Generation Next: What You Need to Know About Today's Youth [Paperback]

George Barna (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1996

Pollster-researcher George Barna has published the results of a nationwide survey of teens, giving an accurate picture of where today's youth are, and where they seem to be headed. It's the kind of information leaders need in order to relate and minister to teens.

Product Details

• Paperback: 129 pages
• Publisher: Regal Books (March 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0830718095
• ISBN-13: 978-0830718092
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,680,357 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

George Barna was raised and educated on the East Coast before moving to California in the early 1980s. He held executive positions in advertising, public policy, political campaigns, and media/marketing research before beginning his own company, the Barna Research Group (now The Barna Group), in 1984. The firm analyzes American culture and creates resources and experiences designed to facilitate moral and spiritual transformation. Located in Ventura, California, The Barna Group provides primary research as well as developmental resources and analytic diagnostics. The company has served several hundred parachurch ministries and thousands of Christian churches throughout the country. It has also supplied research to for-profit corporations such as Ford Motor Company, The Walt Disney Company, Visa USA, and Prudential, and has assisted the U.S. Navy and U.S. Army as well.



To date, George Barna has written more than 40 books, predominantly in the areas of leadership, trends, spiritual development, and church health. Included among them are bestsellers such as Revolution, Transforming Children into Spiritual Champions, The Frog in the Kettle, The Power of Vision, and Pagan Christianity? Several of his books have received national awards. He has also written for numerous periodicals and has published various syndicated reports on topics related to faith and lifestyle. He also writes a bimonthly research report, The Barna Update, which is accessed by hundreds of thousands of people through his firm's Web site (www.barna.org). His work is frequently cited as an authoritative source by the media. He has been hailed as "the most quoted person in the Christian church today" and is counted among its most influential leaders. In 2009, George initiated Metaformation, a new organization designed to help people maximize their potential. More information about his current projects is available from www.georgebarna.com.



Barna is a popular speaker at ministry conferences around the world and has taught at several universities and seminaries. He has served as a pastor of a large multiethnic church, has been involved in several church plants, and currently leads an organic church. He has served on the board of directors of various organizations. After graduating summa cum laude from Boston College, Barna earned two master's degrees from Rutgers University. At Rutgers, he was awarded the Eagleton Fellowship. He also received a doctorate from Dallas Baptist University. He lives with his wife and their three daughters in Southern California. He enjoys spending time with his family, writing, reading novels, playing and listening to guitar, relaxing on the beach, visiting bookstores, and eating pizza.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great resource, December 14, 2000

By 

A. Jasper Rains (Missouri) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Generation Next: What You Need to Know About Today's Youth (Paperback)

This book provides insights into where students are today. It equips youth pastor's to better serve students by giving them a better understanding of where students are emotinally, socially and spiritually. Barna doesn't just shove statistics down your throat but offers valuable insights that are very useful in student ministry.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Book, May Be Dated Now, August 1, 2006

By 

Palmer Muntz (Fort Wayne IN) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Generation Next: What You Need to Know About Today's Youth (Paperback)

It's been almost ten years since I read this book but I remember thinking it was simply outstanding. Unfortunately, I loaned it to a faculty member and never saw it again. Ten years is a long time in teen years, so I have to wonder if the findings are still applicable to today's high schoolers.

There were a number of things that I found interesting in it. Here are a few comments and quotes from Barna that I wrote down at the time . . .

Barna's six S's to describe teens:

* Serious about Life

* Stressed Out

* Self-reliant

* Skeptical

* Spiritual

* Survivors

"By far the most pressing concern troubling teenagers these days relates to their educational circumstances. . . . The primary dilemmas related to education are getting the grades they want, getting in to the college they desire and being able to complete their homework consistently." (pp. 25-26)

Four findings:

1) Teens have a vague grasp of truth and morality.

2) They are not familiar with the Bible's contents.

3) "Many kids seem to distinguish between the concept of truth and the practice of truth."

4) They are capable of living with intellectual contradictions.

"Only 6 out of 10 teenagers take an orthodox, Christian view of God . . . . A majority of teens (55%) believe that when people of different faiths pray to their respective gods, they are really all praying to the same central power source." (pp. 75-76) "As a general rule, modern teenagers reject any individual, organization or philosophy that claims to be the sole proprietor of goodness." (p. 79)