As the years pass by, members of Generation Z (Gen Z) find themselves feeling increasingly nostalgic for their childhood years. While early 2000s kids’ shows evoke fond childhood memories for those who grew up watching them, the question of why the people of Gen Z in particular feel so connected to the shows of their early childhood — and why they closely identify with them years later — stands. Considering Gen Z members connect so deeply with the culture of their childhood, psychologists wonder if future generations will feel nostalgia in the same way.
Nostalgia, or a longing for the past, typically grows stronger as the years pass on. Past generations feel nostalgia for the aspects of society, music, and media from the olden days. Similarly, in recent years, newer generations started to remember and rediscover their beloved childhood TV shows. Several TV shows that prompt Gen Z’s youth to feel sentimental about the past include “The Powerpuff Girls,” “Hannah Montana,” “Teen Titans,” “Wild Kratts,” “SpongeBob SquarePants,” “Pokémon,” “Scooby-Doo,” and others.
“[My favorite childhood TV show is] ‘Gravity Falls’ 100%. I’ve always been obsessed with overarching stories. I have very fond memories of sitting like one inch from the TV trying to figure out what’s going on,” magnet sophomore Cara Porter said.
The emotions Gen Z members tie to these shows tend to emerge as bittersweet. While these feelings of happiness, gratitude and companionship bring back fond memories of childhood, they also signify the beginning of a new stage of life: adulthood. Nostalgia typically emerges while entering a time of change or transition, a current experience for the majority of Gen Z. Whether that involves entering high school, college or even buying a first house, these major life events can cause stress, but they can also signify a time of personal growth and development.
Gen Z teens and adults find imagining a childhood without the signature hallmarks of early 2000s media, including its music, TV and fashion, incredibly difficult. However, Generation Alpha, or kids ages 1 to 12 years old, do not connect with aspects of their childhood on the same level that Gen Z members did in the past. This disconnect partially occurred due to the rise of globalization and social media. Short-form content such as that on TikTok and YouTube allows children to temporarily connect with a piece of media; however, the link quickly severs as new topics rapidly appear and disappear. This form of entertainment differs significantly from how Gen Z members interact with pop culture: mainly through cable TV. The key concern surrounding the development of a collective nostalgia and short-form content for parents includes the potential negative effects that social media could create on children’s development and how they interact and form relationships with other children. These consequences could also potentially affect the development of a collective nostalgia.
“School kids compare themselves all the time to their peers. Research has shown that social media greatly intensifies this and negatively impacts [the] mental health of teenagers, especially girls. No phones or socials for my 5th graders. If I leave them at home, they can call me on my office landline. They’re starting to get more involved, so if we have some way to contact them, it will be through [smart] watches. Still no social media,” mother of twin 10-year-old girls, Leslie Williams said.
Members of Gen Z remember the excitement of flipping through their favorite channels, either through Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon or Disney Channel and the anticipation of potentially landing on one of their favorite shows. Current and future generations will likely not experience these feelings in the same way due to the decline in popularity of cable TV. According to Evoca. TV between the years of 2019 and 2024, the amount of cable TV subscribers dropped by 20 million people, and the trend continues to progress.
The decline of cable TV and other forms of selective media interaction allows people to access content that is highly specific to the individual, fueling Gen Alpha’s inability to form their own collective pop culture, one easily distinguishable from that of Gen Z. Children of present and future generations may lack their own unique trends or collective culture. Thanks to social media, children can access hyper-personalized content that corresponds with their interests. Social media allows these generations to gain immediate access to any type of content they want, fostering an incredibly unique, diverse group of people. The decline in cable TV and rise of social media may restructure nostalgia and the way children interact with their pop culture, as well as potentially lead to the death of collective nostalgia and constantly shifting, fragmented pop culture.
