Does generation Z no longer know how to write by hand? For thousands of years, writing has been one of the fundamental pillars of human communication. It has enabled knowledge, stories and cultures to be passed down through the ages. However, a new trend is gradually emerging, particularly among Generation Z. These young people, born between the late 1990s and the early 2010s, seem to be losing a crucial skill that has accompanied us for some 5,500 years. According to recent studies by the University of Stavanger, around 40% of this generation are losing their ability to communicate by handwriting. This phenomenon raises important questions about the evolution of our ability to communicate effectively.
Digital technology has gradually transformed the way we communicate, making handwriting less and less common. From instant messaging platforms to social networks, young people prefer quick exchanges and abbreviations. Keyboards and touch screens have replaced pens and paper in many aspects of daily life. This change is so profound that some experts believe that Generation Z could be the first generation not to master handwriting at a functional level.
Yet handwriting plays a key role in cognitive development. It is linked to skills such as memory and comprehension, because it engages the brain in a different way to typing on a keyboard. This skill, which has shaped human civilisation, is now under threat from the ubiquity of digital technology.
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Implications for global communications
According to various studies and the testimonies of professors from several universities, reported by the Turkish newspaper Türkiye Today, the young people of generation Z have so integrated the use of keyboards into their daily lives that they find themselves “bewildered” when they have to go back to handwriting. As with any skill that erodes over time through lack of practice, students are now showing a marked deterioration in their handwriting, which often appears disorganised and difficult to read.
Professor Nedret Kiliceri explains that even university students lack knowledge of the basic rules of writing. According to her, students avoid long sentences and no longer write coherent paragraphs. They prefer isolated sentences rather than paragraphs that group together sentences linked by meaning. Students even come to university without pens and use keyboards for everything. The professor sees this as an influence of social media.
What’s more, the loss of handwriting doesn’t just affect the ability to write a letter or a postcard. It has a profound impact on the way Generation Z perceives and interprets the world. Handwriting is often associated with a more thoughtful and personal form of communication, in contrast to the often impulsive nature of digital texts.
Ultimately, the question remains: how will Generation Z, and future generations, find a balance between the digital world and the age-old skills that have shaped our society? The answers to this question will largely determine how we communicate and understand the world in the future.
