The Big Read: The pandemic has affected the human psyche. What does this mean for Generation COVID’s future?

THE NEXT GENERATION

The unfortunate reality is that the pandemic is not going to be the last crisis in the lifetime of millennials and Gen Zers, who also have to contend with an ever-growing climate crisis and the likelihood of another pandemic, said those interviewed.

Hence, developing resilience against crisis is a must, they said.

“I would say I’m pretty determined to adapt to COVID-19 and get used to a new normal. It was hard at the beginning, but I can feel myself getting more resilient,” said first-year junior college student Delfine Yew, 17.

“I think if I view these changes as challenges that I have to conquer on my road to success, then I’ll be more optimistic for the days ahead.”

With millennials, who are in their 20s and 30s, they have at least an early point of reference in their lives, where they can still remember pre-pandemic social norms and may also have established long-lasting friendships and support systems, said the youth experts.

But it may be a different story for the future generation who will be born during or in between crises.

Already, paediatricians and psychologists globally have expressed concerns that toddlers are experiencing increasing bouts of stranger anxiety — the fear that babies feel when interacting with unknown people.

Young children are also feeling signs of separation anxiety when they return to schools after periods of social isolation, according to reports from Canada.

If the effects of the current pandemic are prolonged, Assoc Prof Tan said it could lead to more pronounced anxiety about the future for this group when they come of age.

“They might have serious doubts about whether the success formula used by their parents or grandparents would still work for them, whether they could ever achieve income and job security, let alone experience upward social mobility, and live a middle-class existence,” he said.

Dr Tania Nagpaul, a senior lecturer at the SR Nathan School of Human Development at SUSS, said the most telling impact of the pandemic will be on the new Generation Alphas, born between 2010 and 2024 and are currently pupils in primary school.

They have been insulated from the uncertainties that COVID-19 has brought, mainly having to embrace home-based learning temporarily, but are not forced to make important decisions or kick-start their fledgling careers at an inopportune time.

“Their hope is that the coming years will be COVID-free and life will revert back to normalcy,” said Dr Nagpaul.

Whether life would be COVID-free by then remains to be seen, but Prof Straughan said she believes that youths — whether Gen Alphas, Gen Zers or millennials — are resilient and can take advantage of opportunities.

“Many of the things that older generations used to do in the past, we’d say ‘it’s always been like that’ in a way that we tie ourselves down, because we cannot imagine a world that doesn’t have all these solid walls,” she said.

“But the pandemic has broken down many of these walls, so there is a potential for younger people to take advantage of these new blank slates. It’s a chance for them to build a better world.”