Baby Boomers The "Boomers"

An Analysis of the Impact the "Boomers" will have on Society in the next Thirty Years

The years between 1944 and 1964 is often referred to as the great "baby boom." It is often referred to as this because this period produced the largest generation of babies in the history of the United States. This marks the period after the end of World War II when the country was going through a time of prosperity and the conditions were favorable for families to feel comfortable bringing life to the world as many did. With 77 million people in their ranks, boomers are expected to intensify many of the challenges already facing our country and will continue to do so for roughly another estimated 35 years (Randall, 2012).

Baby Boomers are the considered one of the most powerful demographic group in history. The boomers have the influence to rule the marketplace and have a significant impact on not only business and the economy but the entire society in general. This analysis will consider the ways in which the boomers will impact the United States over the course of the next thirty years. There will be many changes to the public in general including the health care system, the economy, and how these people are housed and deal with society in general.

The Boomers and Society

The boomers were revolutionary in the early history of their existence. In the 1960s the impact of the boomers was already beginning to be felt. Boomers born between '46 and '51 were young teenagers and those individuals born during the peak boomer years, '52 to '57, were in their formative years during the Sixties (United States History, N.d.). The sixties were...

Many of the youth in the 1960s and 1970s were idealistic, euphoric, and somewhat disillusioned with society in general. Many of the aging boomers with alternative ideas still persist today and these cultures can still be found in many communities.
Figure 1 - The "Boom" (United States History, N.d.)

Other changes in society also had significant impacts upon the boomers group. The seventies were a marked by the Cold War and Vietnam War which were definitely events that collectively shaped this generations psyche. Many of the more liberal youth in the '60s and '70s eventually matured and many of the individuals in these generations joined the conservative party and supported right wing ideals promoted by politicians such as Ronald Regan. The 1980s also included one of the worst recessions in the century and the economic growth in the 1980s was actually lower than it was in the 1970s. Other new introductions to society that this group interacted with were the introduction of the personal computer, an extremely high divorce rate, and the introduction of the diseases HIV / AIDS (United States History, N.d.). The nineties marked the time when the boomers began trickling into the demographic mainstream and the period of 2001 and beyond they moved into middle age.

Psychological Outcomes within the Boomers

In recent years many baby boomers have been popularly portrayed in the media as a as being whiners, complainers and narcissists; and care mostly about trying…