PI: Ian R. Macmillan Institution: University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
Human lives are fundamentally organized around the social roles that people occupy, the connec-tions between roles, and how people move into, through, and out of roles over the life span. Yet, there is increased speculation that the ways in which this happens are changing in dramatic ways for young people on the path to adulthood, as well as debate over how such processes are shaped by race, gender, and social class, among others. In particular, some view the fundamental path-ways into adulthood as being upended in ways that undermine efficacious transitions, limit later life attainments, and ultimately re-configure and reinforce social differences and stratification deep into the life course. To assess the changing nature of the transition to adulthood and its consequences, this research applies latent class techniques to longitudinal data (ages 17 to 27) drawn from the National Longitudinal Surveys to a) formally model pathways through social roles of schooling, work, and family across several cohorts who transitioned to adulthood in dif-ferent decades of the latter 20th century; and b) examine the changing influences of macro-level structural location, family background, and personal resources. In doing so, this study will move the field forward by developing theory and using sophisticated modeling and empirical data to chart processes of social change as they play out in the lives of those in their early adult years over the past several decades.
The transition to adulthood has held the attention of both scientists and policy-makers for several decades and recent years have witnessed considerable concern over the emergence of problemat-ic transitions that undermine quality of life across the age span. The transition to adulthood is seen as particularly pivotal given its place in the unfolding life span and its potential to both re-produce advantage and disadvantage, as well as be a turning point in the lives of adolescents as they move out of their teenage years. This research will answer questions about the paths and prospects of those moving into adulthood against a backdrop of deinstitutionalization and large-scale economic and cultural change. It will enhance understanding not only of how social factors structure the life course but also how pathways over the life course are implicated in processes of cumulative advantage and disadvantage, and by implication, what interventions/turning points will have long-term impacts on health and well-being deep into the life course.
