Becoming Adult

A pioneering psychologist reveals how parents, teachers, and communities can prepare teenagers for rewarding working lives

“An important book.” ―Howard Gardner, author of Frames of Mind

How do young people envision their future careers? What can families, schools, and communities do to help teenagers develop habits and values that will be useful in their occupational lives? In this groundbreaking work, psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi and sociologist Barbara Schneider draw on a unique longitudinal study to reveal how adolescents develop attitudes, skill and expectations about their adult careers.

Csikszentmihalyi and Schneider examined an unusually broad cross-section of educational institutions to produce a surprising and detailed portrait of the different ways adolescents manage the transition from school to work. Becoming Adult challenges conventional wisdom, with important implications for how we guide young people to prepare themselves for the lives they will lead in the years to come.

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (1934-2021) was Distinguished Professor of Psychology and Management at Claremont Graduate University and the founder and codirector of the Quality of Life Research Center. He was the author or coauthor of a number of books, including the bestselling Flow, Finding Flow, and Creativity.

Barbara Schneider is the John A. Hannah Chair and University Distinguished Professor in the College of Education and Department of Sociology at Michigan State University. She has coauthored or coedited a number of books, including Learning Science, The Ambitious Generation, and Transforming Schools.