Issues In Emerging Adulthood
Adulthood Defined
Adulthood is the period of life that follows
childhood and adolescence and lasts until death.
Therefore, adulthood begins when adolescence
ends. (A Portrait of Canadian Youth, 2017)
Emerging adulthood is a transition that begins
in adolescence and continues into adulthood. (A Portrait of Canadian Youth, 2017)
Roles in adulthood
Care for themselves (Painter, 2017)
Maintain a social life (Painter, 2017)
Work a part-time job (Painter, 2017)
Attend post secondary (Painter, 2017)
Live up to parental expectations (Painter, 2017)
Today's adults are:
More diverse (Painter, 2017)
More connected (Painter, 2017)
In person
through social media
More socially engaged (Painter, 2017)
Tend to have a higher level of education (Painter, 2017)
Common challenges
finding a full time job (A Portrait of Canadian Youth, 2017)
social exclusion (A Portrait of Canadian Youth, 2017)
cyberbullying (A Portrait of Canadian Youth, 2017)
mental health challenges and addiction (A Portrait of Canadian Youth, 2017)
higher risk of being obese (A Portrait of Canadian Youth, 2017)
Caused by stress
Developmental Tasks
Examples of Devleopmental Tasks
Having kids and starting a family (Becoming An Adult, 2012)
Average age range is from 27-32 as of 2020 (Becoming An Adult, 2012)
Finding a lifetime partner and getting married (What are development tasks. 2016)
Additional Education/ Training (What are development tasks. 2016)
Entering the workforce and starting a career (What are development tasks. 2016)
Finishing school and graduating (Becoming An Adult, 2012)
Characteristics of Developmental Tasks
Difficult to determine when it was accomplished (Costa, 2020)
Something that is expected to have been achieved during a certain period of the lifecycle (Costa, 2020)
Unsuccessful developmental tasks leads to inability to move forward to completing other developmental tasks later in life (Costa, 2020)
Expectations are set by social norms (Costa, 2020)
Assumptions about Developmental tasks
A developmental task represents what society would consider to be normal development throughout the different points in the life span.
(Costa, 2020)
Developmental tasks are not the same as milestones since there is no specific moment that shows when each life task takes place (Costa, 2020)
Not accomplishing these duties within the required stage of life could lead to the inability to perform tasks that involve the next period or stage in life (Costa, 2020)
Development tasks throughout life
Infancy/Preschool
Forming an attachment to the caregiver (Becoming An Adult, 2012)
Language development (Becoming An Adult, 2012)
Learning about themselves and their environment (Becoming An Adult, 2012)
Middle Childhood
Self-control and discipline (Becoming An Adult, 2012)
Adjustment to a school environment (Becoming An Adult, 2012)
Academic Achievements (Becoming An Adult, 2012)
Leaning to read and write well
Adolescence
Successful transition into secondary school (Becoming An Adult, 2012)
Academic achievements (Becoming An Adult, 2012)
Improving learning skills
Getting into Post-secondary schools
Issues in Emerging Adulthood
Student Debt
The average Canadian student is in $32,600 by the age of 21 (Sagan, 2014)
On average, it takes 10 years for student loans to be paid off (Sagan, 2014)
Student Financial Aid
72% of all Students rely on financial aid such as OSAP to pay for school (Sagan, 2014)
As of 2019, Doug Ford cut OSAP funds drastically (Sagan, 2014)
This resulted in many students dropping out (Sagan, 2014)
Living in debt is negativity affecting the mental health of young adults (Sagan, 2014)
Causing depression and anxiety
44.4% of post secondary student reported having struggled with depressed or anxiety (Sagan, 2014)
Mental Health
There has been a spike in mental health issues among young adults (Sagan, 2014)
Applications of Theories
Erik Erkison's Theory
Stage 5: Identity Vs. Confusion
Adolescence, 12- 18 years old (Costa, 2020)
Stage 5: Identity crises are common during this stage, people often explore to find their own views rather than going along with the views of their parents (Khanacademymedicine, 2014)
Stage 6: Intimacy Vs. Isolation
Young adult, 18- 40 years old (Costa, 2020)
Stage 6: young adults at this are are able to form commitments and relationships. Partners are essential for a person’s development during this time (Kanacademymedicine, 2014)
Daniel Levinson's Theory of the seasons of life
Stage 1 : age 17 - 22
Important for making future decisions
Ie : attending college, moving out, finding jobs, forming relationships (Khanacademymedicine, 2014)
Stage 2: age 22 - 28
Includes love, friendships, and values
This is where a person begins to settle down (Khanacademymedicine, 2014)
Klaus Reigel's Theory of the Dimentions of Development
He states that adulthood occurs in unpredictable stages
Individuals learn to adjust and learn how to properly respond to these interactions (Khanacademymedicine, 2014)
These can be external or internal changes
Leonard Pearlin's Theory of Psychological Deve;opment
He attempted to explain how development can be different to each other (Khanacademymedicine, 2014)
He agreed with theories about how adulthood is a series of transitions from one period to another (Khanacademymedicine, 2014)
"Clocks" of Life
Chronological clocks
Depends on age
Defines adulthood based on birth date (Costa, 2020)
Age of Majority
Voting age
Age regarding the legal system (Costa)
Biological Clocks
The physical changes and growth of a person (Costa, 2020)
Maturing Sexually (Costa, 2020)
Puberty
Growing in height (Costa, 2020)
Growing in strength
Growth can happen faster (Costa, 2020)
Taking better care of yourself (Costa, 2020)
Eating healthier
Physical Activity
Psychological clocks
The development of the brain
How we mature Psychologically or mentally (Costa, 2020)
We gain a better understanding of how the world works (Costa, 2020)
Social Clocks
Can be described as a timetable or schedule for life
These are expectations for one's own life (Costa, 2020)
This clock changes to meet the current social or societal norms (Costa, 2020)
Ie: Age to get married (2020)
Age to start having kids (Costa, 2020)
Age of purchasing a home (Costa, 2020)
History of Emerging Adulthood
Pre-industrial Era
Industrialized Era
Later in the 19th century
Factory jobs allowed for more job opportunities (Costa, 2020)
Children got marreid at much younger ages (Costa, 2020)
This could be due to the deceased life expectancy (Costa, 2020)
On average, teens hit puberty at ages 16-18 years old (Costa, 2020)
Becoming a sexually mature individual was no longer an indication for marriage or independence (Costa, 2020)
Becoming independent was determined by how well a person could care for themselves and their future families (Costa, 2020)
WWI and WWII Era
20th Century
Life expectancy inceased
Children began to hit puberty at ages 10-12 years old (Costa, 2020)
Child labour laws were put in place (Costa, 2020)
Children were no longer able to work at extremely young ages (under 14) (Costa, 2020)
WW1 and WWII caused children to go back to work at age 14 (Costa, 2020)
School was taken more seriously (Costa, 2020)
Children were encouraged to attend school rather than work (Costa, 2020)
People would set goals for their educational progress (Costa, 2020)
The main purpose of school was for kids to learn usefull skills that could be used later in life (Costa, 2020)
The main purpose of school was for kids to learn usefull skills that could be used later in life (Costa, 2020)
School was considered mandatory until the age of 16 years old (Costa, 2020)
The unemployment rate deceased (Costa, 2020)
Women entered the workforce (Costa, 2020)
More young adults were financially stable (Costa, 2020)
People got married earlier and worked to support their children (Costa, 2020)
Our modern day
21st Century
This time was described as "The extended period of adolescence (Costa, 2020)
Individuals during this time depend on this parents more often (Costa, 2020)
More financial troubles
This can be due to student debts
They rely on their parents due to emotional issues (Costa, 2020)
Adolescence tend to more in and out of their parent's homes (Costa, 2020)
This is an attempt at becoming more independent
People spend more time on Post secondary education
Credentials and having a higher education is often needed for a well paying job (Costa, 2020)
More qualifications are needed each year
Causing a competitive job market
A decrease in employment prospects (Costa, 2020)
Less job opportunities
Community Supports
Loved ones
Families
Friends
Ourside sources
Therapy and Mental healthss services
Financial Support
Financial Aid serivices
Student debts
OSAP
Other
Gender pay gaps
Women make $.413 less per hour as of 2019 (The Facts about the Gender Pay Gap in Canada, 2018)
Women make $0.87 to every man's dollar (The Facts about the Gender Pay Gap in Canada, 2018)
Canada has the 8th highest wage gap of 43 of the most developed countries in 2016 (The Facts about the Gender Pay Gap in Canada, 2018)
Early Pregnancy
1 in 10 women drop out of post secondary due to an early pregnancy (Live births, by age of mother, 2020)
A mother would need to pick up a local job
Other social issues
Decrease in the rate of marriage or meaningful relationships
Divorce Rate is 38% In Canada (Highest and Lowest Canadian Divorce Rates By Profession, 2019)
Common Law couples make up 22% of households in Canada (Highest and Lowest Canadian Divorce Rates By Profession, 2019)
37.8 % of Canadians got married by the end of (Highest and Lowest Canadian Divorce Rates By Profession, 2019)
Milestones
What are Milestones?
an action or event marking a significant change or stage in development. (Whiting, 2018)
Examples of Milestones
Expectations are set by social norms (Costa,2020)
The expectation for individuals to accomplish tasks or skills by a certain age (Costa, 2020)
Identiy and Self Expression
Rise of the LGBTQ+ Community
Poor working environment for those in the LGBTQ+ community
80% of the transgender population who were employed experienced harassment or mistreatment on the job (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Workplace Issues: Quick Take, 2019)
LGBTQ people of color are 32% more likely to experience discrimination than white LGBTQ people (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Workplace Issues: Quick Take, 2019)
53% Of members in the LGBTQ+ community reported hearing rude jokes targetted at them regarding their sexuality (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Workplace Issues: Quick Take, 2019)
Gender Inequality In the work force
Different career paths
Women are not hired often because they are steryotypically seen as "weaker" (Began, 2018)
Engeneering companies only hire about 10% of women (Began, 2018)
#MeToo Movement
Less women are hired in male domianted office jobs (Began, 2018)
Some companies do this to "Minimize accusations" (Began, 2018)
Less women maintain a job for over 5 years in a male dominated workplace (Began, 2018)
This can be for safety reasons (Began, 2018)
Racial Disrimination in the work force
Black people
They are 45% less likely to be hired for a job due to their race "(Bowden, 2020)
Less likely to be accepted into prestigious post-secondary programs (Bowden 2020)
Ie: Yale, Harvard, Oxford (Bowden, 2020)
Colaborative programs such as Co-op (Bowden, 2020)
Asian People
East Asian
East asians face a lot of discimination today due to our current situation with the COVID-19 pandemic (Bowden, 2019)
2.5% of all East Asians in America are unemployed (Fitzgerald, 2019)
South Asian
2.75% of all Souther Asian people are unemployed in America (Fitzgerald, 2019)
Hispanic People
3.8% of all Hispanics are unemployed in America (Fitzgerald, 2019)