William Strauss Books

The heart of generational theory lies in four recurring archetypes — Prophet, Nomad, Hero, and Artist — each shaped by the social conditions of their youth and the collective experiences of their adulthood. The Prophet generation, born after a crisis, grows up amid a unified society and comes of age...

From Generations: The History of America's Future, 1584 to 2069

Every generational cycle moves through four recurring social moods — what we call turnings — that together define an era’s structure. A complete cycle spans roughly eighty years, resembling the length of a human life. It begins with the High, when institutions are strong and individual expression is...

From Generations: The History of America's Future, 1584 to 2069

Imagine the unfolding of history as passing through four seasons, each lasting roughly twenty years. We call these the High, Awakening, Unraveling, and Crisis. Each has its distinct mood and dominant social pattern. The High is a period of confident institution-building. Following a crisis, people ...

From The Fourth Turning: An American Prophecy: What the Cycles of History Tell Us About America's Next Rendezvous with Destiny

Just as seasons define the atmosphere, generations define the actors. Each cohort is shaped by the social conditions of its upbringing and responds predictably when it reaches maturity. We identified four recurring archetypes that follow one another in sequence: Prophet, Nomad, Hero, and Artist. Pr...

From The Fourth Turning: An American Prophecy: What the Cycles of History Tell Us About America's Next Rendezvous with Destiny