The Baby Boomer Generation and the Demographics of Clutter Control

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The Baby Boomer Generation and the Demographics of Clutter Control

Using demographic language the people who belong to the baby boomer generation are the children of the silent generation (born prior to 1945) and the parents of generation X (born 1965-1981).  The baby boomer generation has exerted significant influence on the trends seen in modern societies simply because of the pressure of their population mass!

Born between 1946 and 1964 the baby boomers got this name simply because there was a population explosion following the second world war.  Their parents (the slient generation born before 1945) were happy that the second world war was now over and their  was a renewed sense of optimism that that focused on families and creating homes to raise children.  The resulting baby boom bulged the demographic profiles of many countries and the cohort of individuals born between 1946 and 1964 began aging together. 

So what has this got to do with clutter?

The generation cohorts are influenced by the significant social, political, and economic trends of their formative years and during this time  the attitudes, values and beliefs that influence their way of thinking are formed.  In relation to “clutter ” the two influences that would exert the most pressure would be the home and the pop culture you grew up in.  Therefore it becomes necessary to understand how each generation has brought these influences to bear on the clutter control habits now being seen in contemporary homes.

It all started with the silent generation. They are the parents of the baby boomers and the grandparents to generation X ( born 1965- 1981).  The silent generation is sometimes called the veteran’s demographic because the people in this generation were greatly influenced by the first and second world wars as well as the great depression.

With a strong view of authority influenced by the military model that suggested “duty before self”, the silent generation may to this day have difficulty with assertiveness such as saying no.

They grew up with very little variety or choices in consumable goods and were limited to what was available within walking distance of their home.  Along with the purchase of goods was the expectation that the purchased item would last as long as it was needed.  The silent generation grew up with the belief that if you throw something away you are a bad person because you are wasteful.  Therefore throwing things away is not an option.

The mantra of the silent generation would be “Make it last, wear it out, use it up, or do without” 

Over a lifetime the persistent pattern of thinking in the parents of the baby boomer generation led to the accumulation of more and more material goods in the home.  Up to this point the silent generation had no need to devdevelop clutter control skills so they began accumulating more and more material goods as their prosperity continued.

The accumulation of goods was a defining characteristic in the homes that the baby boomers grew up in.  This was a measure of success and reflected the growing economic prosperity of their parents as well as the changes in the variety of goods and services now available to them and marketed through the media.

The baby boomer gneration was probably the first generation with a realistic expectation to  “do better” than their parents!   Unfortunately they never learned from their parents how to purge their possessions or even how to be happy without them.  In other words they never developed the clutter control habits necessary to achieve a balance in the flow of material goods into and out of their homes.

The clutter in the homes of baby boomers and their families is the direct result of the emotional attachment to their stuff and the lack of skill in managing it.  The clutter epidemic suggests that there is a legacy from the 1900’s that is still exerting its influence in the homes of the baby boomers and their children !

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