Book Review: “Gen Z, Explained: The Art of Living in a Digital Age”
Gen Z has sparked plenty of conversation and curiosity among other generations. Gen Z, the demographic cohort born between 1997 and 2012, is, of course, the logical continuation from the preceding Generations X and Y. Yet Z is also the last letter of the alphabet, aptly connoting an end: the end of the world as we knew it before the internet, technology, and social media profoundly turned the social fabric of our society on its head.
Reviewed by Eva Goldstein, director for compliance and special projects, Financial Aid and Academic Records, Nova Southeastern University.
Many of us interact with Gen Z daily as financial aid counselors, higher education administrators, and faculty, and boy, do they keep us on our toes. They run circles around us in locating information online, yet don’t have the attention span to read a book. They have thousands of friends and followers, yet desperately crave connection. They are as diverse as a patchwork quilt, yet surprisingly in sync when it comes to the trends and topics of the day.
Gen Z, Explained: The Art of Living in a Digital Age is an excellent resource to help us make sense of the contradictions and idiosyncrasies of this first cohort to grow up on the internet and smartphones. Written by a diverse group of experts — Stanford University professor of anthropology Roberta Katz, Oxford University linguist Sarah Ogilvie, Oxford University historian Jane Shaw, and Lancaster University sociologist Linda Woodhead — the book reads like a research paper on the online behaviors of 18- to 25-year-old college students from 2016 to 2020. In seven chapters, it draws on a series of 120 interviews with students on three distinct campuses in the United States and the United Kingdom to identify a range of traits, three of which are discussed below:
- Gen Zers think of their identities as fine-grained composites of various attributes. As the first generation to grow up online, Gen Z has been exposed to an abundance of information, interest groups, and forums. These diverse and granularly differentiated online subcultures have allowed teens to discover and home in on multiple aspects of their personal identities. In forging their sense of identity, post-millennials place particular focus on gender, sexuality, race, and ethnicity. The authors posit that online and offline behavior is the same for Gen Z. Consequently, this generation has introduced more flexibility, choice, and tolerance for individual expression on our campuses, as reflected by new clubs and organizations, including the gradual shift from LGB (lesbian, gay, bisexual) to LGBTQ (adding trans and queer), and then LGBTQIA+ (adding intersex, asexual, and all other sexualities, sexes, and genders).
- Gen Zers place a high value on authenticity. As tolerant as Gen Z is when it comes to individual expression, the buck stops when they perceive someone as being unauthentic. With a lifetime of practice broadcasting who they are, Gen Z has developed intricate social codes and expectations that members of other generations find hard to follow (think, “OK, Boomer.”) Gen Z has a strong desire for honesty, authenticity, and sincerity, likely due to having been exposed to online dishonesty and manipulation from an early age.
- Gen Zers prefer light-touch leadership and value collaboration. Accustomed to easy and direct access to information and prominent figures on the internet, post-millennials are critical of formal institutions, such as government agencies, places of worship, or even some social spaces at universities. Most comfortable with informal discourse online, they have little patience for hierarchical structures. Online communities are democratic spaces where anyone can participate and assume leadership responsibilities. Gen Z freely give of their time and talents to moderate, call out members who violate mutually agreed upon community guidelines, and contribute without the expectation of personal recognition or reward.
Learning From Gen Z
The book provides valuable insights into key aspects of online culture in the years 2016–2020 and beyond. Some sections read like a guide to online behavior circa 2018, with extended explanations of edgy meme culture and mental health coping mechanisms that, in hindsight, were only truly tested during the global COVID-19 pandemic, after most of the authors’ interviews had concluded. Rather than pass judgment, the authors offer an empathetic explanation for the apparent contradictions and ambiguities that define Generation Z. It is not that Gen Zers are failing to measure up. Rather, they have been forced to evolve and adapt to make sense of rapid technological changes. Contrary to what many have said about Gen Z, the authors’ research illustrates that Gen Zers celebrate human values related to individual freedom and social belonging, and remain hopeful against the odds. With appreciation for the uncertainty the future holds, those of us from different generations might learn from Gen Zers’ hope, self-reliance, and collaborative approach to building a distinctly human and humane future in the digital age.
This book is beneficial for financial aid professionals seeking a deeper understanding of Gen Zers’ values and the social, cultural, and technological influences that shape Gen Zers’ perspectives and behaviors. The books’ insights, combined with personal connections formed with Gen Zers in our classrooms, offices, and personal lives, can help bridge generational gaps and equip financial aid professionals with the necessary sensitivity to design effective student communication and support strategies that resonate and build trust in uncertain times.
"Gen Z, Explained: The Art of Living in a Digital Age” by Roberta Katz, Sarah Ogilvie, Jane Shaw, and Linda Woodhead
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Eva Goldstein currently serves as the director for compliance and special projects with Financial Aid and Academic Records at Nova Southeastern University (NSU) in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. In addition to ensuring that NSU’s financial aid operations stay on the right side of federal regulations (no small feat!), Eva also teaches the university’s first-year experience course, UNIV 1000. This role has given her a front-row seat to the wit and wisdom of Generation Z — insights she finds both enlightening and, as the parent of three Gen Zers herself, often humbling.
Publication Date: 2/23/2026
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