Digital communication symbols and intergenerational gap: a case study analysis of Netflix’s “Adolescence”

TL;DR

This paper explores how differences in understanding digital communication symbols create barriers between younger and older generations, leading to missed warning signs of online issues like cyberbullying.

Contribution

The study provides an empirical and theoretical framework for understanding intergenerational communication gaps in digital contexts.

Findings

Context-dependent emoji usage is misinterpreted across generations.

Digital slang and memes create blind spots for adult authority figures.

Communication gaps hinder timely intervention and legal interpretation of online behavior.

Abstract

Generational differences in interpreting digital communication symbols, including emoji, slang, and memes, create significant communication barriers between Generation Z/Alpha and older generations, with potentially serious social and legal consequences. This study examines how such gaps produce blind spots in which concerning online behaviors, including cyberbullying, can develop undetected by adult authority figures. Using Netflix’s limited series Adolescence (2025) as a case study, this research employs qualitative content analysis of the film’s portrayal of digital communication alongside quantitative analysis of social media discussions about the series to identify patterns of symbolic misinterpretation across generational lines.Three key areas of intergenerational misinterpretation were identified: context-dependent emoji usage, rapidly evolving digital slang, and generation-specific cultural references embedded in memes. These communicative gaps systematically prevent adult authority figures from recognizing warning signs of concerning online behavior, reduce opportunities for timely intervention, and risk the misinterpretation of digital evidence in legal contexts. This study contributes to digital literacy literature by characterizing the specific mechanisms through which intergenerational communication failures occur. By mapping these communicative spaces, it establishes an empirical and theoretical foundation for developing targeted educational interventions in family and institutional settings, as well as informing future prevention strategies for online risk behaviors.

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