Front-row seat to crisis: How generational reactions are shaped by the events they witness in history

Last updated on Wednesday, 04/03/2026

How do you think a person should react when they find out that they are fired: with instant acceptance, with anger followed by emotional release, or with no reaction at all?

Every person has their own way of responding to such news, but I think generations share common practices in how they react. Today, I want to focus on how the way people learn about events shapes their response.
My curiosity began when I saw the Gen Z “stare trend” on TikTok. In these videos, older generations observed how Gen Z employees reacted to being fired or similar unusual situations. The common response was simply a look—direct eye contact without a word. Most employees didn’t even speak to give a reaction to what the employers, directors, or department heads said. This trend has drawn the attention of conventional media outlets such as NBC. In this video, you can see people who shared their views and experiences online on their interaction with Gen Z.

To me, this was a true representation of the difference between age groups. What feels normal to one generation can appear disrespectful or abnormal to another. That made me wonder how this difference developed in the first place.

Separation of Generations: technology’s impact on communication

First of all, every generation witnesses a variety of events: wars, different kinds of pollution, scarcity of vital goods, political contradictions, and so on. Though the events themselves may differ, individuals always experience both personal and national changes throughout their lives. However, I believe the way news spreads has a strong impact on people’s psychology, and, in turn, on their reactions.

Today, we can read about what is happening in the world almost without exerting any effort. There are several ways of voluntarily learning, such as subscribing to the “highlights” of the day, week, or month that newspapers regularly share, or following news channels on social media, which present the news in different forms: articles, posts, shorts, stories, podcasts, or long discussion programmes. Though I believe these make up the majority of the digital news, there are even more.

Compared to the past, when news had to be handwritten or spread through letters or rumours, new generations have both the advantage of learning easily and the disadvantage of being constantly exposed. Even though it may seem that people have voluntary ways of staying connected to the world, with the option to ignore the news, in reality, they rarely do. This is where the diversion occurs: excessive and often involuntary daily news exposure.

Interdependence in society today

Gen Z was born into a time when the connection between nations and countries has never been tighter. Since the beginning of human history, the communication of different nations has affected each other in many ways, allowing humanity to develop by spreading its inventions, for instance. Today, globalisation has come to a point where a prime minister’s speech has an impact on almost every country in the world. In short, what happens in the farthest continent matters as much as local events. Therefore, the amount of news young people consume every day has increased drastically.

Psychological aspect

These two notions, continuous exposure to news and the wide scope of the news, are the major causes of the youth showing submissive reactions. The reason why these two factors affect young people is explained through the term “compassion fatigue,” meaning that frequent and increasing suffering causes emotional responses to fade over time.

The inequalities faced by young people in economic resources, educational and social services, and excess competition in the job market are some of the other reasons that intensify their stress.  The constant survival mode acts like Botox, paralysing their emotional responses. This is how youth inevitably navigate being overstimulated through constantly experiencing and witnessing local and global events, by normalising them.

My experience as a young person

As a 20-year-old who came of age during the pandemic, an earthquake, and high-stakes elections, I can tell that what looks like apathy is a survival strategy. I have intentionally unfollowed the constant stream of breaking news accounts to navigate the psychological toll. By filtering some of the news, I only keep up with what is truly important to me. Focusing solely on crucial issues has both increased my consciousness and relieved the stress caused by the news cycle. This is how I perceive the Gen Z stare; it is a barrier that protects our inner peace from the outside world.
 

Young Journalists in Europe - Meet the author
 

Reyyan Beyza Aydın

"I am interested in films, social issues, and technology. I look forward to exploring the world and sharing my observations and ideas with the pool of young journalists in Europe.”

This article reflects the views of the authors only. The European Commission and Eurodesk cannot be held responsible for it.