On the Frontier of Adulthood: Theory, Research, and Public Policy (John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Series on Mental Health and ... Transitions to Adulthood and Public Policy) - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0226748901 ISBN 13: 9780226748900

Publisher: University of Chicago Press, 2008

Synopsis

On the Frontier of Adulthood reveals a startling new fact: adulthood no longer begins when adolescence ends. A lengthy period before adulthood, often spanning the twenties and even extending into the thirties, is now devoted to further education, job exploration, experimentation in romantic relationships, and personal development.
     Especially dramatic shifts have occurred in the conventional markers of adulthood—leaving home, finishing school, getting a job, getting married, and having children—and in how these experiences are configured as a set. This volume considers the nature and consequences of changes in early adulthood by drawing upon a wide variety of historical and contemporary data from the United States, Canada, and Western Europe.
      Accounts in this study reveal how the process of becoming an adult has changed over the past century, the challenges faced by young people today, and what societies can do to smooth the transition to adulthood.
     “The most definitive overview yet of the emerging phenomenon of early adulthood in North America.”—Harvey Krahn, Canadian Journal of Sociology


     “The strength of the book lies in the vast detail provided on what it takes to be an adult in contemporary western society written by talented scholars, most of whom are the leading figures in their subdisciplines. The coverage of topics and the theoretical and empirical insights are almost exhaustive.”—Monica A. Longmore, Contemporary Sociology

 


 

About this title

About the Authors

Richard A. Settersten Jr., is the Barbara Knudson Professor of Human Development and Family Sciences and head of the School of Social and Behavioral Health Sciences at Oregon State University.

Frank F. Furstenberg is the Zellerbach Family Professor of Sociology Emeritus at the University of Pennsylvania. He is the author of many books, most recently Destinies of the Disadvantaged: The Politics of Teenage Childbearing. 

Rubén G. Rumbaut is professor of sociology at the University of California, Irvine. He is coauthor of Immigrant America: A Portrait and Legacies: The Story of the Immigrant Second Generation.

From the Back Cover

On the Frontier of Adulthoodreveals a startling new fact: adulthood no longer begins when adolescence ends. A lengthy period before adulthood, often spanning the twenties and even extending into the thirties, is now devoted to further education, job exploration, experimentation in romantic relationships, and personal development. Pathways into and through adulthood have become much less linear and predictable, and these changes carry tremendous social and cultural significance, especially as institutions and policies aimed at supporting young adults have not kept pace with these changes.

In On the Frontier of Adulthood, Richard A. Settersten Jr., Frank F. Furstenberg Jr., Rubén G. Rumbaut, and a team of distinguished contributors consider the nature and consequences of changes in early adulthood by drawing on a wide variety of historical and contemporary data from the United States, Canada, and Western Europe. Especially dramatic shifts have occurred in the conventional markers of adulthood-leaving home, finishing school, getting a job, getting married, and having children-and in how these experiences are configured as a set. These accounts reveal how the process of becoming an adult has changed over the past century, what the challenges faced by young people today are, and what societies can do to smooth the transition from adolescence to adulthood.

A dramatic summation of how the structure of early adult life has changed in the last century, On the Frontier of Adulthood will be viewed as the definitive source on the subject for years to come.

From the Inside Flap

On the Frontier of Adulthoodreveals a startling new fact: adulthood no longer begins when adolescence ends. A lengthy period before adulthood, often spanning the twenties and even extending into the thirties, is now devoted to further education, job exploration, experimentation in romantic relationships, and personal development. Pathways into and through adulthood have become much less linear and predictable, and these changes carry tremendous social and cultural significance, especially as institutions and policies aimed at supporting young adults have not kept pace with these changes.

In On the Frontier of Adulthood, Richard A. Settersten Jr., Frank F. Furstenberg Jr., Rubén G. Rumbaut, and a team of distinguished contributors consider the nature and consequences of changes in early adulthood by drawing on a wide variety of historical and contemporary data from the United States, Canada, and Western Europe. Especially dramatic shifts have occurred in the conventional markers of adulthood-leaving home, finishing school, getting a job, getting married, and having children-and in how these experiences are configured as a set. These accounts reveal how the process of becoming an adult has changed over the past century, what the challenges faced by young people today are, and what societies can do to smooth the transition from adolescence to adulthood.

A dramatic summation of how the structure of early adult life has changed in the last century, On the Frontier of Adulthood will be viewed as the definitive source on the subject for years to come.

Edition details

• Publisher: University of Chicago Press
• Publication date: 2008
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0226748901
• ISBN 13: 9780226748900
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 608
• Editor: Settersten Jr. Richard A., Furstenberg Frank F., Rumbaut Rubén G.