JOALL (Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literatur.
Vol.
10 No.
February 2025 ISSN .
: 2502-7816.
ISSN .
: 2503-524X Available online at https://ejournal.
id/joall/article/view/35077/16203 http://doi.
org/10.
33369/joall.
Communication barriers between gen Z and alpha in the cultural digitalization era 1Bambang Wibisono , 2*Titis Rizka Yusnita, 3Akhmad Haryono 1,3Faculty of Humanities.
Universitas Jember.
INDONESIA 1,3Jalan Kalimantan No.
Jember 68121 2Linguistics Masters Study Program.
Universitas Jember.
INDONESIA 2Jalan Kalimantan No.
Jember 68121
ARTICLE INFO
ABSTRACT
Article history:
Received: June 16, 2024 Revised: October 29, 2024 Accepted: October 29, 2024 Keywords:
Communication barriers Cultural Gen alpha Gen Z Language The role of culture in the interaction process also determines the effectiveness of communication between This communication barriers that impact the effectiveness of interactions between Gen Z and Alpha in the era of cultural digitalization.
The literature used is Chaney and Martin's theory of communication barriers, which was processed through observation and interviews.
The research showed nine types of barriers: physical, cultural, non-verbal.
The Conflict of interest:
None communication barriers.
The findings show a gap between Funding information:
Gen Z and Alpha in cross-cultural communication.
This Type here has an impact on the emergence of quite complex Correspondence:
communication barriers.
Of the nine types of barriers, the Titis Rizka Yusnita titisrizkayusnita@gmail.
motivational, and competition.
Based on these findings, motivational communication barriers have the potential to rise conflict between Gen Z and Alpha due to a feeling of not being appreciated when interacting.
The role of digital in this era also has an impact on hampering Nevertheless, communication barriers from a cultural aspect need to be seen as the complexity of cultural diversity that exists in Indonesia, including language differences and other This should not be claimed as a reason for conflict, but rather as a medium for tolerance and mutual respect to minimize communication barriers so that the communication process that occurs in the future can be more effective and harmonious.
A Bambang Wibisono.
Titis Rizka Yusnita.
Akhmad Haryono This is an open access article under the CC-BY-SA international license.
JOALL (Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literatur.
, 10.
, 2025 Communication Barriers between Gen Z and Alpha in the Cultural Digitalization Era How to cite (APA Styl.
Wibisono.
Yusnita.
, & Haryono.
Communication barriers between gen Z and alpha in the cultural digitalization era.
JOALL (Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literatur.
, 10.
, 1Ae20.
https://doi.
org/10.
33369/joall.
INTRODUCTION
Interactive communication is commonplace in the majority of society.
culturally social beings, people express themselves through communication to achieve goals.
Communication is a consequence of complex social relations and requires humans to constantly interact with other humans in carrying out life (Hazani, 2023.
Mahmudah & Mansyur, 2.
Recent interactions in public spaces have revealed an unsystematic and ineffective process, often resulting in rigidity and cultural stuttering (Juhanda, 2019.
Mucharam, 2.
Various interactions that occur during life can either run smoothly or experience Communication goals can also be hampered by the intensity of obstacles in each ongoing communication process.
Communication barriers can be caused by participants and other factors, such as cultural or background differences.
The interaction of two cultures with different backgrounds can produce boundary biases that require adjustment points (Jefriyanto et al.
, 2.
However, cultural differences are not worthy of being claimed as a cause of conflict, but rather as a means of adjustment to the heterogeneity that exists in Indonesia.
Communication barriers occur as a result of failure to internalize the cultural values of other participants, in terms of differences in history, race, customs, language, religion, geography, and so on (Dianto, 2.
communication barriers are minimized, conflict will occur in the form of attempts to withdraw from social life, social prejudice, and ethnocentrism.
a reflection of culture, language plays an important role in the effectiveness of intercultural interactions, especially in the current digital era.
Communication carried out using the same language can influence effectiveness, efficiency and understanding between participants in receiving messages (Triyasningrum et al.
, 2.
Meanwhile, variations in communication differences also have the potential to experience development, both verbally and nonverbally (Lia, 2.
Cross-cultural communication is interpreted as a process of interaction between people with different cultural backgrounds or which focuses on differences in geographical areas (Kurniawati & Nurmaisarah, 2018.
Yusuf, 2.
The evolution of society cannot be separated from the birth of new generations who interact with cultural heterogeneity in Indonesia.
In the current era of digitalization, knowledge seems to require humans to train technological skills, especially for the younger generation, which has huge interactions with computers or gadgets every day.
In interactions, there are JOALL (Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literatur.
, 10.
, 2025 Bambang Wibisono.
Titis Rizka Yusnita.
Akhmad Haryono digital and non-digital models (Wibisono, 2.
Digital communication is generally carried out by generations born in the Audigital literacyAy era.
Cultural content is now no longer taboo for the younger generation.
As a valuable and economically valuable asset, culture is claimed to be a superior commodity that needs to be embraced by society in order to create good ethics from generation to generation (Gunawan, 2.
About three decades ago, the emergence of a new generation began, namely the millennial generation (Gen Y) to Generation Z better known as Gen Z.
According to Francis and Hoefel .
, this generation is claimed to be digital natives due to their familiarity with the internet and other electronic network devices, even from the beginning of birth.
The majority of this generation almost always knows the latest information because they use digital sophistication to develop insight into academics and other matters (Maulida, 2.
This opinion states that Gen Z is a generation born from 1995Ae2010.
After the Gen Z birth period ended, a new generation was born in 2010 and is still running today.
This generation is known as Generation Alpha or Gen Alpha, namely the youngest generation who are familiar with the sophistication of today's technology, even optimally utilizing technology as a medium for solving problems (Maulida, 2.
As a generation born in an era of rapid technological development, this generation is very familiar with the use of social media and mobility trends.
This makes Gen Alpha called the most transformative generation compared to other generations (Manuel & Sutanto, 2.
In general, this impacts Gen Alpha's insight or knowledge in looking at things from an academic and cultural perspective.
Differences in people's perspectives and knowledge of certain things can be a factor in communication barriers between generations, including between Gen Z and Alpha.
Moreover, if generations have significant differences in cultural background, then potential obstacles can affect the effectiveness of interactions in the digitalisation era.
Behavior that appears in regulatory situations occurs consistently in everyday life.
So, participants need to adapt and innovate to enter other speech groups, even though they are from different generations or points of view (Haryono, 2.
The theory of communication barriers proposed by Chaney and Martin .
, shows that there are nine types of barriers in cross-cultural communication, which include: .
physical, in the form of time constraints, personal needs, environment and physical media.
cultural, in the form of differences in ethnicity, religion, and social situation.
perceptual, in the form of an assumption about something.
motivational, related to the quality of participant motivation.
experiential, as a form of background differences in human experience.
emotional, involving participants' feelings.
linguistic, including language differences or the use of words that the participant does not understand.
non-verbal, in the form of gestures or Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literature.
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Communication Barriers between Gen Z and Alpha in the Cultural Digitalization Era ways of communicating that are not in the form of words.
competition, occurs when participants are carrying out other activities at the same time.
Research on communication barriers was carried out by Dianto .
in his article entitled AuHambatan Komunikasi Antar Budaya (Menarik Diri.
Prasangka Sosial, dan Etnosentrism.
Ay.
The results of this research show that the complexity of historical differences, social experiences, values and ideologies causes communication barriers.
Next.
Joseph .
also conducted research entitled AuHambatan Komunikasi Antarbudaya (Studi Kasus pada Mahasiswa Program Studi Magister Ilmu Komunikasi Universitas Gadjah Mada Angkatan 2.
Ay which emphasized differences in cultural backgrounds based on the theory put forward by Chaney and Martin through observation and interview Lia also researched communication barriers .
in his article entitled AuHambatan Komunikasi Antarbudaya Mahasiswa Baru di Media VirtualAy which shows the impact of virtual communication on interaction barriers to interaction between students with ethnic differences, giving rise to language misunderstandings, stereotypes, perceptions and alienation.
Based on the three previous studies presented, this research exploits generational differences as a barrier to cross-cultural communication in the digital era.
part of the cultural element, differences in knowledge and technological skills can potentially cause barriers to intergenerational communication.
This difference is what specifically becomes a gap in previous research.
This research investigates cross-cultural communication barriers between Gen Z and Alpha in the digitalization era.
In this regard, this research also shows the influence of generational differences on cross-communication barriers, which is crucial in its influence on the effectiveness of intergenerational interactions.
METHOD
Research Design Methods are scientific stages to obtain benefits, steps or research objectives (Suryono in Nurrohmah, 2.
The present study used descriptive qualitative methods.
It was employed to provide results that are scientific and have a holistic element to support the identification of communication barriers that occur in the interaction process.
Qualitative research requires researchers to think inductively about facts and social phenomena through field observations followed by theoretical analysis based on the results of observations (Aries et al.
, 2.
The qualitative method in this study was applied by starting data collection without numbers, namely through the stages of observation and interviews.
Then, the data was processed descriptively to reveal the barriers to cross-cultural communication that occur between Gen Z and Alpha.
Thus, the communication barriers studied in this study can be presented in detail and structured.
JOALL (Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literatur.
, 10.
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Titis Rizka Yusnita.
Akhmad Haryono Participants This study involved participants from different cultural backgrounds.
There were several participants from Gen Z and Alpha who came from Jember.
Banyuwangi.
Lumajang, and Bali.
Gen Alpha, who came from Bali, consisted of two participants.
those from Jember consisted of two participants, while those from Banyuwangi consisted of one participant.
Furthermore.
Gen Z, who came from Jember, consisted of four participants.
those from Banyuwangi consisted of two participants, while those from Lumajang consisted of one.
Research Instruments The data in this research is in the form of cross-cultural communication interactions, which contained types of obstacles according to Chaney and Martin's .
cultural theory, so that these obstacles have an impact on the effectiveness of intergenerational interactions.
The data comes from the results of direct observations and interviews as well as cross-cultural communication interactions that occurred on WhatsApp involving Gen Z and Alpha in the digital era.
The data collection process begins on March 292024, to April 19 2024.
At this stage, the research process included observation and recording steps through the voice note feature in order to record communication barriers that affect the effectiveness of interactions between Gen Z and Alpha who have different cultural backgrounds.
Apart from that, the interview process in this research consisted of 15 statements which aimed to find out directly the background of the verbal and non-verbal expressions used by the parties involved.
Participants came from several different areas, including Jember.
Lumajang.
Banyuwangi, and Bali.
Data Analysis Procedures The data analysis stage in this research used the theory of communication barriers proposed by Chaney and Martin .
The data analysis stage began with an in-depth observation of the identified data.
This step was taken to determine the types of communication barriers.
Second, the types of barriers are associated with the categories of generations involved, namely Gen Z and Alpha.
Then, the causes of the barriers were specifically identified by exploring the established context of the communication.
Through these stages, the communication barriers between Gen Z and Alpha in this study be revealed clearly and in a structured manner.
The data analysis stage was also supported by a literature study that examined communication barriers in certain cultural circles.
Literature study acts as a description of qualitative research methods (Darmalaksana, 2.
Presenting the results of data analysis used informal methods so that barriers to cross-cultural Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literature.
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Communication Barriers between Gen Z and Alpha in the Cultural Digitalization Era communication between Gen Z and Alpha in the digital era can be explained descriptively and in-depth.
The informal method presents narratives in the form of words that are easy to understand and comprehend (Sudaryanto Lutfiyah & Kinanti, 2.
The presentation of the results of data analysis was categorized into several subsections to reveal communication barriers to the effectiveness of ongoing interactions.
FINDINGS
Based on the observation and interview process, this research resulted in the discovery of nine communication barriers.
The nine types of communication barriers are supported by explanations from sources or participants in the The nine obstacles found were physical .
, cultural .
, perceptual .
, motivational .
, experiential .
, emotional .
, linguistic .
hree time.
, non-verbal .
, and competition .
Of the nine types of obstacles, the most frequently encountered obstacles were linguistic, motivational, and competition.
Based on these findings, motivational communication barriers have the potential to give rise to conflict between Gen Z and Alpha due to a feeling of not being appreciated in The role of digital in this era also has an impact on hampering communication effectiveness.
Physical Communication barriers related to physical factors included time constraints, personal needs, environment, and physical media.
Based on the results of observations and interviews conducted with Gen Alpha in their interactions with Gen Z, it is known that physical communication barriers in terms of time occurred due to differences in activities undertaken.
For instance, when Gen Z is busy working or living full day school.
Gen Alpha is not too busy with this, so the intensity of communication has changed.
This was expressed by Gen Alpha .
nitials Z) to Gen Z .
nitials C) in the following speech.
AoSoon.
Z will return to Bali but still doesn't play enough because Ms C is working all the time with assignmentsAo .
hile showing a disappointed expression and lowering her hea.
This shows that time has a huge impact on the effectiveness of interactions, causing communication barriers between the two generations.
This difference apparently gave rise to feelings of disappointment experienced by Gen Alpha because they felt that Gen Z was too busy with their activities.
Apart from that, the rapid development of technology has caused the intensity of face-to-face interactions to decrease because various interactions can almost be carried out through gadgets or similar medium of JOALL (Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literatur.
, 10.
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Titis Rizka Yusnita.
Akhmad Haryono This cannot be avoided because, as a generation that was born and grew up amidst technology, it is required for them to be competent in keeping up with these developments.
Cultural Communication barriers related to cultural factors could be in the form of differences in ethnicity, religion, social situation, and so on.
Based on the results of observations and interviews conducted with Gen Z in their interactions with Gen Alpha, it is known that this communication barrier occurred because there were differences in cultural knowledge between parties, resulting in differences in how to respond to other people.
This was expressed by Gen Z .
nitials G) via the following WhatsApp voice message.
AoI interpreted it as a cultural difference, where they (Gen Alph.
use body signals that are nonverbal, like when chatting with an older For example, if we (Gen Z) chat with an older person in a chair, our backs are not turned towards the chair.
But they (Gen Alph.
are leaning forward, and then it's like what, their legs keep lifting up and There are others, sometimes there are those who pass in front of their parents, but (Gen Alph.
remains, their body remains like that .
pright, not ben.
Ao These statements can be categorized into two types of barriers: cultural and nonverbal.
From a cultural perspective, it is claimed that Gen Alpha does not uphold the Eastern culture of being polite to anyone, especially to those who are older.
The position of bending the body when interacting with or passing older people is a typical culture shared by the Javanese people.
Thus.
Gen Alpha, who does not do this, can be categorized as impolite and creates cultural communication barriers because uncomfortable situations arise due to differences in cultural application.
Regarding nonverbal communication barriers that are also found in this data, it will be analyzed further in the nonverbal discussion subsection.
Perceptual Communication barriers related to perception factors can include differences of opinion about something.
Thus, each culture or generation has the potential to have different thoughts.
Based on the results of observations and interviews conducted with Gen Z .
nitials L) in their interactions with Gen Alpha, this research obtained data through the following WhatsApp message.
AoThere are also cases of different perceptions, of course, because of differences in knowledge and maturity, which is probably what caused me to misunderstand.
Ao Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literature.
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Communication Barriers between Gen Z and Alpha in the Cultural Digitalization Era This shows that a person's knowledge and level of maturity can influence their perspective or thinking.
Thus, these differences in perception give rise to misunderstandings between parties.
However, differences in perception cannot be used as a reason for conflict.
In a cultured Indonesian society, a sense of tolerance and mutual respect for the perceptions of other cultures must be upheld in order to achieve intercultural unity.
Motivational This communication barrier is related to the level of motivation of participants in carrying out communication interactions or responding to other people.
Based on the results of observations and interviews conducted with Gen Z in their interactions with Gen Alpha, it is known that this communication barrier occurred because the participants were reluctant to communicate so the effectiveness of the interaction could not run optimally.
This was expressed by Gen Z .
nitials W) via the following WhatsApp message.
AoIt seems like most of the Alpha genes that I meet don't really want to be asked a lot of questions, and sometimes I don't either, so when they want to talk again, they definitely feel awkward, embarrassed, and sometimes even stop talking.
I've also experienced motivation, this one is a bit annoying.
Because there is an Alpha gene that if I say something/talk about it.
I feel like I'm talking to a wall, he doesn't respond, even though he's wrong.
There's another thing, most Alpha genes can't be joked about like Gen Z.
Lastly, in my opinion, most of these gen (Alpha.
are too pampered, and for me, they're a bit overthe-top.
Maybe because of this.
I don't feel like talking to them muchAo Based on this statement, it can be seen that there was a gap that caused a decrease in Gen Z and Alpha's motivation to communicate.
Gen Z claimed that they often met Gen Alphas, who seemed lazy to respond when interacting, so Gen Z did the same because they felt annoyed.
The lack of response from Gen Alpha was also in line with statements from other Gen Z .
nitials L) in their interactions with Gen Alpha.
This was shown via WhatsApp messages following.
AoThere was also a case when I saw one of the students who looked sullen during the lesson, rarely responded when asked to chat, yes it was obvious that there was a problem.
Well.
I ignored it and didn't make a problem of it.
I thought it was nothing but slowly towards the end of the lesson he finally wanted to talk a little, asked about which questions to work onAo JOALL (Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literatur.
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Titis Rizka Yusnita.
Akhmad Haryono This further statement showed that motivation to interact can be a barrier to communication between the two generations because chatter may pause or be ineffective.
In general.
Gen Z felt that their interactions received a poor response from Gen Alpha, so their motivation to interact also decreased and even potentially disappeared.
Experiential This communication barrier is related to a difference in the background of human experience based on things or events that have been experienced.
Based on the observations and interviews conducted with Gen Alpha in their interactions with Gen Z, it is known that communication barriers in terms of experience occurred due to differences in background, which influenced a person's perspective on marriage and offspring.
This was expressed by Gen Alpha .
nitials Z) to Gen Z .
nitials C) in the following speech.
Z : AoHow old is Ms.
C?Ao C : Ao26 years old, why?Ao Z : AoWhy donAot you have children yet? YouAore already grown up.
Ao C : AoI'm not married yet, still in school .
Ao Z : AoBut my mother got married while she was in college.
Ao Based on this conversation, it is known that Z's questions about marriage and offspring were not without reason.
He asked about this because of experiences he had known from his family.
This surprised C, as Gen Z, when receiving this question resulted in obstacles to ongoing communication.
However, this did not trigger disputes because Gen Z needs to understand the thoughts of Gen Alpha, who have different experiences, so they only need to respond with a cool head and simple conversation to be easily accepted by Z as Gen Alpha.
Emotional Communication barriers related to these emotional factors involved participants' feelings in the interaction.
Based on the results of observations and interviews conducted with Gen Z in their interactions with Gen Alpha, it is known that this communication barrier occurred because participants used swear words that had the potential to offend other people's feelings or make the atmosphere less comfortable.
This was expressed by Gen Z .
nitials W) via the following WhatsApp message.
AoWhen it comes to emotions, it varies.
Some are excessive, some are still Just like the example above, some Alpha gen around me often use swear words, even when communicating with Gen Z, but Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literature.
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Communication Barriers between Gen Z and Alpha in the Cultural Digitalization Era there are also those who only use swear words when communicating with their own Alpha gen friendsAo This showed that the emotions built up in interactions influenced the effectiveness of the interactions.
Not everyone likes communication models that include swearing.
So, if the interaction occurred in a context that is accompanied by swearing, then it is certain that communication will be hampered due to feelings of hurt or discomfort.
Additionally, involving feelings in the form of curses spoken to older people .
rom Gen Alpha to Gen Z) seems impolite and triggers disputes without immediate follow-up.
Linguistic Communication barriers related to language factors included differences in language or the use of words that are not understood by participants in the form of expressions or differences in concepts of meaning.
Based on the results of observations and interviews conducted with Gen Z in their interactions with Gen Alpha, it is known that this communication barrier occurred due to the difference in language used between Javanese and Madurese, then the switch to Indonesian.
This was expressed by Gen Z .
nitials W) via the following WhatsApp message.
AoAs for the language, it's definitely between Madurese and Javanese.
Whether it's polite or rude.
Actually.
I can just follow the language of the child who is chatting with me.
I also don't mind if he uses rude Javanese/Madurese.
However, most of the Alpha Gen that I met preferred to speak Indonesian after getting to know me better.
So I follow suit using the languageAo Based on this statement, it can be seen that Gen Alpha was trying to change from local languages to Indonesian to be more closely with Gen Z.
The Gen Z also followed this in question.
During this transition period, language changes make it generally prone to feeling awkward and strange.
Moreover, understanding each other is crucial, so it takes time to readjust.
Apart from that, researcher (P) once interacted with Gen Alpha .
nitials N), who suddenly asked questions about AubestieAy.
This is shown in the following expression.
N : AoDo you have a bestie?Ao P : AoYes.
I do.
I have a best friend.
Ao N : AoBestie.
Miss.
Not a best friend.
Ao P : .
eeling a little confused with the language concept expressed by JOALL (Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literatur.
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Titis Rizka Yusnita.
Akhmad Haryono This shows that there were different concepts of meaning AubestieAy between Gen Alpha and Gen Z.
Gen Z interpreted it as AosahabatAo.
At the same time.
Gen Alpha perceived AubestieAy differently from AosahabatAo.
The differences in meaning may cause language communication barriers between Gen Alpha and Gen Z that could be influenced by exposure to social media.
In connection with digital influence, communication barriers were also experienced by Gen Z .
nitial L) and Gen Alpha, as described in the following WhatsApp message.
AoI once had difficulty communicating with my own cousin who lived in Probolinggo and was born around 2013.
I think.
The reason is that the language he knows is mixed, between Indonesian and Madurese, especially Madurese in each district, it seems there are differences, even though it's a little.
Plus, his language is also mixed with today's terms, even though it's a little because of the influence of gadgets .
ircle in online games.
YouTube videos, etc.
I sometimes don't understand the terms of my junior high school students who are in tutoring, maybe they are very contemporary.
Maybe it's because I'm not up to date with today's slang termsAo Based on this statement, it can be seen that language differences and the use of code-mixing by the influence of devices resulted in communication In this context.
Gen Z believed that Gen Alpha used contemporary terms, which caused Gen Z to feel left behind by the development of today's slang terms.
Indirectly, this shows the gap between generations, which was influenced by communication barriers from a language perspective.
Non-Verbal Communication barriers related to nonverbal factors can be in the form of gestures or ways of communicating that are not words.
In this case, the communication process can be done through the actions of participants in showing implied meaning through the movements.
Based on the results of observations and interviews conducted with Gen Z in their interactions with Gen Alpha, it is known that this communication barrier occurred because of gestures or body movements claimed to be impolite, thus affecting the ongoing communication situation.
This was expressed by Gen Z .
nitials G) via the following WhatsApp voice message.
AoI interpreted it as a cultural difference, where they (Gen Alph.
use body signals that are nonverbal, like when chatting with an older For example, if we (Gen Z) chat with an older person in a chair, our backs are not turned towards the chair.
But they (Gen Alph.
are leaning forward, and then it's like, what, their legs keep lifting up and There are others, sometimes there are those who pass in front of Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literature.
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Communication Barriers between Gen Z and Alpha in the Cultural Digitalization Era their parents, but (Gen Alph.
remains, their body remains like that .
pright, not ben.
Ao These statements can be categorized into two types of barriers, namely nonverbal and cultural.
From a cultural perspective, this data has been analyzed in the second discussion subsection.
Furthermore, from the perspective of nonverbal communication barriers, the actions in the data showed that gestures t indicated a lack of politeness.
Even though it is not expressed, the raising of the leg gesture showed that Gen Alpha, in this context, did not respect those older than him.
Thus, the feeling of discomfort that arises in this situation may cause communication barriers between Gen Z and Alpha.
Competition Communication barriers related to this competitive factor occurred when participants carried out multitasking so that reciprocal interactions did not take place optimally.
Based on the observations and interviews conducted with Gen Z .
nitials L) in their interactions with Gen Alpha, this research obtained data through the following WhatsApp message.
AoWhen I was teaching, there was also one of my students that I didn't like the most, because I thought he didn't respect me enough.
Because he played with his cellphone or drew while explaining.
Ao Based on this statement, it can be seen that the Gen Alpha that L met in this context was less responsive because he was busy with other things at the inappropriate time.
for example, playing with gadgets and drawing while studying in class made the material explained by L as Gen Z was not digested optimally by Gen Alpha.
Apart from that, the existence of competition communication barriers is also in line with other Gen Z statements .
nitials G) which was expressed via the following WhatsApp voice message.
AoThis competition is also one of the most experienced now.
It seems that in one chat session, it is almost difficult to focus on the chat without using a gadget.
Yes, once or twice you will definitely slide the gadget.
Swipe in the sense of opening the screen and so on.
Not because it is necessary, maybe because of habit.
So, yes, the reflex movement of the muscles if you don't slide the gadget seems difficult.
Ao The statement made by G shows that the use of gadgets has been common and cannot be separated from daily activities, especially in the current digital era.
However, the use of devices at inappropriate times and situations can create competitive communication barriers that impact the JOALL (Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literatur.
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Titis Rizka Yusnita.
Akhmad Haryono effectiveness in interactions.
In this context.
Gen Z in the data ultimately felt unappreciated and discomfort towards Gen Alpha, who paid less attention in DISCUSSION Analysis of representative data in this study shows alignment with the findings of previous studies.
This study found the influence of social background on the communication process in everyday life.
This has the potential to cause obstacles in interaction.
This finding is supported by previous research conducted by Dianto .
that the complexity of differences in background, social experience, values, and social norms causes communication barriers.
In line with this.
Yusuf .
revealed that cultural diversity is one of the most influential factors on communication This heterogeneity was also studied in this study, so that the findings can strengthen the social facts found in the linguistic context.
addition, ethnic variation which is a differentiating factor in this study also plays a role as a factor in communication barriers caused by differences in This difference is supported by previous research conducted by Lia .
through her findings which revealed that ethnic differences cause language misunderstandings, stereotypes, perceptions, and alienation.
Thus, in general it can be seen that communication barriers that occur in the community environment have causes that are influenced by various factors.
In line with these studies, this study also found cultural diversity as a cause of crucial communication barriers that occur in society.
Physical communication barriers have been studied in previous studies conducted by Nurhadi et al.
Tuwendi et al.
, and Hardini et al.
These previous studies showed that communication between local and immigrant communities requires a non-simple adaptation process, because the heterogeneity of self-existence in a particular location affects the effectiveness of ongoing communication.
Physical communication interactions tend to affect communication barriers, but can also have an impact on comfort and familiarity.
In line with previous studies, this study also shows that physical communication barriers have an impact on the psycho-social developments in society.
Thus, communication and physical movement play an important role in the effectiveness of interaction (Maldani & Setiawan, 2.
This requires systematic stages in order to achieve universal communication goals.
In addition, cultural and perceptual communication barriers also influence the effectiveness of interactions between Gen Z and Alpha studied in this study.
This is in line with previous studies showing that cross-cultural communication is a global problem caused by ethnocentrism and stereotypes or superiority of other ethnicities, thus creating gaps between cultures, even Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literature.
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Communication Barriers between Gen Z and Alpha in the Cultural Digitalization Era though culture should be a form of beautiful diversity and needs to be interpreted positively (Ananda & Sarwoprasodjo, 2017.
Prasmi et al.
, 2019.
Rizak, 2.
In addition, cultural differences in the form of food, drinks, clothing, and ethics also influence the communication barriers experienced between parties (Cahyono, 2018.
Fuadi et al.
, 2023.
Lubis et al.
, 2.
Motivation in interacting is one of the important elements in smooth This study shows that Gen Alpha's motivation is a communication barrier that has an impact on creating distance with Gen Z.
This is supported by research conducted by Tolchin et al.
and Durante et al.
Previous studies have shown that a person's motivation in interacting can be an obstacle or a supporting factor for communication So, if this does not go well, the purpose of communication cannot run optimally.
A person's experience and insight cannot be separated from the inhibiting or supporting factors for the effectiveness of interaction.
Efficient communication is supported by the complex experiences of the speakers, so the influence of generational differences also plays a role in this phenomenon (Azzahra et al.
, 2022.
Fitrianti & Riyandani, 2.
Previous studies examining barriers to emotional communication have shown that factors of self-stability, background, and family influence will shape a person's personality and impact their communication patterns (Syukur & Trigartanti, 2022.
Wahyuningsih et al.
, 2.
In line with this research, this study also shows that emotional influences are an obstacle to communication between Gen Z and Alpha in the current era.
In addition.
Maharani et al.
and Sahid .
suggest that communication barriers are influenced by internal and external factors related to poor communication planning, so the interaction process needs to be re-examined to avoid similar Cross-cultural communication barriers are the complexity of cultural diversity in Indonesia, including language and other differences.
This is a means of tolerance to understand the communication barriers that occur, as long as they do not cause prolonged conflict.
Based on the research results presented in the previous section, the analysis process for this research was described using the theory of communication barriers proposed by Chaney and Martin.
The theory of communication barriers includes physical, cultural, perceptual, motivational, experiential, emotional, linguistic, non-verbal, and The results show that motivational barriers to communication can cause conflict between Gen Z and Alpha due to dissatisfaction when In the modern era, the role of digital also causes communication to be less effective.
Therefore, communication barriers in terms of culture must be seen as the complexity of Indonesia's cultural diversity, including language differences and others.
This helps people JOALL (Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literatur.
, 10.
, 2025 Bambang Wibisono.
Titis Rizka Yusnita.
Akhmad Haryono appreciate each other and reduce communication barriers rather than causing In addition, communication can run more smoothly and efficiently.
Physical communication barrier shows that time has a huge impact on the effectiveness of interactions, causing communication barriers between the two generations.
This difference apparently gave rise to feelings of disappointment experienced by Gen Alpha because they felt that Gen Z was too busy with their activities.
Communication barriers related to cultural factors could be in the form of differences in ethnicity, religion, social situation, and so on.
Based on the results of observations and interviews conducted with Gen Z in their interactions with Gen Alpha, it is known that this communication barrier occurred because there were differences in cultural knowledge between parties, resulting in differences in how to respond to other people.
Person's knowledge and level of maturity can influence their perspective or thinking.
Thus, these differences in perception give rise to misunderstandings between parties.
There was a gap that caused a decrease in Gen Z and Alpha's motivation to communicate.
Gen Z claimed that they often met Gen Alphas, who seemed lazy to respond when interacting, so Gen Z did the same because they felt annoyed.
However, this did not trigger disputes because Gen Z needs to understand the thoughts of Gen Alpha, who have different experiences, so they only need to respond with a cool head and simple conversation to be easily accepted by Z as Gen Alpha.
This showed that the emotions built up in interactions influenced the effectiveness of the Not everyone likes communication models that include It can be seen that language differences and the use of code-mixing by the influence of devices resulted in communication barriers.
In this context.
Gen Z believed that Gen Alpha used contemporary terms, which caused Gen Z to feel left behind by the development of today's slang terms.
Non-verbal communication barrier in the form of problems is raising of the leg gesture showed that Gen Alpha, in this context, did not respect those older than him.
Thus, the feeling of discomfort that arises in this situation may cause communication barriers between Gen Z and Alpha.
However, the use of devices at inappropriate times and situations can create competitive communication barriers that impact the effectiveness in interactions.
In this context.
Gen Z in the data ultimately felt unappreciated and discomfort towards Gen Alpha, who paid less attention in conversations.
CONCLUSION
The role of culture in the interaction process also determines the effectiveness of communication between generations.
Based on the results and discussion presented in the previous sections, this research discovered nine types of communication barriers in line with the theory of Chaney and Martin.
These Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literature.
Vol.
, 2025
Communication Barriers between Gen Z and Alpha in the Cultural Digitalization Era findings showed a gap between Gen Z and Alpha in the context of crosscultural communication.
This has an impact on the emergence of quite complex communication barriers.
Chaney and Martin's nine types of communication barriers found in this research are supported by explanations from sources or participants in the data.
The nine obstacles are physical, cultural, perceptual, motivational, experiential, emotional, linguistic, nonverbal, and competition with linguistic, motivational and competition as the most frequently encountered obstacles Based on these findings, motivational communication barriers have the potential to trigger the conflict between Gen Z and Alpha due to a feeling of not being appreciated when interacting.
The role of digital tools in this era also has an impact on hampering communication effectiveness.
Nevertheless, communication barriers from a cultural aspect need to be seen as the complexity of cultural diversity in Indonesia, including language and other This should not be claimed as a reason for conflict but rather as a medium for tolerance and mutual respect to minimise communication So, the communication process that occurs in the future can be more effective and harmonious.
REFERENCES