Emerging Adulthood is a term initiated in 1990's by Jeff Arnett, a psychology professor at Clark University, aimed at labeling a distinct life stage - from 18 to late 20's.
20's young men and women had been long regarded as fully grown adults with their own houses, careers, long term life partners and children, until professor Arnett was perplexed by what he called "ambivalence" in these young people's behavior which he conducted intense studies on.
Prof Arnett's study pointed out that unlike common thinking, young men and women at this age spectrum haven't yet prepared themselves for adulthood. Many of them are still struggling with self-exploration, anxiety of peer relationships, and some other issues which are supposedly to have been resolved when they come out of the prior life stage - adolescence.
Neuroscience, very much advanced by new technologies in the past couple of decades, somehow supported the professor's hypothesis. It had been widely believed that human brain reached its full maturity right after the puberty, whereas today's monitoring techs drew significant evidence that brain continues changing and growing well into 25 years old (study yet to be done beyond 25).
Besides, statistics suggest marriage age is pushed 5 years forward for both men and women relative to their half a generation earlier counterparts; Late 20's young people come out and back into parent's houses, owing to their inability to earn financial independence.
Recession, indeed, could be a scapegoat to blame. But Professor Arnett questioned the motive/rational beyond these behaviors: by circumstance or by choice? newly uncovered life stage or simply aimless self indulging?
Life stage hypothesis is not supported by what is going on in developing countries, where the 20's are living very much the same way as older Americans. However, a scarce number of non for profit organizations, dedicated to helping young people with mental problems incurred in such life stage, are proving productive. That said, Professor Arnett believed that people with no emerging adulthood symptoms at the right time would go through complex symptoms later on, for example, midlife crisis, to pay off what they miss.
"What is it about 20-somethings" is an interesting article authored by Robin Hernig, offered by the NY Times on 08/18/2010. The author, in my view, is in an attempt to convince tax payers to approve Prof. Arnett's hypothesis or rhetorics, clearing the roadblocks for those non-for-profit organizations to get access to public funds.
20's young men and women had been long regarded as fully grown adults with their own houses, careers, long term life partners and children, until professor Arnett was perplexed by what he called "ambivalence" in these young people's behavior which he conducted intense studies on.
Prof Arnett's study pointed out that unlike common thinking, young men and women at this age spectrum haven't yet prepared themselves for adulthood. Many of them are still struggling with self-exploration, anxiety of peer relationships, and some other issues which are supposedly to have been resolved when they come out of the prior life stage - adolescence.
Neuroscience, very much advanced by new technologies in the past couple of decades, somehow supported the professor's hypothesis. It had been widely believed that human brain reached its full maturity right after the puberty, whereas today's monitoring techs drew significant evidence that brain continues changing and growing well into 25 years old (study yet to be done beyond 25).
Besides, statistics suggest marriage age is pushed 5 years forward for both men and women relative to their half a generation earlier counterparts; Late 20's young people come out and back into parent's houses, owing to their inability to earn financial independence.
Recession, indeed, could be a scapegoat to blame. But Professor Arnett questioned the motive/rational beyond these behaviors: by circumstance or by choice? newly uncovered life stage or simply aimless self indulging?
Life stage hypothesis is not supported by what is going on in developing countries, where the 20's are living very much the same way as older Americans. However, a scarce number of non for profit organizations, dedicated to helping young people with mental problems incurred in such life stage, are proving productive. That said, Professor Arnett believed that people with no emerging adulthood symptoms at the right time would go through complex symptoms later on, for example, midlife crisis, to pay off what they miss.
"What is it about 20-somethings" is an interesting article authored by Robin Hernig, offered by the NY Times on 08/18/2010. The author, in my view, is in an attempt to convince tax payers to approve Prof. Arnett's hypothesis or rhetorics, clearing the roadblocks for those non-for-profit organizations to get access to public funds.
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