With the presidential election in full spring, there has been one group of voters on everyone’s lips: Millennials. Whether it’s a Saturday Night Live skit poking fun at the generation’s self-centered, entitled ways or CNN's journey into their overly-confident, money-hungry minds, the consensus regarding millennials is overwhelmingly negative. However, as 2015 saw millennials surpass the baby boomers as the nation’s largest living generation, understanding the true nature and effect of this generation is more crucial than ever.

Let’s get the formality’s out of the way: millennial is a term used to describe the generation born between the years 1980 and 2000. Like all generations, which average a span of 27 years per grouping, millennials encompass a group of individuals navigating through vastly different stages in their lives. For the oldest, at 36, perhaps it’s having children or getting a promotion, and, for the youngest, at 16, it’s planning the birthday party of the year or trying to make it home in time for curfew. Regardless of this variance, millennials have fallen victim to society’s over-generalized stereotyping. As Chelsea Clinton once described, “millennials are often portrayed as apathetic, disinterested, tuned out and selfish.” However, in addition to the inevitable portion of this generation that do fit that depiction, this age range is also comprised of awe-inspiring individuals like Malala Yousafzai and Sandra Fluke. With so many believing these claims to be true, it is time to discuss the actual facts.

As the first generation to grow up in the dawn of technology, it was inevitable that society would deem millennials the technology-obsessed generation. However, in reality, technology usage rates between the millennials and generation x, born between 1960 and 1980, show little variance. According to Goldman Sachs, recreational social media usage between the two generations show only a 2 percent difference, with 35 percent of generation x and 37 percent of millennials utilizing these sites. So, if recreational social media use is nearly uniform amongst these two generations, why is it that millennials continue to be portrayed as the only generation that has a cell phone glued to their hand? In accounting for this depiction, the same study shows one of the largest discrepancies between generation x and millennials to be their means of mass communication. When asked how many individuals discuss services, products, or brands via mediums such as text messaging, social media, instant messaging, or blogging, millennials averaged higher usage rates by 13.25 percent. This desire to share experience, assign rating, and complete consumer research is the very thing that fuels companies such as Yelp, Tumblr, and even Odyssey. Platforms, like our very own Odyssey, provide us with the means to discuss experiences like being home-sick from college or view ratings entitled “the five best things to do in…” while connecting with the larger demographic. In essence, while millennials may seemingly be attached to their electronic devices, it’s not in an attempt to gain the most ‘likes,’ but to express and share themselves through innovative platforms.

Along with this technology-obsession, millennials have also been dubbed the boomerang generation. This less than endearing term refers to the fact that for the first time in over 130 years, young adults between the ages of 18 and 34 are more likely to live with their parents than as part of any other housing arrangement. This surge in at-home living can be directly correlated to a 2013 report that shows the average 25-year-old to have $20,926 in student loans, a shocking rise from the 2003 average of $10,649. However, with over 90 percent of millennials intending to buy homes in the future, this generation has the potential to impact the housing market in a large way. This real estate surge, in combination with the millennials need to communicate regarding products and experiences, promotes this generation’s inevitable impact on the United States economy. So, while the millennials may be an easy punchline, they hold the potential for an economic expansion beyond the bounds of recent history.