“Emerging adulthood,” a term coined by psychologist Dr. Jeffrey Arnett back in 1995, is one meant characterize a developmental period between late adolescence and young adulthood wherein there exists a great deal of individual instability, uncertainty, and opportunity (Munsey, 2006, p. 68). This time in a young person’s life is defined by that young person’s ability to explore their own possibilities and potentials without being constrained by the responsibilities that define adulthood such as a full-time job and long-term romantic relationship.
It is also a period of adjustment to the multitude of changes that adulthood brings with it, with that adjustment’s conclusion ultimately evolving into adulthood and later on into what has been coined “middle adulthood.” There is much more expected of a young person within what would be considered their emerging adulthood than within their childhood and adolescence. However, an emerging adult within our culture is still granted a great deal of personal freedom and opportunity to experiment and make mistakes that would not be afforded to them in the same way following their transition into adulthood.
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"Discussing Emerging Adulthood & the Transition into Middle Adulthood".
The primary expectation of an emerging adult within Western culture is that of having secured or at least established an academic and/or career path forward that will ultimately lead to a stable, prosperous and lifelong career. Although our culture also provides a degree of leniency in this regard, it is typically expected that this process should have begun during adolescence and completed by the onset of emerging adulthood, and that this developmental stage would be utilized to make an attempt at striving to achieve that career goal. Emerging adults are also culturally expected to begin gaining some experience in areas with which they will require more significant familiarity in middle adulthood. However, such responsibilities are culturally expected to be temporary among young people undergoing this developmental stage and to serve as forms of preparation rather than as mechanisms of self-realization and long-term financial and social stability. Overall, the Western cultural expectation of those in emerging adulthood is a focus on the individual in terms of his or her identity, societal role, desires, and ultimate future.
This is significantly at odds with the expectations found in several other cultures, such as East Asian culture, which instead emphasizes collectivism over individualism in this regard (Arnett, 2011, p. 261). As such, emerging adults within these cultures tend to have this developmental stage of their life structured for them to some degree by factors including family obligations and interconnectivities, and are as such largely denied the same opportunity to explore one’s identity and opportunities as an individual in the same way (Arnett, 2011, p. 261). This sharp contrast in terms of expectations for emerging adults between Western and European cultures signifies the emphasis that our culture places on personal responsibility and independence.
While the transition from emerging adulthood into adulthood can be a significant evolution in one’s life, there is perhaps none of more significance than the transition into middle adulthood. This developmental stage, characterized as the period between 45 and 65 years old and often referred to as “middle age,” is wherein the stability and orderly nature of one’s life that had caught on throughout emerging adulthood and carried onward into adulthood is disrupted. At this stage, the human body becomes significantly more sensitive to the health impacts of diet and lifestyle and is wherein chronic or serious disease is most likely to flourish. Furthermore, disruptions or changes in personal relationships are common during middle adulthood as this developmental stage is marked by a shift towards focus on self-interest and fulfillment rather than on ambition and success in achieving goals. The transition into such a drastically contrasting mindset can certainly have devastating implications, particularly as the concept of mortality becomes much more apparent.
