When many people think of millennials, the first words that come to mind are lazy, entitled, self-absorbed and narcissistic. Often times, members of this generation are viewed in a more negative light than other generations. Why do millennials get such a bad rap, though? Are we all really that bad? Or are we just misunderstood?

When you lump all individuals born between 1980 and the early 2000s together, that groups a lot of diverse individuals into one category. So is it fair to say that all of us born during this time period are lazy, entitled, self-absorbed or narcissistic?

It has been an ongoing trend that the older generations are known for losing faith in the younger generations. At one point or another, they have all heard the ways in which their elders think they fall short. But why does this trend continue to transpire? According to David Finkelhor, Sociologist at the University of New Hampshire, elder generations suffer from “juvenoia.” Juvenoia is the word used to describe the anxiety older people feel about the effect social changes will have on the younger members of society. So basically, the elders in our communities worry about how the social norms of today will affect millennials and the world around us. These social norms could include technological advances, easier access to information, relaxed etiquette, and anything in between. The process of older generations losing faith in the younger ones has continued to appear over and over again throughout history because of juvenoia.

So, if all generations have dealt with this stigma, what makes millennials particularly bad? Well, to find some answers to this question, I decided to survey my online community. When asked to categorize millennials as either hardworking and dedicated, lazy and entitled, typical for their age, or other, almost 50 percent chose “lazy and entitled,” and almost 40 percent chose “typical for their age,” while less than 15 percent chose “hardworking and dedicated.” Why? “The younger generation seems like most of them want the easiest and fastest way to get the job done,” one survey-taker wrote. “They do not care or have the work ethics older generations do.” Is that true, though? Do millennials lack the work ethic that older generations have?

According to Lindsey Pollak, the author of “Becoming the Boss: New Rules for the Next Generation of Leaders,” by 2020 about 46 percent of all workers in the U.S. will be from the millennial generation, and this may make older generations feel nervous and insecure. Millennials are a part of one of the biggest and most well-educated groups in history, and that can be nerve-wracking for the older generations. But is this large group, soon to dominate the workforce, really made up of lazy, entitled individuals “looking for a handout?” It is more likely that this is just an opinion resulting from millennials constant quick access to information. Older generations may see millennials’ reliance on technology as a lazy alternative to “real work.” However, the younger generation grew up accustomed to technology and the Internet. Millennials have spent their lives learning how to navigate technology and use it to their advantage. With current technology, it is possible to have any information you could possibly need right there at your fingertips. Older generations may see this as laziness. But is it really a bad thing to want to find the easiest, quickest, and most efficient way to get a job done? Millennials would probably tell you no.

The definition of "hardworking" for young Americans has likely changed throughout the last generation. What used to be seen as using “hard work” to get the task done may actually be long, tedious and unnecessary work thanks to technology today. Millennials have adapted with the changing technology and are capable of solving problems using the resources they have to get the job done in a quicker, more efficient fashion.

So is it safe to say that millennials are all just misunderstood, technologically-savvy individuals? Not quite. All generations have their downfalls and it is hard to judge them as one group, especially one of this immense size. While many of us wish to defend our generation and show that we are just efficient, hardworking people, many stigmas will continue to follow the members of our generation. In the survey I conducted, one responder said, “When we start making these generalizations, we are in trouble. We begin putting people in camps based on age, race, sexual orientation, etc. and our world changes -- and not for the better.” This couldn’t be a truer statement. No matter what the surveys and studies say about the millennial generation, it truly does depend on the individual.