Lecture 12b the end of adolescence 

When does adolescence end? 

• In the past – criteria that have been used to mark entry into adulthood include: 

• Events such as marriage, child-bearing 

• Important responsibilities to provide, protect, and procreate – duties towards others 

• Gender-specific criteria 

• Average age of marriage in the Netherlands 1950-2018 

• Shift in percentage who marry + older ages 

• Average age of the mother at the birth of a child in NL in 2018 

• 29,9. Age of marriage: 35 

• Shift in society to say that we don't need to marry first to have children 

• Demographic distinctions 

• Median age of marriage and child birth is now much later than it was in the past 

• Young people attend school and college longer than in the past 

• In addition, more young people are going to college before starting work 

• From jobs to career 

Arnett's theory of emerging adulthood 

• Influenced by theories of  

• Erikson: prolonged adolescence 

• Love, work, worldviews 

• Levinson: novice phase 17-33 

• Keniston: youth (role exploration) 

• What is emerging adulthood? 

• In Western cultures, could last from about 18 until the mid 20's 

• A life period which is typically characterized by an ongoing exploration of, and experimentation with possible life directions 

• Young people have left the dependency of childhood and adolescence, but have not entered the enduring responsibilities of adulthood 

• Emerging: it is a process of becoming an adult 

• In Western cultures 

• Young people no longer consider marriage and other events (such as finishing school, getting a job, etc.) as criteria for adulthood 

• They emphasize the capacity of the individual to stand alone as a self-sufficient person as the criterion for adulthood 

Top 3 criteria defining adulthood 

• Responsible behavior, accept one's responsibility 

• Autonomous, independent decision making 

• Financial independence 

• Individualistic qualities of character 

• Criteria like chronological age and role transitions ranked very low 

5 aspects of emerging adulthood 

• Age of identity exploration 

• Trying out various possibilities, especially in love and work 

• Difference between US and European educational system 

• Us: university level: orientation where you can study different areas before you make a choice of your major 

• European: more specialized, stronger connection to the work that you will be doing 

• Difference between US and Southern Europe versus Nothern Europe in cohabitation (become smaller) 

• Cohabitation more common in Northern Europe 

• Age of instability 

• Residential change 

• Work changes, unemployment 

• Changes in romantic partner 

• Graph: changes in financial stability 

• Most self-focused age of life 

• Free from institutional demands and obligations 

• Delayed leaving home, marriage and childbirth 

• New occupational opportunities 

• Focus on enjoying freedom and fun of emerging adulthood 

• “marriage (and especially children) would put a damper on the ability to go out, to travel, to go skiing, to enjoy life” 

• This is a peak period for individuals to engage in risky behaviors such as substance abuse, risky driving and unprotected sex 

• Age of feeling in-between 

• People feel ambivalent, in transition – not quite adults, but not adolescents either 

• Age of possibilities 

• When hopes flourish, when people have an unparalleled opportunity to transform their lives 

Work in emerging adulthood 

• Unlike adolescents, most emerging adults are looking for a job that will turn into a career 

• In the course of emerging adulthood, they may try 7 or 8 different jobs between the ages of 18 and 30 

(sub) Culture effects 

• Subcultures within the US combine this individualistic view with a greater emphasis on obligation toward others drawn from values of their own sub-cultures 

• Religious cultures in Western countries may have practices that lead to a shortened period of “emerging adulthood” than in the culture as a whole 

• the LDS (Mormons) - marry younger than average 

Other cultural differences continued 

• Israel: completing Military Service 

• Argentina: being able to support a family financially 

• S. Korea: being able to support their parents financially 

European countries and emerging adulthood and the transition to adulthood 

• Neoliberal economic systems: 

• the great majority is urban and educated middle class 

• Social class differences quite narrow 

• Postmaterialist values of autonomy and self-fulfillment 

• Changed emphasis in marriage for children to the quality of the partner relationship 

• The pursuit of such goals as “self-fulfillment, consumerism, and hedonism” seems to characterize postmodern European youth 

There are differences across Europe 

• Nordic Countries – socialist or social democratic regimes 

• High individual support 

• Leave home earliest 

• Apprenticeship models (Austria and Germany) 

• Rapid transition to adulthood and quicker transition from school to work 

• Western continental (France, Belgium, Luxemburg, NL) conservative welfare regimes 

• Support families particularly in France (make transitions to parenthood sooner) 

• Mid age home leaving 

• Anglo-Saxon (UK and Ireland) - liberal welfare regimes – modest welfare  

• early home leavers 

• Early education leavers 

• Bifurcated groups 

• Southern region – Mediterranean – little support, therefore family important 

• late home leavers 

• Difficult and problematic school-to-work transitions 

• Very slow and late transitions to independence and autonomy 

• Post-socialist Eastern Europe 

• Eastern central – like Western 

• Eastern (Bulgaria, Russia – like Mediterranean) 

What accounts for this prolonged transition to adulthood? 

• Demographic transitions: 

• first demographic transition (FDT): refers to historical declines in mortality and fertility, as witnessed from the 18th century onwards in several European populations 

• The endpoint: an older stationary population with replacement fertility, zero population growth, and life expectancies 

• Therefore: no need for immigration, all households will become nuclear and conjugal (married with children) 

• Baby boom of 60s followed by baby bust of 70s, expectations altered 

Second demographic transition (SDT) 

• SDT does not see equilibrium as the endpoint 

• The new developments from 1970s onwards expected to lead to: 

• Sustained subreplacement fertility 

• Multitude of living arrangements other than marriage 

• Disconnection between marriage and procreation 

• No stationary population 

• Replacement migration now possible > increase in multicultural societies 

• Considerable gains in longevity 

• SDT theory: economic choice combined with autonomous preference drift 

• no equilibrium point 

Other reasons for the shift 

1. Shifts in economy and job market with increased need for prolonged education (semi-autonomy from parents) 

2. Changing views on pre-marital sex 

3. Breakdown of gender-based division of labor (delayed childbirth) 

4. Normative change – relaxed attitude 

Has this led to change across the world? 

• Rising proportions of cohabiting rather than marrying and subreplacement fertility is gone beyond Europe: 

• Couples cohabiting before marriage: Japan and Taiwan 

• Japan:  more sex equality, refusal of authoritarian traits, individualization of moral norms 

• China: age of marriage now = 26 years; delay in marriage by 1.5 years, marriage rate has dropped by 6.3% from  2014 to 2015 

•  Attitudes toward premarital sex not yet shifted (Furstenberg, 2013) 

• May put extra burden on multigenerational homes 

• (educational divide, gender role changes) 

Why be concerned about EA (or ages 18-30)? 

• the age of onset of many mental health disorders is most often in adolescence  (12-18) 

• However: 

• 12-month prevalence of any psychiatric disorder is more than 40% in people aged 18–29 years  

• Higher than in people in any other age range, especially for anxiety disorders, mood disorders, and substance misuse (Arnett et al. 2014). 

• So: exploratory phase of life, but, it may bring other burdens 

• Plus: recent increase in suicide rate (NL) among 20-25 year olds 

• Vulnerable period for all youth, and even more so for youth considered to be vulnerable 

Vulnerable youth and the transition to adulthood 

• Vulnerable youth populations: 

• Mental health system 

• Foster care system 

• Juvenile justice system 

• Criminal justice system 

• Special education 

• Health care system (physical disabilities and chronic illness) 

• Runaway and homeless youth 

Vulnerable groups 

• Often overlap 

• Overrepresented by males, poverty and ethnic minority 

• Often have poor outcomes in many domains 

• Much variation within groups 

• Similar factors for success 

Problems 

• The lengthening transition to adulthood and the complexity it entails means that success is most likely with support.  But this poses even greater challenges for vulnerable youth.  

• Reaching the age of majority may end services abruptly 

• Homeless youth issues: 

• have to find their own housing 

• deficiencies in family support  

• education deficits  <15% of homeless youth over 18 have a  high school diploma 

• only 33% employed full time 

• live below poverty level, cannot pay bills, public assistance 

• unstable living arrangements 

• high rates of parenthood, usually outside marriage 

• high rates of high-risk sex and substance use 

Conclusions 

• Emerging adulthood as a period is affected by culture 

• Vulnerable youth within each culture also have extra burdens to deal with and also stronger needs for societal support 

• Nonetheless, the vast majority of youth make a successful transition