Emerging Adulthood: Developmental Stage or Developmental Privilege?

Purpose: Arnett's theory of emerging adulthood (2000) emphasizes concepts like identity explorations and postponing adult roles and responsibilities. However, this theory may not be culturally universal and applicable for populations of color or economically disadvantaged. This study examines the external validity among a low-income sample of young adults with histories of mental illness that were formerly served by helping professionals.

Method: Fifty young adults (Mean age=22; range=18-30) were interviewed, utilizing a semi-structured interview with eight open-ended questions (e.g., what does being an adult mean to you?), probes and 15 quantitative items modified from a standardized questionnaire on the transition to adulthood (See Arnett et al., 1994). All participants were engaged in public mental health and social services (e.g., foster care) during childhood. Participants were 65% female and 63% youth of color. Three analysts iteratively developed a codebook using subsamples of transcribed interviews, field notes, and constant comparison (Boeije, 2002) to identify and group concepts. Additional interviews were analyzed, adding new codes until thematic saturation was reached. In addition, the questionnaire items were quantitatively analyzed and compared to previous studies.

Results: Overall, findings differed from studies of mainstream populations of emerging adults. While Arnett points out that the majority of people 18 to 25 years old are childless (Arnett, 2000), 50% of our sample had one or more children. Similar to previous research, participants most frequently endorsed “individualistic qualities,” such as accepting responsibility for one's own actions (88.6%) and being financially independent (70.5%) as necessary for reaching adult status.

Unlike the theory of emerging adulthood, findings from qualitative data suggest identity exploration and postponing adult roles may be less relevant among our sample. Many agreed that 18 to 25 is a time of exploration; however, participants reported exploring more concrete facets of adulthood, such as the public transit system and how to make it financially, rather than abstract identity exploration. Others reported it is not a time of exploration (“No, it's not a time of exploring…I had to be an adult quick”; “I don't think it is a time to explore. I think it is a time to prepare…”). Mental and physical health issues also hampered exploration (“because of my health, it forces me to stay on the straight and narrow”). Participants reported that adulthood is not about age (“I think it's a state of mind. I think that a 16-year-old can be more of an adult that a 45-year-old…”). Youth frequently reported taking on adult responsibilities, for example caring for siblings as early as at nine years old, and parenting (“I can't let my kids down…they need me more than anybody”). Also, participants commonly discussed self-reliance (“I don't rely on people to do stuff for me”).

Conclusion/Implications: Data suggest that conventional understanding of “emerging adulthood” may not generalize to social service-involved young adults. Social workers must recognize how these youths' contextual experiences may differ from what is known about emerging adulthood. Adding this contextual understanding should inform policies and programs to better serve this vulnerable population.