Valon Deliu
Becoming an adult, also known as young adulthood, is a very crucial stage in one’s life. This is the climax of physical and health processes. This is the point in life when we make plans of our futures. It is the time when we think of what life will be like as an adult and make plans for the future. Most importantly, it is when we lay the starting point for developmental changes that we will undergo throughout our lives. An adult is a person who is fully grown or developed. Some people believe that you become an adult when you are 18 years old, other believe you are an adult when you can legally buy and consume alcohol, that is, at age 21 in the United States. Others believe that you are an adult when you are supporting yourself
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This is a period when an individual is not an adult yet and at the same time, they are not an adolescent anymore either. This is the point in life where a person identifies who they really are and figure out which career path they will take. Different types of brain development continue, biological and physiological changes occur. Entering adulthood varies from country to country. For example, the average legal drinking age of all nations in earth is 18, but in the United States it is 21. On the other hand, in Germany a 14 year old can be drinking as long as they have consent from their parents or guardians. The average age to obtaining a licence is 18, in the U.S and in Canada you can receive it at 16. There is even a province in some states where you get your licence at the age of 14. The average voting age is 18. In Brazil and Argentina, the voting age is 16. Whereas in the country of Malaysia you must wait until you have reached the age of 21 to vote. As you can see, the ages vary …show more content…
Young adults think differently than adolescents and they have different views and opinions on things. During adulthood, an individual begins to discontinue their risky behaviors such as having sex without protection, driving recklessly, and playing dangerous sports. On the other hand, some people still continue this behavior while in adulthood but it is not common. Many people believe that the key sign of actually becoming an adult is financially supporting oneself. This step occurs sooner to the students who either do not attend college or do not finish high school. Students which go to college, this occurs to them later on in life. Establishing intimacy is the sixth step in Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development, “intimacy versus isolation.” Once a person has established their own identity, they are prepared to establish a “shared identity” (intimacy) with another person. Men and women resolve intimacy issues very differently, for instance, some women establish intimacy by getting married and having children, before they actually establish their identity. Middle-aged women attending college are an example of these
During this stage, Erikson believes that the individual’s successful identity formation relies on social, cognitive and physical maturation (Pittman, Keiley, Kerpelman, & Vaughn, 2011). The individual tries out different roles for who they see in themselves and who they portray to others, eventually committing to their own personal role and occupational choice. Pittman et al. (2011) describe the identity formation as “consisting of decisions, investments, and commitments tied to current and future roles, goals, and relationships.” Additional considerations for identity formation include the context of the culture which is available to the adolescent during this time. After successful resolution of this stage during adolescence, individuals will typically progress into Erikson’s Intimacy versus Isolation stage during young
For all teens, the transition into adulthood is generally seen as a challenging and scary process. For teens diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) as well as their caregivers, this transition is often more complicated. The period of transition for individuals with ASD into adulthood is intensely more challenging due to their “unique characteristics, the lack of services that address the special needs of such individuals in adulthood, and the expectations of society for a typical path to adulthood in the face of atypical problems” (Geller and Greenberg, 2009, pg. 93). Without the necessary resources to transition, teens with ASD find themselves unprepared for life at work, in college, or community living. Through this paper, the reader will obtain knowledge in regards to what ASD is, the barriers it yields concerning the transition into adulthood, and the effects it has on the individual as well
The essay, “Robert Kegen’s Awesome Theory of Social Maturity”, written by Mark Dombeck PH.D. thoroughly explains the development of social maturity in a person. Mark Dombeck critically analyzes Robert Kegen’s book on social development and simplifies the complex book. Dr. Dombeck speaks about how social maturity is developed through the process of switching one’s understanding from a subjective to an objective thought process. To be able to able to even think about changing the legal drinking age, the people who are drinking should be mature. Now, because kids are maturing so much younger, it gives us the opportunity to lower the legal drinking age so as to gain its
Erickson’s Psychosocial Theory is comprised of eight developmental stages ranging throughout the lifespan from infancy to adulthood (Boyd, 2015). However, Erikson puts significant emphasis on the adolescent stage, feeling it is a crucial period for developing an individual’s identity (McLeod, 2013). Erikson maintains that the task of adolescence is to resolve this identity crisis (Rageliene, 2016). Erikson’s theory is hierarchical, meaning that later stages are based on the outcomes of earlier stages, therefor it is rather complex (Markstrom, 1998). During each of these stages, an
This period is marked by physical, social, moral and emotional development (Davies, Hartdegen, Haxell, Le Geyt & Mercier, 2012). It is a time when the adolescent’s sense of self or identity is becoming much more clear and they are beginning to understand their role in society, starting to question the morals of others and contemplating their own moral and ethical beliefs (Davies et al., 2012). During this time Erik Erikson believed that adolescents are faced with the psychosocial stage of identity versus role confusion (Berk, 2008). Adolescents explore their values and role in society, overcoming this conflict to better understand their own identity, however if they do not fully overcome this conflict, Erikson believed that the adolescent would be confused about their values and future adult roles (Berk, 2008). This conflict was clearly demonstrated in my own development during the late teenage years when I experienced both the results of failing to overcome and then overcoming Erikson’s fifth psychosocial stage. At age eighteen I finished secondary school and began my tertiary studies, I had been accepted into the degree I had wanted to study since middle childhood, however I quickly learnt that I was enjoying neither my studies nor my experience of life in halls of residence. I discontinued my studies after only
The United States define an adult as an individual reaching the age of 18. When one hits 18 years old, they automatically attain responsibilities set forth by the government. The government allows one to get married and divorce without parental consent, rent and buy homes, enroll in the military, vote, and, most importantly, be tried as an adult. The government has set forth these responsibilities for us because they/it believes we have the capability of controlling our choices. Though the government has given us these rights to use or dispose of as we choose, except being tried as an adult, they have set aside other rights for later parts of our lives; such as renting a car, running for federal public office and drinking. Running for federal public office is set by the Constitution, for good reason. However, the age of alcohol consumption has been thrown around and debated over for the last few decades, especially in the more recent decades. Some universities and their presidents have come together to form a coalition for the loweri...
To sum up Erikson’s psychosocial stages, Intimacy vs. Isolation is present in adults eighteen and up, according to Erickson. When an adolescent begins to share things with someone they would not share with anyone else, they have successfully demonstrated open intimacy. DJ was able to become extremely intimate with her high school sweet heart Steve, and further depict Erickson’s Intimacy vs. isolation as they spoke of a long-term relationship together. The ability to achieve these relationships further demonstrates the secure attachment and ability to hold close
It is ironic that how some children are able to present themselves more mature than adults. The youth of the generation is becoming more mature and are developing adult skills faster than ever. People are beginning to wonder about the age of adulthood and how it should be determined. This controversy beleaguers around privileges such as drinking, driving, and voting. According to the article What is the Age of Responsibility by Alan Greenblatt, society determines that a person is an adult through customary rites, legal rights, and one’s responsibilities. However, I believe that the best way to adulthood is shown through one’s obligation for their priorities and work.
When I was younger, I always wanted to be an adult. I was fortunate enough to have enjoyed a happy childhood, but something about being an adult mesmerized me. As I've gotten older, however, I've realized the naivety of this misconception and I've seen the struggles of adulthood firsthand.Back then, I had no idea that my transition to adulthood would occur much sooner than expected and in a way that no one should have to endure. When I was sixteen years old, my transition to adulthood was marked by my unexpected responsibility as a caregiver for my ill mother.
Erik Erikson developed the eight stages of life theory. Erikson’s theory focuses on the development from birth to death, social context, and interpersonal relations during each stage of life (McAdams, 2009). In the same manner, each stage of life is comprehendible in three levels, such as the body, ego, and family and culture. The eight stages of life are infancy (trust vs. mistrust), early childhood (autonomy vs. shame and doubt), childhood (initiative vs. guilt), childhood (industry vs. inferiority), adolescence and young adulthood (identity vs. role confusion), young adulthood (intimacy vs. isolation), mature adulthood (generativity vs. stagnation (or self-absorption)), and old age (ego integrity vs. despair).
When elderly people move into the last of life’s eight stages of psychosocial development, they enter the ego-integrity-versus-despair stage. This process is defined by looking back over someone’s life, evaluating it, then accepting it. People who become successful in this stage feel a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. Erikson refers to this acceptance as integrity. This differs from generativity because one is accepting the end of their life, instead of accepting where their life will start in a sense of career and self. However, if one is to look back on their life with dissatisfaction, they may feel they have been cheated or missed opportunities. Such individuals will mostly be depressed or angry about the way life turned out and
Also, Erikson’s Intimacy versus Isolation theory explained that young adults at this stage will think about being intimate or having a close relationship with a person (Miller, 1983). This could be a friend who they can confide in or a sexual partner (Miller, 1983). Those who engage in marriage at a you...
Adulthood has often been associated with independence. It serves as a turning point in life where one has to take responsibility for oneself and no longer being dependent on his or her family. Early adulthood, usually begins from late teens or early twenties and will last until the thirties (Santrock, 2013). Early adulthood revolves around changes and exploration while middle and late adulthood are more of stability. The transition from adolescence and adulthood differs among every individual. The onset of the transition is determined by many factors such as culture, family background, and the personality of the individual. Emerging adulthood (as cited in Santrock, 2014) is the term to describe the transition period from adolescence to adulthood.
Erikson believed that personality development included the impact of society, culture, and the relationships that are made. The psychosocial theory developed by Erikson included eight stages: stage one (basic trust vs. mistrust), stage two (autonomy vs. shame and doubt), stage three (initiative vs. guilt), stage four (industry vs. inferiority), stage five (identity vs. role confusion), stage six (intimacy vs. isolation), stage seven (generativity vs. stagnation), and lastly, stage eight (ego integrity vs despair). Erikson’s first stage, basic trust vs. mistrust, is when the child will develop trust based on how their needs are being met. Erikson’s second stage, autonomy vs. shame and doubt, the child will soon begin to understand the struggle for control of oneself. Erikson’s third stage, initiative vs. guilt, child will develop a sense of control over oneself and learn to take responsibility of one’s actions. The fourth stage, industry vs. inferiority, is when the child will begin to encounter social interactions daily and these social interactions will cause the child to compare himself/herself to others to measure success and failure in oneself. Erikson’s fifth stage, identity vs. role confusion, the child will begin to decide what it is that one wants to gain from life and what to be as an adult. The sixth stage in Erikson’s personality development, intimacy vs. isolation, young adults will spend time trying to figure out with whom to share a personal relationship with. The seventh stage, generativity vs. stagnation, is a way to figure out how to become a nurturing individual in order to create the next generation. Lastly, Erikson’s stage eight, ego integrity vs. despair, learning to accept that one’s life is coming to an end (Ciccarelli and White,
Childhood and adulthood are two different periods of one’s lifetime but equally important. Childhood is the time in everybody’s life when they are growing up to be an adult. This is when they are being considered babies because of their youthfulness and innocence. Adulthood is the period of time where everybody is considered “grown up,” usually they begin to grow up around the ages of eighteen or twenty-one years old but they do remain to develop during this time. However, in some different backgrounds, not everybody is not fully adults until they become independent with freedom, responsible for their own actions, and able to participate as an adult within society. Although childhood and adulthood are both beneficial to our lives, both periods share some attributes such as independence, responsibility, and innocence that play distinctive roles in our development.