2015/07/15 by Scott R. Eliason, Jeylan T. Mortimer, Mike Vuolo
Psychology · Social Sciences · #Developmental psychology #Intergenerational Family Dynamics and Caregiving #Psychology #Retirement, Disability, and Employment #Social psychology #Transition (genetics) #Youth Education and Societal Dynamics
paper · pdf · doi:10.1177/0190272515582002
crossref issued 2015/07/15 · crossref published 2015/07/15 · crossref published-online 2015/07/15 · openalex publication_date 2015/07/15 · crossref created 2015/07/15 · crossref published-print 2015/09/01 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · crossref deposited 2026/05/01 · crossref indexed 2026/08/02 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/02
We examine the relationships between objective life course structures and the subjective sense of timing of adult roles and acquisition of adult identity. Hierarchical latent class analysis is applied to longitudinal data from the Youth Development Study, describing roles related to school, work, family formation, and living arrangements from age 17 to 30. The transition to adulthood in this cohort is well-represented by five pathways probabilistically mapping the timing and sequencing of these roles and their configurations. Three pathways are characterized by a school-to-work transition with on-time, delayed, or negligible family formation. The remaining pathways involve early parenthood with either a partner and stable full-time work or the lack of a partner and low labor force attachment. We then show that the subjective sense of timing with respect to certain adult roles and adult identity acquisition is empirically tied to these life course structures.