Emerging Adulthood: The Winding Road from the Late Teens through the TwentiesRecently the lives of people from age 18 to 29 have changed so dramatically that a new stage of life has developed, emerging adulthood, that is distinct from both the adolescence that precedes it and the young adulthood that comes in its wake. Rather than marrying and becoming parents in their early twenties, most people in industrialized societies now postpone these transitions until at least their late twenties, and instead spend the time in self-focused exploration as they try out different possibilities in their careers and relationships. In Emerging Adulthood, Jeffrey Jensen Arnett identifies and labels, for the first time, this period exploration, instability, possibility, self-focus, and a sustained sense of being in limbo. An increasing number of emerging adults emphasize having meaningful and satisfying work to a degree not seen in prior generations. Marrying later and exploring more casual sexual relationships have created different hopes and fears concerning long-term commitments and the differences between love and sex. Emerging adults also face the challenge of defending their non-traditional lifestyles to parents and others outside their generation who have made much more traditional choices. In contrast to previous portrayals of emerging adults, Arnett's research shows that they are particularly skilled at maintaining contradictory emotions--they are confident while still being wary, and optimistic in the face of large degrees of uncertainty. As the demographics of American youth, the American workplace, and adulthood continue to evolve, Emerging Adulthood is indispensable reading for anyone wanting to understand the face of modern America. |
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Page viii
... it's fun to listen to them, as you'll see in the course of this book. No matter what their educational back- ground, they are remarkably articulate, often funny, sometimes moving. I have many people to thank for their support in making ...
... it's fun to listen to them, as you'll see in the course of this book. No matter what their educational back- ground, they are remarkably articulate, often funny, sometimes moving. I have many people to thank for their support in making ...
Page 6
... its obliga- tions in quite a different light. In their late teens and early twenties, mar- riage, home, and children are seen by most of them not as achievements to be pursued but as perils to be avoided. It is not that they do not want ...
... its obliga- tions in quite a different light. In their late teens and early twenties, mar- riage, home, and children are seen by most of them not as achievements to be pursued but as perils to be avoided. It is not that they do not want ...
Page 8
... its essential qualities. There are five main features:12 1. It is the age of identity explorations, of trying out various possi- bilities, especially in love and work. 2. It is the age of instability. 3. It is the most self-focused age ...
... its essential qualities. There are five main features:12 1. It is the age of identity explorations, of trying out various possi- bilities, especially in love and work. 2. It is the age of instability. 3. It is the most self-focused age ...
Page 20
... its own right. This may have been the case 30 or 40 years ago, when most people in industrialized soci- eties finished school, married, and had their first child by their very early twenties. However, today, with school extending longer ...
... its own right. This may have been the case 30 or 40 years ago, when most people in industrialized soci- eties finished school, married, and had their first child by their very early twenties. However, today, with school extending longer ...
Page 28
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Contents
3 | |
2 What Is It Like to Be an Emerging Adult? Four Profiles | 27 |
A New Relationship With Parents | 47 |
4 Love and Sex | 73 |
5 Meandering Toward Marriage | 97 |
Twists and Turns | 119 |
More Than a Job | 143 |
Religious Beliefs and Values | 165 |
Four Case Studies | 189 |
What Does It Mean to Become an Adult? | 207 |
Notes | 229 |
References | 247 |
Index of Names | 259 |
General Index | 263 |
Other editions - View all
Emerging Adulthood: The Winding Road from the Late Teens through the Twenties Jeffrey Jensen Arnett No preview available - 2004 |
Emerging Adulthood: The Winding Road from the Late Teens Through the Twenties Jeffrey Jensen Arnett No preview available - 2004 |
Common terms and phrases
adolescence African Americans Arnett Asian Americans becoming an adult believe better boyfriend career Catholic Cathy Guisewite chapter child childhood Chinese American choice church cohabitation collectivism collectivistic commitment course decide deists divorce dreams early twenties enter college entering marriage especially ethnic group experience father friends goals Goldscheider graduate happy high school hope identity explorations important Internet dating kids kind late teens late twenties Latinos leaving home less living at home look love partners Lynn Johnston major marriage and parenthood married McJobs mean mother move parents divorced person Popenoe & Whitehead possible premarital premarital sex reach emerging adulthood reached adulthood relationship religious beliefs responsibilities rience self-focused sexual sexual intercourse sexual revolution social someone stressful teens and early There’s things transition to adulthood values young adulthood young women