Why Gen Z should cheer up

Nostalgia has a scientific explanation: we tend to remember only the best moments of the past because our minds tend to set aside negative emotions and the events associated with them. This is one of the many explanations that can justify the rampant passion of the Gen Z for the past, whether it's archive fashion, antiques, vintage aesthetics, or songs from distant epochs. Newspapers and media have said everything about Gen Z, but the first to denigrate itself is Gen Z itself: on TikTok, Instagram, and Be Real, young people born between 1997 and 2012 lament the darkest sides of their lives, from their mental health to the problems plaguing society. But while Gen Z today is known to be the most depressed demographic, addicted to their phones, and more antisocial than ever, there is ample evidence that, in truth, they're not doing so badly. Yes, young people are losing the ability to socialize, but it's the result of a decrease in binge drinking among under 20s; they're suffering from burnout related to oppressive work, but soon the entire generation will be able to vote for a more accommodating system. As The Economist tells us, Gen Z has plenty of reasons to be cheerful.

A 2021 study by the United Nations shows that young citizens of states undergoing economic growth, albeit slow, are more optimistic than those already wealthy. Thanks to the internet, they are more informed than their parents, have attained a higher level of education, and therefore are on average wealthier, representing four fifths of the entire Gen Z population. Moreover, more and more young people are deciding to pursue degrees in engineering, medicine, and science, less in humanities, and their unemployment rate is the lowest in decades. Furthermore, they have greater regard for their health, are more attentive to the amount of alcohol they consume, even though they are more passionate than ever about hallucinogens - a pleasure born of the need to escape from the reality mentioned above. Despite social media, selfies, and thirst traps making them more aware of their physical appearance and therefore their imperfections, they are more attentive to nutrition and leading a balanced life, factors that will influence their well-being as they age.

Despite hundreds of scientists and doctors around the world pressing for regulation of smartphones among adolescents, it is in online spaces that the communities they belong to flourish. Gen Z is the least sociable generation ever, but over time they have learned to carve out spaces of privacy and sharing on the small screen. Finally, while anxiety about the degradation of the planet's environmental conditions may be worsening, soon the entire generation will have the decision-making power in politics and society, replacing Boomers and Millennials. All in all, despite depression, anxiety, and insecurities, they're not doing so badly. They just have to wait a few years to see if the overwhelming wave of anguish they suffered in their early adult years will have served any purpose.