ERIC EJ883077: What's Going on with Young People Today? The Long and Twisting Path to Adulthood

2010·0.55 MB·English

by  ERIC

What’s Going on with Young People Today? The Long and Twisting Path to Adulthood
What’s Going on with Young People Today?
The Long and Twisting Path to Adulthood
Richard A. Settersten Jr. and Barbara Ray
Summary
Richard Settersten and Barbara Ray examine the lengthening transition to adulthood over the
past several decades, as well as the challenges the new schedule poses for young people, fami-
lies, and society.
The authors begin with a brief history of becoming an adult, noting that the schedule that youth
follow to arrive at adulthood changes to meet the social realities of each era. For youth to leave
home at an early age during the 1950s, for example, was “normal” because opportunities for
work were plentiful and social expectations of the time reinforced the need to do so. But the
prosperity that made it possible for young adults of that era to move quickly into adult roles did
not last. The economic and employment uncertainties that arose during the 1970s complicated
enormously the decisions that young adults had to make about living arrangements, educational
investments, and family formation.
The authors next take a closer look at changes in the core timing shifts in the new transition—the
lengthening time it now takes youth to leave home, complete school, enter the workforce, marry,
and have children. They stress that today’s new schedule for attaining independence leaves many
families overburdened as they support their children for an extended period. The continued
need to rely on families for financial assistance, the authors say, exacerbates the plight of young
people from a variety of vulnerable backgrounds. It also raises complex questions about who is
responsible for the welfare of young people and whether the risks and costs newly associated
with the early adult years should be absorbed by markets, by families, or by governments.
Settersten and Ray stress that the longer transition to adulthood strains not only families but
also the institutions that have traditionally supported young Americans in making that transi-
tion—such as residential colleges and universities, community colleges, military service, and
national service programs. They emphasize the need to strengthen existing social institutions
and create new ones to reflect more accurately the realities of a longer and more complex
passage into adult life.
www.futureofchildren.org
Richard A. Settersten Jr. is a professor of human development and family sciences at Oregon State University. Barbara Ray is president
of Hired Pen, inc. The authors wish to thank Jeylan Mortimer, the editors (Gordon Berlin, Frank Furstenberg, and Mary Waters), and
participants in the authors’ conference at Princeton University for their insightful feedback.
VOL. 20 / NO. 1 / SPRING 2010 19
Richard A. Settersten Jr. and Barbara Ray
Becoming an adult has tradi- Third, there is a mismatch between young
tionally been understood as people making the transition to adulthood
comprising five core transi- today and the existing institutional supports,
tions—leaving home, com- including residential colleges and univer-
pleting school, entering the sities, community colleges, military and
workforce, getting married, and having chil- national service programs, work settings, and
dren. Recent research on how young adults other environments. The policies, programs,
are handling these core transitions has yielded and institutions that served young adults a
half-century ago no longer meet the needs
three important findings that contributors to
of youth today, either in the United States or
this volume will explore in the pages to come.
Europe, and are based on assumptions that
First, both in the United States and in many
do not reflect the realities of the world today.3
European countries, the process of becom-
ing an adult is more gradual and varied today
than it was half a century ago.1 Social timeta-
bles that were widely observed in that era no These findings point to the
longer seem relevant, and young people are
need to strengthen the skills
taking longer to achieve economic and psy-
chological autonomy than their counterparts and capacities of young people
did then. Experiences in early adulthood now
on the path to adulthood
also vary greatly by gender, race and ethnicity,
and social class. as well as to improve the
effectiveness of the institutions
Second, families are often overburdened in
extending support to young adult children as through which they move.
they make their way through this extended
process. In the United States, in particular,
parents contribute sizable material and emo-
Together, these three findings point to the
tional support through their children’s late
need to strengthen the skills and capacities of
twenties and into their early thirties. Such
young people on the path to adulthood and to
flows are to be expected in more privileged
improve the effectiveness of the institutions
families, but what is now striking are the
through which they move. Although some
significant flows—and associated strains—
of the broad changes we describe are taking
in middle-class families at a time when
place in Canada and some Western European
families themselves have become increasingly
nations, as well as in the United States, the
stressed or fractured. The heavier reliance on
factors that explain them, the consequences
families exacerbates the already precarious of and responses to them, and the national
plight of young people from a variety of vul- histories in which they are embedded are
nerable backgrounds.2 It also raises complex often unique. For these reasons, we focus
questions about who is responsible for the most of our attention on the story at home,
welfare of young people and whether mar- in the United States. Because our aim is to
kets, families, or governments should absorb provide an overview of changes and chal-
the risks and costs associated with the early lenges in the contour and content of the early
adult years. adult years, we focus on the larger story at
20 THE FUTURE OF CHILDREN
What’s Going on with Young People Today? The Long and Twisting Path to Adulthood
the expense of more nuanced ones, which are By the 1950s and 1960s, most Americans
told in the topic-focused articles that follow. viewed family roles and adult responsibili-
We begin with a brief history of becoming ties as being nearly synonymous. For men,
an adult in the United States. We then take the defining characteristic of adulthood
a closer look at a few particularly important was having the means to marry and sup-
shifts—in leaving the family home, in com- port a family. For women, it was getting
pleting schooling, in securing work, in mar- married and becoming a mother; indeed,
riage and childbearing, and in the provision most women in that era married before they
of family support. We close by illustrating the were twenty-one and had at least one child
need to buttress or reform social institutions before they were twenty-three. By their early
in light of a longer and more complex passage twenties, then, most young men and women
to adulthood. were recognized as adults, both socially and
economically.
Becoming an Adult: A Brief History
During the first few decades of the twentieth In some ways, adult transitions today resem-
century, the period known as “adolescence” ble those before industrialization, during the
was relatively brief. By their late teens, only late nineteenth and early twentieth century,
a small fraction of the population was still in when the livelihoods of most families were
school, and most men had begun to work. bound to farms and agricultural jobs rather
While many left their natal homes early, than the job market. Becoming an adult then,
surprisingly high shares of men and women as now, was a gradual process characterized
nonetheless remained at home for a while, by “semi-autonomy,” with youth waiting until
as we will later see, and marriage and child- they were economically self-sufficient to set
bearing did not happen immediately. As the up independent households, marry, and have
century progressed, however, growing pro- children. There are important differences,
portions of young people had formed families however, in the ways young people today and
by their late teens or early twenties. The in the recent and more distant past define and
Great Depression slowed the timing of family achieve adulthood.
formation, but by the end of World War II,
marriage and childbearing took place almost How do Americans today define adulthood?
in lockstep with the conclusion of schooling. To seek an answer, the MacArthur Research
In the postwar boom that followed, high- Network on Transitions to Adulthood devel-
paying industrial jobs were plentiful, and a oped a set of questions for the 2002 General
prosperous economy enabled workers with Social Survey (GSS), an opinion poll admin-
high school degrees (or less) and college istered to a nationally representative sample
degrees alike to find secure employment with of Americans every two years by the National
decent wages and benefits. Between 1949 and Opinion Research Center.5 The survey asked
1970, the income of earners in the lower and nearly 1,400 Americans aged eighteen and
middle brackets grew 110 percent or more, older how important it was to reach certain
while the income of those in the top brackets traditional markers to be considered an adult:
rose between 85 percent and 95 percent.4 leaving home, finishing school, getting a full-
time job, becoming financially independent
These stable jobs made it possible for couples from one’s parents, being able to support a
to marry and form families at young ages. family, marrying, and becoming a parent.
VOL. 20 / NO. 1 / SPRING 2010 21
Richard A. Settersten Jr. and Barbara Ray
Figure 1. Young Men Living at Home (Single, No Children), by Race and Age, 1900–2000
90
White males, age 20
80 White males, age 25
White males, age 30
70
Black males, age 20
60 Black males, age 25
e Black males, age 30
g 50
a
nt
ce 40
er
P
30
20
10
0
1900 1910 1920 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000
Source: Adapted from data compiled in Elizabeth Fussell and Frank F. Furstenberg Jr., “The Transition to Adulthood during the Twentieth
Century,” in On the Frontier of Adulthood: Theory, Research, and Public Policy, edited by Richard A. Settersten Jr., Frank F. Furstenberg
Jr., and Rubén G. Rumbaut (University of Chicago Press, 2005), pp. 29--75.
Today, more than 95 percent of Americans marry before they turn twenty-five, and one-
consider the most important markers of adult- third said they should have children by this
hood to be completing school, establishing an age. Far fewer of the better-off respondents
independent household, and being employed pointed to the early twenties, and about one-
full-time—concrete steps associated with the third of them said that these events could be
ability to support a family. But only about delayed until the thirties.
half of Americans consider it necessary to
marry or to have children to be regarded as an Some important new realities underlie these
adult. Unlike their parents’ and grandparents’ definitions. First, becoming an adult today
generations, for whom marriage and parent- usually involves a period of living indepen-
hood were prerequisites for adulthood, young dently before marriage, even though growing
people today more often view these markers shares of young people are staying at home
as life choices rather than requirements, as longer or returning home later on. Second,
steps that complete the process of becoming the early adult years often involve the pursuit
an adult rather than start it. of higher education, as a decent standard
of living today generally requires a college
Definitions of adulthood also differ mark- education, if not a professional degree. Third,
edly by social class. For example, Americans regardless of whether young people enter
who are less educated and less affluent give college, it takes longer today to secure a
earlier deadlines for leaving home, complet- full-time job that pays enough to support a
ing school, obtaining full-time employment, family, and young people now have a greater
marrying, and parenting. Around 40 percent range of employment experiences in getting
of those in the bottom third of the economic there. Fourth, as a consequence of these
distribution said that young adults should changes, marriage and parenting now come
22 THE FUTURE OF CHILDREN
What’s Going on with Young People Today? The Long and Twisting Path to Adulthood
Figure 2. Young Women Living at Home (Single, No Children), by Race and Age, 1900–2000
70
White females, age 20
White females, age 25
60
White females, age 30
Black females, age 20
50
Black females, age 25
ge 40 Black females, age 30
a
nt
e
erc 30
P
20
10
0
1900 1910 1920 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000
Source: Adapted from data compiled in Elizabeth Fussell and Frank F. Furstenberg Jr., “The Transition to Adulthood during the Twentieth
Century,” in On the Frontier of Adulthood: Theory, Research, and Public Policy, edited by Richard A. Settersten Jr., Frank F. Furstenberg
Jr., and Rubén G. Rumbaut (University of Chicago Press, 2005), pp. 29--75.
significantly later in the life course. Finally, proportion of men and women (single and
on each of these fronts, young adults often without children) living with their parents
have starkly different sets of options and at the ages of twenty, twenty-five, and thirty
experiences depending on their family back- from 1900 to 2000, and table 1, which adds a
grounds and resources. Young adults today recent data point, 2007.
are also more likely to be black, Hispanic,
immigrant, and multi-ethnic than any other In 1900, roughly one-third of white men aged
of the nation’s age groups.6 They are also twenty-five were living at home with their
more likely to be foreign-born, a characteris- parents—two and a half times the share in
tic that in past generations was truer of fami- 1970.7 By 2000, the share living at home was
lies’ oldest members. These shifts, too, have one-fifth; by 2007, it had increased to one-
prompted new inequalities in early adult life. fourth. Since the 1970s, black men have lived
more often with parents than their white
Living Independently peers at both ages twenty-five and thirty.
The post-World War II script for life left such Figures 1 and 2 show that during this period
an indelible mark that it often remains the women have tended to leave home earlier
benchmark against which individuals judge than men, and, as we show later, cohabit or
themselves and others, even today. Yet the marry earlier as well.
postwar model was something of an aberra-
tion then as now. Families of the 1950s and It might be tempting to infer from these
1960s did many things differently from their figures that Americans have now returned to
predecessors, including launching themselves a more “normal” pattern of delayed home-
into adulthood at very early ages. This is leaving. That inference, however, would miss
apparent in figures 1 and 2, which show the the important and often unique conditions
VOL. 20 / NO. 1 / SPRING 2010 23
Richard A. Settersten Jr. and Barbara Ray
Table 1. Percentage of Young Adult Men and Women Living with Parents, 2007, by Race
Men Women
All White Black All White Black
Age 20–24 43.0 42.9 45.2 38.0 37.0 40.8
25–29 19.8 18.9 24.8 15.9 14.6 20.0
30–34 10.1 9.5 14.6 7.9 7.3 11.4
At age 20 54.0 54.3 54.6 48.1 47.2 51.5
At 25 26.3 25.5 30.2 21.4 20.1 25.1
At 30 12.1 11.4 18.4 9.7 8.8 13.7
At 35 7.5 6.8 12.1 6.1 5.8 9.5
At 40 5.8 5.8 7.5 4.4 4.0 7.7
Source: Authors’ computations, 2007 American Community Survey, U.S. Bureau of the Census.
that every historical era presents. To leave age rises. At each five-year mark—from age
home quickly in the 1950s was “normal” twenty, to twenty-five, to thirty—percentages
because opportunities were plentiful and are cut in half. Yet even at the ages of thirty-
social expectations of the time reinforced the five and forty, between 4 and 12 percent
need to do so. At the turn of both the twenti- of adult children live with their parents,
eth and twenty-first centuries, greater propor- depending on the group.
tions of young people stayed at home longer
than those who came of age at mid-century Comparisons between native-born whites
because they faced distinctive social and and blacks overlook the very sizable group of
economic conditions of their own. young people from other ethnic and immi-
grant populations who live at home. In 2008,
Carrying the picture forward to 2007, table among young men and women aged eighteen
1 shows the proportion of black and white to twenty-four across ten distinct immigrant
young adults, at different ages, who live with groups, second-generation youth (those born
their parents. The trends in co-residence in the United States to foreign-born parents)
with parents evidenced in figures 1 and 2 are consistently more likely to be living at
have made dramatic leaps.8 In every age home than first-generation or so-called 1.5-
bracket men are more likely than women to generation youth (those who arrived at age
live with parents. Black men live with parents thirteen or older, or age twelve or younger,
more often than white men, and more often respectively).9 Immigrants of the second
than white and black women, at every age. generation are more likely to live at home than
Black women more often live with parents native-born blacks and especially whites, and
than do white women, again at every age. some groups show very high rates of home-
The share living with parents is particularly staying (for example, between 64 and 75 per-
high for men and women in their early twen- cent of young adults from Indian, Dominican,
ties, spanning 43 to 50 percent depending on Chinese, Filipino, and Salvadoran/Guatemalan
the group, although proportions fall as the backgrounds live at home).
24 THE FUTURE OF CHILDREN
What’s Going on with Young People Today? The Long and Twisting Path to Adulthood
Figure 3. Share of Men and Women Aged Twenty-Five Living with Parents, 1970 and 2000
25
1970
23.6 2000
20
18.8
e 15
g
a
nt 14.2
Perce 10 12.7 10.913.6 11.5 13.3
9.9
5 6.7 7.7
6.3
0
White men Black men Foreign-born White women Black women Foreign-born
men women
Source: Adapted from data compiled in Elizabeth Fussell and Frank F. Furstenberg Jr., “The Transition to Adulthood during the Twentieth
Century,” in On the Frontier of Adulthood: Theory, Research, and Public Policy, edited by Richard A. Settersten Jr., Frank F. Furstenberg
Jr., and Rubén G. Rumbaut (University of Chicago Press, 2005), pp. 29--75.
Although residential independence has been women en masse did so for the first time.
and continues to be one of the markers of During this era, housing was also inexpensive,
attaining adulthood in the United States, and staying with parents humiliating.
particularly among native-born youth, recent
downturns in the economy may create pres- Figures 3 through 6 demonstrate how much
sure on families to house adult children. has changed in just a generation or so. These
Growing numbers of young people have also snapshots show that in 1970, only 13 percent
been staying at home while enrolled in school of white males were living with their parents
or to make ends meet while working.10 at age twenty-five, compared with 19 percent
in 2000. Only about 10 percent were living
For women, it was not until the 1960s that on their own or with roommates in 1970,
large numbers began to live on their own compared with one-third in 2000. Most pro-
before marriage, thus creating a critical foundly, nearly seven in ten were married in
“hiatus” (as sociologist Frances Goldscheider 1970, compared with only one-third by 2000.
has called it) that allowed women to become The trend, then, has been for men to move
more fully integrated into the paid labor out of their parents’ homes, but not into mar-
market and college classrooms.11 By 1970, riages or even cohabitation; by contrast, the
the share of twenty-year-olds who were living proportion living with parents has grown only
on their own before marrying was more than modestly. Trends are similar for women and
double that for both white men and women for those of other racial and ethnic groups at
at the turn of the century.12 As we show later, age twenty-five. Half as many black men, for
marriage was becoming less urgent and desir- example, were living at home with parents in
able for a host of reasons, and when young 1970 as in 2000. Likewise, the share married
people did not marry, they still considered at age twenty-five in 1970 was triple that in
moving out and living on their own—and 2000.
VOL. 20 / NO. 1 / SPRING 2010 25
Richard A. Settersten Jr. and Barbara Ray
Figure 4. Share of Men and Women Aged Twenty-Five Living Independently, 1970 and 2000
35
1970
30 33.3 2000
29.2
25
25.0
ge 20 22.5 23.4
a
nt 19.4
e
erc 15 16.8
P
10
10.4 9.6 9.9
5
5.9
4.7
0
White men Black men Foreign-born White women Black women Foreign-born
men women
Source: Adapted from data compiled in Elizabeth Fussell and Frank F. Furstenberg Jr., “The Transition to Adulthood during the Twentieth
Century,” in On the Frontier of Adulthood: Theory, Research, and Public Policy, edited by Richard A. Settersten Jr., Frank F. Furstenberg
Jr., and Rubén G. Rumbaut (University of Chicago Press, 2005), pp. 29--75.
It is clear that the emergence of a period of the higher costs of getting an education are
independent living—despite more recent taken into account.14
social concerns about young people staying at
home longer or returning home later—is one Young adults have heard the message loud
of the most profound changes in the experi- and clear: to get ahead, one needs a college
ences of young adults in the past several degree. And, in fact, today’s young adults are
decades.13 This significant shift coincides with better educated than any previous generation
a few other major transformations in the early in the nation’s history. Yet many youth are
adult years, including the rising demand for, also floundering badly. Approximately eight
and attainment of, advanced education, to in ten high school seniors plan to attend some
which we now turn. form of college or training after high school.15
But even high school dropout rates are high:
The Rising Demand for Education among people sixteen to twenty-four years
Higher education has flourished in all post- old in 2006, high school dropout rates were
industrial and emerging post-industrial 9.3 percent overall and 5.8 percent, 10.7 per-
societies. Once reserved for the elite, a cent, and 22.1 percent for whites, blacks, and
college education is now a necessity for both Hispanics, respectively.16 More disturbing
men and women who want access to good estimates suggest that as many as three in ten
jobs. Education and training are more valu- ninth graders today will not graduate from
able than ever because jobs are less secure high school four years later; for Hispanics,
and work careers have become more fluid. blacks, and Native Americans, the figures
The demand for education and training has hover around a disturbing five in ten.17
increased relentlessly over the past four
decades, and the economic returns to educa- “College for all” may be a salient cultural
tion have grown in recent years, even after message, but only one-quarter of young
26 THE FUTURE OF CHILDREN
What’s Going on with Young People Today? The Long and Twisting Path to Adulthood
Figure 5. Share of Married Couples Aged Twenty-Five Living Independently, 1970 and 2000
90
1970
80
2000
80.8
70
74.9
60 68.8
64.5
e
ag 50 56.3 55.5
nt
ce 40 47.3 46.7
er
P
30
33.0
20 25.2 24.1
10 18.3
0
White men Black men Foreign-born White women Black women Foreign-born
men women
Source: Adapted from data compiled in Elizabeth Fussell and Frank F. Furstenberg Jr., “The Transition to Adulthood during the Twentieth
Century,” in On the Frontier of Adulthood: Theory, Research, and Public Policy, edited by Richard A. Settersten Jr., Frank F. Furstenberg
Jr., and Rubén G. Rumbaut (University of Chicago Press, 2005), pp. 29--75.
adults between the ages of twenty-five and The children of parents who have themselves
thirty-four have a bachelor’s degree today, graduated from college are far more likely
and only 5 percent have graduate degrees.18 to have both the skills and the resources to
Popular perceptions to the contrary, these enter and complete college. Although six
shares have not changed significantly in the in ten students whose parents have college
past three decades. The breakdown of degree degrees finish college in four years, only
holders has changed, however, by gender and about one in ten students whose parents lack
by race and ethnicity. Women have now sur- college degrees finishes in four years.23
passed men in college graduation rates and
in educational attainment generally.19 Asians The gap between young adults’ high aspira-
are most likely to have bachelor’s degrees tions for college and their low graduation
or higher, followed by whites. Hispanics rates sounds an important alarm. Youth
are least likely. Only 9 percent of Hispanics who are ill-prepared for the rigors of higher
between the ages of twenty-five and thirty- education may start school, but they are also
four had a bachelor’s degree in 2005. Asians more likely to have unclear plans and inad-
are four times more likely than Hispanics to equate skills, veer off course, cycle in and
have a bachelor’s degree.20 Among whites, out, or drop out altogether.24 The growth
the share with a bachelor’s degree is 27 per- of the “nontraditional” student (one who is
cent; among blacks, the share is 15 percent.21 older, working, or parenting) is also a key
reason why it now takes longer to get a “four-
It is telling that only 40 percent of those who year” degree.25 Youth who have dropped out
enter four-year institutions earn degrees of four-year colleges or who are not seeking
within six years—and the rest are unlikely four-year degrees often find their way to
ever to earn degrees, as six years is generally community colleges. In his article in this vol-
understood to be the point of no return.22 ume, Thomas Brock explores the formidable
VOL. 20 / NO. 1 / SPRING 2010 27
Richard A. Settersten Jr. and Barbara Ray
Figure 6. Share of Singles With Own Children Aged Twenty-Five Living Independently, 1970 and 2000
30
1970
25 27.9 2000
20
e
g
a
nt 15
e
c
er
P
10
9.3
5
2.0 2.0 0.8 4.6 0.0 3.0 0.5 5.4
0.8 3.7
0
White men Black men Foreign-born White women Black women Foreign-born
men women
Source: Adapted from data compiled in Elizabeth Fussell and Frank F. Furstenberg Jr., “The Transition to Adulthood during the Twentieth
Century,” in On the Frontier of Adulthood: Theory, Research, and Public Policy, edited by Richard A. Settersten Jr., Frank F. Furstenberg
Jr., and Rubén G. Rumbaut (University of Chicago Press, 2005), pp. 29--75.
challenges these students and these institu- using national data have found similar, but
tions now face. lower, probabilities of imprisonment.28 The
most conservative estimates, from the U.S.
More worrisome is the plight of young adults Department of Justice, though nonetheless
who have no education beyond high school startling, are that about one in three black
and who are largely disengaged from social men and one in six Latino men are expected
institutions and economic life—schools, the to go to prison during their lifetime—com-
labor market, and the military. In 2005, even pared with one in seventeen white men—if
before the current recession and during the current incarceration rates remain
height of the Iraq war, roughly three in ten unchanged.29 Among all American men in
white men between ages sixteen and twenty- their twenties in 2008, 1.5 percent of whites,
four with only a high school degree were not 4 percent of Latinos, and fully 10 percent of
in school, in the military, or at work.26 For blacks were incarcerated.30 These are very
young black men, the proportion is stagger- high rates of incarceration for all groups, but
ing: more than half were not in school, in the far higher for blacks than for others. These
military, or at work. data highlight just how difficult the adult
experiences and circumstances of black and
Of even more concern is the high probability Latino men are, particularly for those with the
that poorly educated men, particularly black least education, for whom risks grow in the
men, will be imprisoned in early adulthood. late adolescent and early adult years.
Economist Steven Raphael estimates that 90
percent of black male high school dropouts in Getting Ahead Gets Harder
California aged forty-five to fifty-four have The prosperity that made it possible for
histories of imprisonment.27 Other studies young adults to move quickly into adult roles
28 THE FUTURE OF CHILDREN