Generational change

First published: 01 June 2017The concept of generation can be defined with regard to society or to family – two levels which are usually analyzed separately but should be treated in a unified framework. At the level of the family, generation refers to position in the lineage (filiation). At the societal level, it refers to the aggregate of persons born in a limited period (i.e., a birth cohort according to demographic parlance) who therefore experience historical events at similar ages and move up through the life course in unison. At both levels, the concept of generation is a key to the analysis of movement across time. In the sequence of generations, families create continuity and change with regard to parents and children; societies, with regard to economic resources, political power, and cultural hegemony. In all of these spheres generations are a basic unit of social reproduction and social change – in other words, of stability over time as well as renewal (or sometimes revolution).Revised version of chapter from 200