MediaVision Blog : Search Engine Marketing

Is the younger generation really smarter? Just because we have an insatiable demand for knowledge and want everything, including answers to all our questions, NOW, doesn’t mean that we are getting any better at analysing or interpreting our information. In fact, it seems that we are over reliant on the big G to provide us with answers!

For the first time, the seeking behaviour of a digital reader has been profiled by age. A report by the CIBER research team at University College London Information Behaviour of the Researcher of the Future (PDF format; 1.67MB) shows that research-behaviour traits that are commonly associated with younger users – impatience in search and navigation, and zero tolerance for any delay in satisfying their information needs – are now becoming the norm for all age-groups, from younger pupils and undergraduates through to professors.

Life has certainly become a lot easier for us in today’s age, and when it comes to finding answers – I remember the days when we had to call up university professors to find the solution to a particular programming dilemma – today you have the answer at the tips of your fingers in seconds. It does seem then that we are able to get further a lot quicker, and surmount hurdles that would otherwise have stopped us in our tracks. All round a good thing, I would say, but what is the flip side? Are we just glossing over things without a real understanding of the fundamentals?

One thing is for sure – I would rather be in today’s world than back in the mid 90s.