Parents are frustrated with their children’s vocabulary. And I kept thinking: Why is this a problem? Above all, I sought to understand whether there was more to it than a generational preference for a different articulation of words. I’m trying to give an answer.

But first, I’d like to explain why I think the new generations are no longer finding words attractive. When we look at online communication, we see a huge jump in the number of messages being transmitted between speakers. And if we observe carefully, we see that they manage to express more things with fewer words. Children are communicating more than ever, about more topics than ever, with fewer words than previous generations.

How is this possible? With the help of tools, they can make complex comparisons and even spiritual metaphors. They use images, clips, emojis and convey what they want, sometimes without using any words or using words only to support other forms of expression. Let’s take an example. Think of a picture of a sleepy cat lounging around with the words “when you have to go to school” written over it. The role of words here is to put the image into context. The main role is played not by words, but by a picture. The effect is fantastic: emotionality, sharpness, efficiency.

Therefore, I feel reluctance when parents express dissatisfaction with their children’s language. Because the little ones are fascinated by new possibilities of expression and want to stand out, while the big ones see danger or decline in the unknown. So we have a superficial generational conflict based on communication preferences. Some are more direct, more playful, others are more subtle, more spiritual. There is nothing wrong here.

However, this surface conflict entails a deeper one. I see a problem here. This is where we should focus our attention. What is it about?

New generations are going through more complex and deeper experiences at younger and younger ages. Only they do not know how to formulate them and, implicitly, understand them. In such a context, the chances of real conflicts with “elders” increase, as the tools used in Internet communication cease to be useful and lose the power of expression. Children have at their disposal only an elementary baggage of words. And I have seen children and teenagers (even young ones) who have not been able to reconcile with each other or with their parents, especially because they cannot express a life perspective. Therefore, it is more difficult to reach a consensus. And children become “rebels” more easily.

In my opinion, this is a problem that limited vocabulary really creates. This is not a superficial competition between generations. It is about the fact that new generations are not equipped with conflict management and mitigation tools.

As much as we would like it to be otherwise, in moments of conflict, words have the greatest precision. Tone, theme, accent offer the possibility of subtle adjustments. New tools simply fail when it comes to expressing an entire reality and explaining a behavior or gesture.

Thus, even as new generations have more and more complex and deeper experiences, depth without vocabulary is as useless as vocabulary without depth. And this means that it is easier to drag out the conflict, because it is more difficult for the little ones to swim out of their depths. They have room to go deep and stay there. Read the whole article and comment on Contributors.ro