Browsing by Subject "Emerging Adulthood"
Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
- Results Per Page
- Sort Options
Item A life course investigation of financial self-reliance and economic pressure in early adulthood.(2010-09) Gudmunson, Clinton G.The normative task of becoming financially self-reliant intersects with challenging social and economic conditions making early adulthood a likely time to experience economic pressure. The life course of contemporary cohorts of "emerging adults" can be characterized by multiple paths to adulthood via the ordering and timing of adult roles. Using data from the Youth Development Study (YDS), Eliason, Mortimer, Vuolo, and Tranby (2009) identified five life paths that summarized meaningful role changes from ages 17-30. Each life path had its own distinctive timing of family formation. Building on Eliason et al., this study examined how participants' background variables and life paths were associated with financial self-reliance and economic pressure in early adulthood. Longitudinal data were modeled with latent growth curves. The YDS sample in this study consisted of 732 participants, a cohort born in 1973-1974, originating from public schools in the upper Midwest. On average, financial self-reliance increased from ages 23 to 26 then decreased slightly before increasing again prior to age 31. The average level of economic pressure was moderately high from ages 25-31. Financial self-reliance and economic pressure trajectories were not correlated. Background variables had important selection effects on the life paths of participants. Background variables and the life paths of participants more often influenced initial levels of these financial outcomes rather than their rates of change; however, these initial differences were perpetuated over time. For instance, females experienced greater economic pressure than males at every age. Females were more likely than males to follow life paths that included early parenthood, and from ages 23-26, females in these groups had lower levels of financial self-reliance. The highest academic achievers had higher and more dynamic "up-down-up again" levels of financial self-reliance whereas low academic achievement was associated with lower and flatter monotonic levels of financial self reliance. The life paths of those reporting the highest levels of financial self-reliance included marriage earlier in the life course, but these early parenthood groups felt the most economic pressure.Item Pathways to narrative adoptive identity formation in adolescence and emerging adulthood.(2008-12) Von Korff, Lynn AnnThis dissertation examined a proposed model of narrative adoptive identity formation with specified associations among age, gender, adoptive parents' facilitation of contact with children's birth relatives, conversation about adoption taking place in the adoptive family, adolescent and emerging adult current emotional expression about adoption, and adolescent and emerging adult narrative adoptive identity. Two waves of data were collected from 184 adoptive families; including adoptive mothers, adoptive fathers, and adoptees (mean age 15.68 years at adolescence and 24.95 years at emerging adulthood). The hypothesized structural model showed a good fit to sample data. Narrative adoptive identity was positively associated with both conversation about adoption and current emotional expression about adoption, sparked by meaningful adoption-related social interactions, specifically adoptive parents' facilitation of contact. Results suggest several elements are integral to adoption-related social interactions associated with narrative adoptive identity formation: (a) adoptive parents actively facilitate interactions, (b) interactions start when children are relatively young, and (c) interactions are emotionally meaningful to young people. Adoption professionals may be helpful in identifying social interactions that meet the diverse needs of youth in adoptive families. Future research should explore the ways adoptive parents integrate different types of adoption-related social interactions into daily family life.Item Substance use profiles from ages 11 to 18: personality correlates and relations with emerging adult adjustment.(2009-09) Oliva, Elizabeth MarieAlthough the aim of the present study was to examine Shedler and Block’s (1990) provocative claims that adolescent substance experimentation is associated with the healthiest psychological functioning while adolescent abstention and frequent use are both associated with poorer psychological functioning, this study extended their findings and helped fill in existing gaps in the extant literature. Utilizing a large community sample of male and female twins assessed at ages 11, 14, 18, and 21, this study was the first to incorporate all substances—tobacco, alcohol, and drugs—into an a priori substance classification scheme across time (i.e., created abstainer, experimenter, regular user and problem user classifications at ages 11, 14, and 18). Dimensional models of childhood and adolescent personality were used to examine the relations between both antecedent and concurrent personality characteristics and adolescent substance use profiles. Emerging adult outcomes at age 21 were assessed across multiple developmental domains. The role of developmental timing in the relations between substance use profiles and emerging adult outcomes was also investigated. The results for personality suggest that age 18 experimenters tend to have the most adaptive matrix of personality characteristics and problem users the least. Both abstainers and regular users at age 18 had personality characteristics of concern. The results for emerging adult outcomes suggest that substance use profiles have long-term developmental significance. Patterns emerged for each profile that highlighted the importance of examining outcomes across developmental domains while taking into account the role of timing. Despite garnering a substantive amount of support for Shelder and Block’s findings, any substance use was associated with poor emerging adult educational outcomes.