Politics and Confidence
Some readers may well find that the the two words for today’s title do not necessarily go together. In actuality, these are two of the things that are concerning many 16-25 year olds according to a national survey undertaken by the Prince’ Trust. 58% of respondents said that political upheaval and change has caused them to fear for their futures. Some of the other figures to come from this study are:
- 50% felt it was harder to get a job than a year ago
- 42% felt traditional goals like home ownership or a steady job were unrealistic
- 34% felt they would have a worse standard of living than their parents
- 28% felt out of control of their lives.
Now of course, we “the older generation” cannot protect our young from what is going on in the world, and it would be wrong to do so. People develop in a more healthy way when they have awareness about the world around them and are able to adapt to circumstances as they are presented.
However, from a psychotherapeutic perspective, do we really want the next generation being in a heightened state of anxiety? Will they be in the best position to make good sensible decisions whilst in a heightened state of anxiety? What about the mental health consequences about being in a less happy more anxious state of mind? It may be prudent for the media and politicians and even you and me, to perhaps think about the way we are describing things in the world today and perhaps, we should mind our language and not make things that are bad seem even worse through hyperbole and rhetoric.
