STUDY DEMYSTIFIES THE MILLENNIAL STEREOTYPE

If you don’t belong to the 18–35-year-old age bracket, what do you imagine young people fitting that description to be like? If you believe what you read, then perhaps you think they’re a self-absorbed lot who love avocado on toast, artisan coffee and wade through the murky waters of social media. But science is out to debunk the stereotype. In an experiment called Millennials Demystified — conducted by the University of New South Wales and funded by Mastercard — researchers used 16-point contact electroencephalograph headsets to monitor brain waves and physical reactions to specific questions. Turns out millennials are a caring lot, preferring to spend time with mum or help a person in need — far from being selfish, as they’ve been portrayed until now. Participant and comedian Rhys Nicholson commented, “There were certainly some ‘duh’ moments, but I guess that’s the point. Other generations think we’re living this insane, self-obsessed, phone coddling life but, really, we’re not.”