Emerging adulthood

EMERGING ADULTHOODA NEW LIFE STAGE FOR FIRST WORLD BRANDS

Friday, February 3, 12

NEW LIFESTAGE DISCOVERED: EMERGING ADULTS

Defined by Jeffrey Jensen Arnett, psychology professor at Clark

University in the 2000s

Age: 18-30Young Adults who are in limbo between adult responsibility and autonomy and parental dependency

-- Have a job but still get $ from parents-- Unemployed after college and still living with parents but “trying to find their calling”-- Working a temporary job while they “figure it out”

(“WHAT IS IT ABOUT 20-SOMETHINGS?” NYT 2010)


2005

THE IDEA HAS BEEN GAINING TRACTION

2010


WHAT DO WE CALL THEM?

THE FIRST DIGITALS

TWIXTERS

SOCIAL MEDIA GENERATION

MILLENNIALS

YOUN

G AD

ULTS

GENE

RATIO

N Y

KIDULTS

YOUTHHOOD

ADUL

TESC

ENCE

BOOMERANG KIDS

THRESHOLDERS

GEN

ERAT

ION

NEX

T

GEN

ERAT

ION

D

THE DIGITAL GENERATION

20SOMETHINGS

NEXT

ERS A

ND N

ESTE

RS

FLEDGLINGS

THE ECHO-BOOMERSTHE DOTCOMS

THE

THUM

B G

ENER

ATIO

N

THE NET GENERATION


WH0 DECIDES WHEN AN ADULT IS AN ADULT?

drink legally

vote

brain considered mature by NIMH

rent a carlast years to be on

parents’ health insurance

median age of marriage

21 25 26 28 3018 34(“WHAT IS IT ABOUT 20-SOMETHINGS?” NYT 2010)


HOW DO WE DEFINE THIS PHASE OF LIFE?

YOUNG ADULT YOUTH EMERGING ADULT

Age: 20-40 Age: Post-Adolescent Age: 18-30

A stage of human development, faced with the

hurdle of intimacy vs. isolation

Characterized by pervasive ambivalence toward self and society, and enormous value

placed on change, transformation, and movement

Young Adults who are in limbo between adult

responsibility & autonomy and parental dependency

Defined in the 1950s Defined in the late 1960s Defined in the 2000s



SCIENCE SUPPORTS “EMERGING ADULTHOOD” DEFINITION

The brain keeps changing up until 25

The weighing of the future keeps changing into the 20s and 30s

From 18 to 25 the most significant changes happen in the prefrontal cortex (emotional control) and cerebellum (higher order cognitive function)

“The prefrontal part is the part that allows you to... answer the question

‘What am I going to do with my life?’”

Jay Giedd, Director of NIMH study



WHY SHOULD MARKETERS CARE?

DECISIONS AND ACTIONS DURING THIS TIME HAVE LASTING RAMIFICATIONS

Adventures, experiments, travels, relationships are embarked on with an abandon that will not happen again

Most people are accumulating formal education, meeting future spouses, making friends they will keep, and starting on careers that will last during this time

Once this generation enters their

30s, they will be in the highest

consumer spending index category

(+270 until age 55)

Source?


EMERGING ADULT PSYCHOLOGICAL PROFILE

CHARACTERIZED BY

identity exploration

ambivalence

instability

self-focus

feeling in-between

a sense of possibilities

the “age 30 deadline”



SELF-FOCUS

The task of “finding yourself” while struggling against

someone else’s idea of who you should be requires some focus

College students today are 40% less empathetic than

those of 30 years ago, with the numbers plunging

primarily after 2000 (NYT, 6/10)


IDENTITY EXPLORATION

The curiosity and desire for self-expression that are part of growing

up are especially strong in this generation (Roper, 2009)

Identity issues arise in young people’s answers to many different

questions, suggesting that these issues are so prominent that they pervade many areas of life (Arnett, 2006)


A SENSE OF POSSIBILITIES

They have not yet tempered their idealistic visions of what awaits

42% say chances are very good they will

achieve “the good life”(Roper, 2009)


FEELING IN-BETWEEN

say they feel like both grown-ups and not-quite-grown-ups at

the same time

60%



INSTABILITY

Instability is the hallmark of Emerging Adults’ school and work life

“Across the country, the American Dream seems increasingly out of reach. But nowhere

is it in greater danger than among today’s unemployed young people, who threaten to

become a lost generation” (Huffington Post, 9/24)


THE AGE 30 DEADLINE

“This isn’t your mother’s 30.Buffet-of-life choices come with the pressure to

not only have it all, but to make it perfect.In addition to the pressure for perfection, today, we also have the added anxiety of living our

lives more publicly than ever before.”

“People have two primary questions as they near 30: Is this what it feels like to be an

adult? And am I normal?”

(“20-somethings -- get ready for a ‘Thrisis’” CNN 11/9/10


AMBIVALENCE

They are less certain of the future, yet also more optimistic

say they are very sure that someday they will get to where

they want to be in life

96%

But there is also a distinct sense of dread, frustration, uncertainty, and not quite knowing the rules of the game



NEW INSIGHTS AND EMOTIONS FOR BRANDS TO CONSIDER

Excitement vs. Uncertainty }{

}{ Wide open possibility vs. Confusion

}{ New Freedom vs. New Fears


EXCITEMENT VS. UNCERTAINTY

am i taking the right path?{ }

will i succeed?{ }starting something new{ }

{

{ }trying new things


WIDE OPEN POSSIBILITY VS. CONFUSION

{ }not held back by what’s socially acceptable

{ }going to school, getting a job, starting an

adventure

{ }what do i want to do?

{ }how can i do it?


NEW FREEDOM VS. NEW FEARS

{ }no one is telling me what i have to do

{ }will they have negative consequences?

{}

am i making the right choices?


RESTLESSNESS AND MOBILITY

1/3 of people in their 20s move to a new

residence every year

They go through an average of 7 jobs in their 20smore job changes than in any other stretch



OPPRESSIVE IDEAS OF SUCCESS

“It’s somewhat terrifying to think about all the things I’m supposed to be doing in order to ‘get somewhere’ successful. When is there time to just be and enjoy?”

“There is pressure to make decisions that will form the foundation for the rest of your life in your 20s. It’s almost as if having a range of limited options would be easier.”

Volunteer

Take risks

Fall in love

Find mentors

Work

Maintain personal well-being, mental health, and nutrition

Live your dreams

Think about or go to grad school

Be financially responsible

Network with the right people

Follow your passions

TO DO!



DID WE MISDIAGNOSE GENERATION X?


NEW TIMETABLE OF EXPECTATIONSEM

ERGI

NG AD

ULTS

THEIR

PARE

NTS

Early 20s 30sLate 20s



COMMITMENT COMING LATER AND LATER

1970s:

2009:

spend at least some time living with a romantic partner without being married

2/3

SHIFT IN MARRIAGE AGE

21 for women and 23 for men

26 for women and 28 for men

Anthropologically speaking cultures all over the world have shared a common belief that marriage marks not only

the life-long joining of two people in a partnership, but also the attainment of full adult status(“WHAT IS IT ABOUT 20-SOMETHINGS?” NYT 2010)


5 TRADITIONAL MILESTONES OF ADULTHOOD1 2 3

45

Complete School Leave Home Financial Independence

Get MarriedHave a BabyFriday, February 3, 12

FEWER HITTING ALL 5 “TRADITIONAL” MILESTONES

65%of men hit all 5 in

1960

33%of men hit all 5 in

2000

77%of women hit all 5 in

1960

<50%of women hit all 5 in

2000



WHAT MAKES “ME” AN ADULT?

(“Emerging Adulthood,” Jeffrey Jensen Arnett)

Accept responsibility for the consequences of my actions

Decide on personal beliefs and values independently of parents or other influences

Become less self-oriented, develop greater consideration for others Financially independent from parents

TOP 4

MILESTONESaccording to 20-

somethings


Aging in America is like LaGuardia on a Monday morning. A long line of traffic and no one can take off!! The Boomers have the departures

blocked for the younger generations. “ONE THEORY: BOOMERS WON’T GROW UP, SO NO ONE ELSE CAN

”

(Marian Salzman, Futurist)


FAILURE TO LAUNCH

move back home with their parents

at least once

40%Helicopter parents problem solve for children long past

when children should be problem solving for themselves

Parents regret having jumped into marriage or career, so they push their children to make

more considered choices

Boomers not wanting to let go Young Adults

not ready to grow up

(“WHAT IS IT ABOUT 20-SOMETHINGS?” NYT 2010)Friday, February 3, 12

MORE SUPPORTIVE THAN EVER

Helicopter parents need their center of gravityParents’ sense of well-being depends largely on how close they are to

their grown children and how their children are faring-- Karen Fingerman, Developmental Psychologist, Purdue University

86% had provided advice in the previous monthLess than half had done so in 1988

2 in 3 had given their son or daughter practical assistance in the previous month1 in 3 had in 1988

{{

{{(“WHAT IS IT ABOUT 20-SOMETHINGS?” NYT 2010)

BOOMERS HOLD ON EMOTIONALLY


BOOMERS HOLD ON FINANCIALLY

American parents give an average of 10% of their income to their 18-21 year--old children This percentage is basically the same no

matter the family’s total income, meaning that upper-class kids tend to get more than

working-class ones



IS THIS TEMPORARY OR A PERMANENT CHANGE?

CULTURAL, ECONOMIC

FORCES

LEGITIMATE NEW LIFE STAGE THAT IS

UNIVERSALvs.


SOCIO-ECONOMIC FORCES CREATED ADOLESCENCE

Adolescence was made in America

This distinct stage is characterized by emotional upheaval (storm and stress) and a curve of dependency that starts

at age 11 and wanes over time

Created by psychologist G. Stanley Hall in 1904

With the passage of child labor laws, children under 16 were forced to stay in secondary

school, prolonging the period of dependence

And now it’s global



SOCIO-ECONOMIC FORCES ARE CREATING “EMERGING ADULTS”

The need for more education to survive in an information-based economy

Fewer entry-level jobs even after all that schooling

Less rush to marry because of general acceptance of premarital sex, cohabitation, and birth control

Women can delay pregnancy beyond their most fertile years due to wide range of career options

and access to reproductive technology


Emerging Adults are at liberty to pursue more elevated goals since their basic needs of food, shelter and sex

are being met

Love/Belonging

Safety

Physiological

Esteem

Self-actualization

A FIRST WORLD SELF-ACTUALIZATION PHENOMENON?Source: M

aslow


Industrial and Developing WorldMore often, people are forced to adopt adult responsibilities early, whether or not their brains are ready. Is this changing?

Young people are allowed to forestall adult obligations without fear of public censure - so the rate of societal maturation can finally fall into better sync with the maturation of the brain

“It is a double-edged sword, because on the one hand I am so blessed with my experience and endless

options, but on the other hand, I still feel like a child.”

First World

“Walking home, in the shoes my father bought me, I still feel I have yet to grow up.”

WILL IT BE AN EXPORT ECONOMY FOR THE FIRST WORLD?

WILL EMERGING ADULTHOOD GO GLOBAL?



APPENDIX


YOUNG ADULTS

Age: 20-40The primary conflict is intimacy vs. isolation

During this stage, Young Adults decide whether to commit to a lifelong intimate relationship and choose the person to commit to

Defined by Erik Erikson in 1950 as a stage of human development

in Childhood and Society


YOUTH

Age: Post-AdolescentPost-adolescents who have not settled questions whose answers once defined adulthood: questions of relationship to the existing society, vocation, social role and lifestyle.

Defined by Yale psychologist Kenneth Keniston in the late

1960s

Characterized by pervasive ambivalence toward self and society, and enormous value placed on change, transformation, and movement


Technology

Emerging adulthood