Branaman, Ann

In this study I analyze how college students transition to adulthood. Based on 38
semi-structured interviews with young adults, I found that two groups appeared: emerging
adults and accelerated adults. Emerging adults were more likely to come from
economically privileged families and had the social and economic resources to focus on
education, pursue a fulfilling career, and have fun while in college. In contrast, accelerated
adults had adopted adult responsibilities during their childhood or teenage years and
struggled to succeed in college due to inadequate guidance, lingering emotional anguish
over childhood events, and lack of financial support. Although enrolled in the same
university, these groups transitioned to adulthood very differently. I discuss the
implications for each type of transition, as well as the implications of my findings for public
policy and for future sociological research.

In America and other industrialized countries there
has been a delay in attainment of traditional markers
of adulthood (i.e. marriage, parenthood, completion
of education, and full-time employment). Young people
are becoming “adults” much later than previous
generations, and their ideas of what it means to be
an adult are shifting. Some have claimed that a new
period of life called “emerging adulthood” is forming,
in which young people feel as if they are not yet full
adults (Arnett 1997, 2000, 2004). However, while
this period may exist for middle-class youth, it may
not reflect the experience of working-class youth (Silva
2013). Based on my data I argue that, while middle-
class young adults are more likely to experience
a period of emerging adulthood and pursue a fulfilling
adult life, working-class youth are more focused on
financial stability and are not as likely to experience a
period of “emerging adulthood.”