor of Psychology at San Diego State University, is the author of more than 130 scientific publications and 6 books. Dr. Twenge frequently gives talks and seminars on teaching and working with today’s young generation based on a dataset of 11 million young people. Her audiences have included college faculty and staff, high school teachers, military personnel, camp directors, and corporate executives. Her research has been covered in Time, Newsweek, The New York Times, USA Today, U.S. News and World Report, and The Washington Post, and she has been featured on Today, Good Morning America, CBS This Morning, Fox and Friends, NBC Nightly News, Dateline NBC and National Public Radio.

About the SBCC School of Extended Learning
The School of Extended Learning responds to the diverse learning needs of the adult population in the Santa Barbara community by advancing career and life skills, and building bridges to credit. www.sbcc.edu/ExtendedLearning.