Having spent my childhood during the 1980s, I find interesting the things that have changed.
Cell Phones
One of the first things that comes to mind is, of course, having a cell phone. As a kid, I would ride my bike a few blocks away and be effectively "off-grid." I'd carry a couple of dimes for a payphone but rarely used them. The interesting thing is that I didn't have any fear or anxiety riding my bike several blocks or sometimes even miles away from my home. My parents seemed to have no issues with it either. Nowadays, if I happen to leave my house without my cell phone, there is a period of anxiety--almost panic--that sets in very quickly. All of the "what if..." possibilities start rumbling through my mind. Perhaps that fear is compounded by the fact that, as a kid, there were payphones at nearly every gas station and on many street corners.
I encourage my kids to take their cell phones with them, but, to my chagrin, they often forget. This causes additional anxiety for me -- knowing I can't get in contact with my kids at any given moment. I like the peace of mind that geo-location apps give me, knowing where they are at any time (if and when they remember their phones). It's funny how the parents of my generation would say, "Don't forget your jacket!" As a parent today, I find myself saying, "Don't forget your phone!" instead.
I have to wonder, however, what the ability to locate my children (provided they have their phone with them) at any given time, does to the parent-child trust relationship. I always felt trusted and empowered by my parents through their lack of need to know where I was. They simply trusted me to be home by the expected time or to find a payphone and call ahead if I wasn't going to make it. This instilled an inherent sense of planning.
I wonder if the younger generations are more spontaneous and tend to plan things less in advance, simply because they don't have to. They can be in the middle of nearly anything, get a call (or more likely text message), and make a split-second decision and divert to another more engaging venue/activity. In my younger years, I had to pretty much stick with nearly any activity to which I'd committed. Being out of communication meant I had to stick with the plan as much as was practicable.
Identification
Another aspect of modern adult life that occurs to me is the concept of carrying a form of identification wherever I go. This would be a foreign concept, indeed, to a 1980's kid. I constantly check my pocket to make sure I have my wallet. This is not because I'm afraid of needing to purchase something and not having means of doing so, so much as it is the fear of, "what if I need to prove my identity?" That strikes me as very problematic that I feel compelled to have the ability to prove my identity at any given time.
I don't know whether adults in the 1980s felt the same compulsion to be able to prove their identity whenever required. I do suppose that my compulsion might come from living most of my adult life in a post-9/11 America. I suspect that the perceived need for this was far less in the 1980s and even into the 1990s. I do recall, as a child, being able to walk directly to the departure gate at the airport and no one had to show identification. Nowadays, good luck even getting through airport security with just your old driver's license.
Political Attitudes
I grew up being very anti-communist and anti-socialist. The culture at the time in the 1980s United States led me to believe that I'd grow up to fight communism (specifically the Russians). The movies to this effect were plentiful and the culture and attitude supported it wholeheartedly.
Two Germanies
When I was a kid, there were two German countries. East and West Germany were very different countries, even though they were united before 1945 and after 1990.
East Germany was also known as the German Democratic Republic and was socialistic (technically) in governance. East Germany was seen as oppressed, impoverished, and honestly, a terrible place to live at the time.
West Germany, also known as the Federal Republic of Germany, was seen as free, modern, and prosperous. West Germany was a place you might visit on a trip to Europe. East Germany was not.
This was a time when I was constantly reminded of the evils of communism and socialism. I watched live as the Berlin Wall came down and families, who had been separated for decades, were reunited. I saw the fall of communism and the rise of something better in its place. Perhaps it wasn't perfect, but it was arguably better.
Today, it seems, the younger generation is promoting communism and socialism as acceptable and better forms of government. I'm not arguing that capitalism is a perfect solution. However, under capitalism, one can make their own decisions and do what they can to improve their situation and that of others. Under communism and socialism, the government tries (and historically always fails) to improve the situation for everyone.