Photo from Flickr user Fro-Dol-Foe
Minister burnout is not a new phenomenon, but one researcher thinks that it’s particularly bad for Millennials because of their relationship to technology. Lancaster Online columnist and non-parochial Episcopal priest, Elizabeth Eisenstadt-Evans, reports that professor Rick Rhoads is finding that the process of burnout occurs faster for Millennials than Gen Xers or Boomers in ministry.
From the article:
“Millennials (known as ‘digital natives’) are unique,” says Rhoads, a professor of student ministry at Lancaster Bible College & Capital Seminary who has spent the last three years engaged in researching this phenomenon in countries as diverse as England, South Africa and South Korea.
“They are raised on technology, see the medium as an extension of their humanity, and have a high rate of burnout because they are always connected.”
A common stereotype of Millennials is that they are always connected and don’t know how to disengage from technology. Unfortunately, his research hasn’t been published yet, so we can’t assess the validity of the conclusions, or review the data he’s used.
Do you see these stereotypes of Millennials as true? Do you feel that you can’t disengage from your networking? Does it feel like a burden to you?
Posted by David Streever