Gen Z stare

Kalhan Rosenblatt of NBC News says, "[w]hile there are several definitions for the stare, the most common meaning is a vacant expression a Gen Zer gives in response to a question. The stare occurs in classrooms, restaurants, at work and more settings." The term "Gen Z stare" garnered widespread coverage in the mainstream media in July 2025. The concept of the "Gen Z stare" was first explored in research conducted by Kaiden Jones, who proposed that while the stare shares some similarities with the nonverbal responses of both deadpan humor and stonewalling, it can signal social critique and a refusal to conform to social scripts.

Description

According to Dani Di Placido, writing for Forbes, some TikTok users believe that many members of Generation Z have difficulty with small talk and fundamental social courtesies. This is often described as a blank stare that they give to some questions that are asked. Placido also says that according to TikTok users, this stare is most common during customer service interactions.

Similarly, some servers and bartenders have said that their Gen Z customers respond to pleasant questions or pleasant conversation with a long gaze or a "stare" instead of speaking. Additionally, some TikTokers say that Gen Z employees do not greet customers or complete basic requests and instead return a blank stare. In a New York Times article in 2025, one interviewee said the attitude and stare indicate a "complete lack of fucks", adding that the stare has both supporters and detractors. Generation Z-ers do not agree on an exact definition. Professors have reported encountering the stare in college classrooms when trying to elicit engagement from students.