Lifestyle

Most Americans agree you stop being ‘cool’ at this age

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Social Links for SWNS
Published May 9, 2024, 3:18 p.m. ET

If you’re baffled by TikTok or unfamiliar with Taylor Swift’s latest music don’t worry — one in two Americans feels “out of touch” with what’s cool. 

A new survey from Talker Research examined how confident Americans feel when it comes to keeping up with popular culture and found 49 percent feel they are out of touch overall.

And the inevitable age we’ll hit where the world of cool no longer speaks to us can vary, but the consensus showed you can generally expect to feel out of touch by the age of 39 — the average age of really feeling uncool for all 2,000 people polled. 

And the inevitable age we’ll hit where the world of cool no longer, according to the consensus, is the age of 39.
And the inevitable age we’ll hit where the world of cool no longer, according to the consensus, is the age of 39. Zerbor – stock.adobe.com

The survey asked respondents to rate themselves on how up-to-date they felt with the latest trends and what’s deemed cool in categories from food and music to arts, technology and the latest slang.

When it comes to feeling in touch, Americans are most confident when it comes to the food world (72%), while 60% felt they were across the latest in music. 

Six in 10 Americans feel similarly in the know when it comes to social media (58%), while movies (55%) and staying up to date with the latest tech (49%) also inspire high confidence.

Group of mixed age and ethnic friends eating lunch they have bought from a food stall at a festival in Northumberland, North East England.
When it comes to feeling in touch, 72% of Americans said they are most confident when it comes to the food world. Getty Images

The same can’t be said when it comes to knowing modern slang — the lowest sector for people to feel truly confident in being up to date — 40% felt out of touch. 

Surprisingly, knowledge of celebrities was the second most common thing for people to lose track of-one in three respondents (35%) say they’ve lost a grip on who’s who. 

And trying to hold your own at the Met, impress your local book club or wow people with your stylish wardrobe is a distant dream for a third of Americans with the arts (34%), literature (32%) and fashion (32%) completing the top five areas we struggle to keep in touch with. 

Taylor Swift performs during "The Eras Tour," May 5, 2023, at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn.
Surprisingly, knowledge of celebrities, like Taylor Swift, was the second most common thing for people to lose track of. AP

Is there hope if you’re distinctly uncool or have lost touch completely with all things stylish and trendy? The good news is Americans do believe that good taste can be taught. 

Two-thirds (67%) felt that a person’s taste can be improved, while 17% felt the opposite and that our taste is much more inherent. 

TOP AREAS AMERICANS FEEL ‘IN TOUCH’ 

  1. FOOD (72%)
  2. MUSIC (60%)
  3. SOCIAL MEDIA (58%)
  4. MOVIES (55%)
  5. TECH (49%)
58% of respondents said they feel in touch with social media.
58% of respondents said they feel in touch with social media. Getty Images

TOP AREAS AMERICANS FEEL ‘OUT OF TOUCH’

  1. SLANG (40%)
  2. CELEBS (35%
  3. ARTS (34%)
  4. FASHION (32%)
  5. LITERATURE (32%)

IN TOUCH/OUT OF TOUCH

FOOD

72%

8%

MUSIC

60%

19%

SOCIAL MEDIA

58%

22%

MOVIES

55%

23%

Fashionable clothes in a boutique store in London.
67% felt that a person’s taste can be improved, while 17% felt the opposite and that our taste is much more inherent. Getty Images/iStockphoto

TECH

49%

26%

FASHION

43%

32%

Close up stock photograph of a black man conducting a seminar on Python computer coding in an open plan work arena.
49% said they felt confident in staying up to date with the latest tech. Getty Images

CELEBS

40%

35%

LITERATURE

39%

32%

Library, research and row of books on bookshelf for reading.
At least 23% Americans said they feel out of touch with literature. Getty Images

SLANG

36%

40%

ARTS

36%

34%

Cinema blank screen and people in red chairs in the cinema hall.
55% of respondents said the feel in touch with movies. Getty Images

Survey methodology:

This random double-opt-in survey was conducted by market research company Talker Research, whose team members are members of the Market Research Society (MRS) and the European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research (ESOMAR). Data was collected from April 3 to April 8, 2024. The margin of error is +/- 2.2 points with 95% confidence.