The Importance Of Emerging Adulthood

There is a moment in every child’s life where he or she realizes that growing up is not as desirable as they once thought. Before this moment they fantasize about not having a bedtime or driving or finally being able to drink. But then they feel the weight of the adult world with its responsibilities and restrictions of a society that doesn’t value the individual and expects its citizens to morph into mature, controllable adults. This is the time parents hate, the time when their children try to rebel or run away to escape their future as adults, but time, alas, cannot be outrun. The adult world expects many things of its inhabitants—a job, a family, taxes, sex, and much more. Unfortunately, most young adults feel as though they will be

They also expressed that, while they know it is quite common, they hoped for themselves to be living with a partner or in apartment on their own once they were over the age of 30 if they could not live in a home of their own. It was at this point that I began to see that the ideals of centuries past continue to be relevant within our modern context. However, the autonomy to choose the timing of attainment is fundamental to becoming an independent adult. My respondents, therefore, supported previous literature which suggests that conventional transitions to adulthood are occurring but at rather delayed and individualistic rates. But where does this delay come

As the mother of seven grown children, I agree with most of Jeffrey Arnett’s, author of Emerging Adulthood, theories. It is a time of change, with a developmental connection between adolescence and adulthood. During this phase of development, children experience periods of self-discovery transformation. There are favorable outcomes as well as adverse effects during this developmental stage. Furthermore, this successive stage encourages and promotes the change from the dependency of their parents to the independence that is distinctive for adults. This autonomy is beneficial because it prepares the emerging adult for their future independently from their parents. Arnett believes there are five characteristics of emerging adulthood that make it distinguishable from other time periods: the age of identity explorations, the age of instability, the self-focused age, the age of feeling in-between, and the age of possibilities.

In the magazine article "What Is It About 20-Somethings," Robin Marantz Henig discussed the stagnant transcendence of adolescents into adulthood with society and economy evolve to accomodate people's needs. Most make it into the realm of adulthood once they surpass these milestones: "completing school, leaving home, becoming financially independent, marrying and having a child". However, some linger in a new stage called the "emerging adulthood," where they spend more time than others to explore their identity and to develop "sense of possibilities". Causes for the delay include cultural expectation, dependence on parents, change in hierarchy of needs, and adolescent brain development. And as a result, society become uncertain whether to extend

Being an adult is the number one thing that children want to be: The desire to get older to do things that you want when you want and having no one say otherwise. However, what is an adult? An ambiguous term that really falls into the hands of the individual, where at Sixteen you can drive, eighteen you can vote, and twenty-one you can drink, for those in the USA, all varying ages that individuals could use as indications of adulthood. Robin Heinig wrote and article “What is it about 20- somethings?” where she discusses Arnett’s proposal about a new developmental stage, “Emerging Adulthood”. Jeffrey Jensen Arnett, an American professor in psychology, believes that we aren 't entering adulthood till the later portions of our twenties. For some, this may be true but for the general population including myself I find this hard to believe. Leo Hendry’s article, “How universal is emerging adulthood? An empirical example”, on emerging adulthood gives a deeper understanding to what this generation 's kids are going through. The late teens are a crucial part to the lives of a young adult. It 's the time that we spend trying to identify ourselves, escape the circumstance that we are put into at a younger age, or just had a better family income. Arnett is not wrong, but all other external factors need to be accounted for before we know, or even consider if emerging adulthood is a new developmental stage.

Adulthood is a generation when modifications appear in social connections and situations. These transformations do not appear in efficient, foreseeable stages but as an alternative resulting in different courses, depending on personality

This article was on a study that compared developmental trajectories of non-students, versus college-educated young adults, on the aspects of Arnett’s theory of emerging adulthood (Mitchell & Syed, 2015). However, there is a large group that literature has not been explored, and that category is on the young teen/adults who choose to not attend college, or are unable to because of socio economic status (Mitchell & Syed, 2015). The emerging adulthood theory has been controversial. The controversial topic has been brought up by researchers questioning how non-students may not experience the development of other emerging adults based on their interests to pursue adulthood without attending postsecondary education. The aim of the study was intended to compare emerging adulthood among individuals with college degrees, some college, and no college (Mitchell & Syed, 2015). Arnett’s development tasks for emerging adulthood include: finding a reliable and satisfying career, choosing a partner and starting a family, and establishing financial independence (Mitchell & Syed, 2015).

There are five key features that characterize emerging adulthood. The first s identity exploration. The second is “Instability.” For many the instability is a result of residential changes such as living in a dorm. There is also instability in friendships, romantic relationships, academia, and work. Emerging adults have few obligations, responsibilities, and commitments. Because they have so much autonomy in controlling their own lives the third key feature is “Self-Focused.” One of the most difficult

The article "Betwixt and Bewildered: Scholars are Intrigued by the Angst of "Emerging Adults" by Lynn Smith discusses a societal trend towards young adults (18-25) who are struggling to achieve the traditional markers of adulthood. The article covers some of the scholarly debate of the subject, wherein some researchers accept the phenomenon, others reject it, and between them they find little in the way of clear definition of the problem and its ramifications.

In emerging adulthood, many people experience the need to share their personal life with someone else. Erikson name for this crisis is intimacy versus isolation and emerging adults and many older adults know this feeling very well (Berger, 2014, p. 551). As emerging adults begin feeling the need for human connection, friendships and intimate relationships deepen for this reason (Berger, 2014, p. 551). As a senior in high school my friends became an extremely important part of my life, we told each other everything and the need for human connection was evident as I always wanted to be with my friends and share my personal life with them. I had, and currently have, the same 2 friends that I would confide in about boy problems, health

Emerging adults have reached a step up from childhood but are not yet ready to fully take on adult responsibilities. This part of life is open to many new experiences which can be very good for the morality of this upcoming generation of adults. People find themselves changing majors in college or taking different classes to explore their interests and find out where they best belong in their future career field.

There is no doubt that there are many things that can contribute to a young, emerging adult’s wellbeing. The theory that prompted research on young adults distinctive characteristics, in other words,

From adolescence to late adulthood, our lives change drastically. Our goals, achievements and conceptions of life differentiate as we mature. As we grow older, we no longer concern ourselves with self-identity or the opinions of others, but instead we focus on our accomplishments and evaluate our life (if we lived a meaningful life). From adolescence to late adulthood, we experience different developmental tasks at a particular place in our life span.

Peck (1968) suggests that it is psychologically healthy for middle-aged adults to redefine the people in their lives so they can find value in their relationships (Zastrow, 2011). Michael a 45-year old male with no children, weight issues, and a girlfriend with children of whom he is uncertain about in his life is struggling with dealing with his weight and health issues. In addition, to his personal problems Michael also has his sister Taylor to look after who has been diagnosed with HIV. Michael is in the stage of his life where he is redefining his identity and questioning those around him and the

The life pursuits and subjective judgments of many contemporary young people indicate that the transition to adult roles has become so delayed and prolonged that it has spawned a new transitional period extending from the late teens to the mid-to late-twenties, called emerging adulthood. During the college years, young people often refine their approach to forming their own identity. In these years, young people have left adolescence, but most have not yet assumed adult responsibilities. Many have dreams and those are what guides them in their decision making. In the video, 22 year old Casey describes her dream and comments on her identity development. Casey says that she became interested in Psychology in high school during her junior year when she took a psych course. She knew from then on that was what she wanted to do, but she hadn't picked a career yet. Casey said that she picked a career during her first year of graduate school, when she decided on gerontology. She said her happy and active grandparents had a lot to do with picking a career and wanting to work with the population. Casey thinks her identity was a gradual process and it's only really formed since last year. She feels her parents helped shape her morals and beliefs, but in between her senior year and her first year of graduate school, she started to form her own and integrated some of her own ideas. 24 year old Elizabeth and 25 year old Joel are shown discussing