From Psychologies · Ava Skoupsky · · 1m 30s
Why 70s kids learned to swallow their feelings
Kids raised in the 70s and 80s were trained to bottle it up. Today's kids get taught the words instead.
In brief
Kids raised in the 70s and 80s were trained to bottle it up. Today's kids get taught the words instead. Naming a child's emotion out loud is the first step to helping them regulate it, and it costs nothing. Originally reported by Psychologies.
A generation that stayed quiet
People who grew up in the 1970s and 80s were mostly trained to hold emotions in and wait their turn to speak. Talking openly about feelings was uncommon, sometimes taboo.
The cost of bottling it up
Keeping everything inside feeds frustration and resentment, and it quietly lowers how satisfied you feel day to day.
Research on the gap
A January 2025 study in the Journal of Psychology Research and Family Culture linked these generational differences to wider cultural, psychological and developmental shifts inside families.
Friction, or a chance to learn
Researchers found the gap can cause misunderstandings and tension between generations, but it also opens room for shared emotional growth through dialogue and empathy.
Parents now teach the words
By 2026, children voice feelings early because parents understand what poor emotional management costs. The job is putting words to what hurts, then helping kids sit with it.
Name it, then calm it
Tell your child what they are feeling: angry, sad, happy. Identifying the emotion makes it easier to understand and manage. Then offer calming moves, like stepping away to a quiet spot.
“Les erreurs du passé ne seront pas celles de demain.”
The key point
Naming a child's emotion out loud is the first step to helping them regulate it, and it costs nothing.
