Homework: Becoming an Adult
You may have recently transitioned to adulthood, or that transition may be a dim memory. Or, you may be somewhere in between. No matter where you are on the life continuum, think about the number of careers you have had, the lifestyle choices you have made, the values you have adopted, and the experiences you have had, including any that may have been different from what you experienced during your childhood or adolescence.
Young adults in modern societies have many-perhaps too many-choices. It is more difficult nowadays than in the past to become an adult and to understand what that role entails. There are more opportunities today that create the potential for growth. However, these opportunities can also create stress, anxiety, and potential obstacles on the path to adulthood.
You will explore the transition to adulthood by comparing different cultures and generational perspectives. The outcome will be a deeper understanding of how personal life choices and identity set the stage for a full adult life.
Learning Objectives
1. Analyze paths to adulthood within cultural contexts
2. Compare generational perspectives of adult transitions
3. Identify concepts and principles related to adult transition, identity development, cultural differences in identity development, and cohort differences in identity development
Choose the country of India. That was my choice for the discussion spark.
Main Discussion
In traditional cultures around the globe, adulthood is much more clearly defined than what is experienced in the United States. Coming-of-age ceremonies and rites of passage are two of the many ways some traditional cultures define the transition into adulthood. Your textbook (Arnett, 2019) defines a traditional culture as "people in the rural areas of developing countries, who tend to adhere more closely to the historical traditions of their culture than people in urban areas do" (p. 9). In the United States, the transition to adulthood is not so clear. Comparing one of these traditional cultures with your own might reveal some striking differences.
To prepare, identify an example of a traditional culture in a country outside of the United States, such as those described in the course text. Using the textbook, library, and the articles listed in the course resources, obtain information about this culture and the path to adulthood in this culture, including how adulthood is recognized within that culture. Compare and contrast this culture with your experience within the American mainstream (or your own country's mainstream culture, if you are not in the United States).
Post an analysis of two cultural paths to adulthood. Your analysis should include the following:
1. Briefly describe your chosen culture, including important characteristics such as geographical location, religion(s), and political powers. Then, briefly describe American culture (or your own if not in the U.S.) including important characteristics such as geographical location, religion(s), and political powers.
2. Identify any differences in career and educational opportunities and core values of the two cultures (i.e., collectivist or individualist).
3. Explain how the principle of emerging adulthood does or does not apply to both cultures, using the Arnett resources provided.
4. Support your work with citations from your course text, scholarly resources, and your library research.
This can be written about my grandfather Robert "jack" banks. He is from the US, African American, farmer, married with 7 children, raised me until i was 12 and he had 3 wives. He was a son of a former slave Inez banks. He eventually got a public job at Perdue but his family was never hungry and we always had a decent house to live in. I graduated high school 1987. First job was Atlanta journal constitution newspaper. I moved back to New York in 1989 and worked for the post office until 1993, moved to north Carolina had my daughter in 1994 and work at the hospital until 2003.
Homework: Becoming an Adult throughout History
What might influence how different generations view each other? For example, why might older generations such as the Baby Boomers view Millennials as "lazy" or "unmotivated," but Millennials might see Generation X as "out of touch"? For each new generation, there are new perspectives and ideas regarding those that came before and will come after. As the global society continues to shift, it is important to consider the changing views of each generation and how they orient themselves to each other.
To prepare, review Chapter 9 from Arnett (2019) and consider the resources from the Pew Research Center (2015) regarding Millennials and previous generations. You may also want to review the Howe and Strauss (2007) article provided in the Optional Resources for an occupational-based viewpoint. Think of someone in your life from at least two generations before yours and consider the choices this person had as a young person, and how that person might view the path of young people today. Be sure to consider your own personal perspectives on these generations.
Submit:
A 2 to 3 pages paper comparing your own path to adulthood with that of someone you are personally familiar with from at least two generations before you (such as one of your grandparents or a similarly aged person). Your comparison should include the following:
1. Identify the generation of yourself and your chosen grandparent (or similar elder) based on the terminology from Pew Research Center (2015) and similar resources.
2. Compare the experiences of both yourself and your chosen elder in reaching adulthood, supporting your comparison with examples.
3. Explain whether you believe the chosen elder's experience in their path to adulthood is reflective of other people in their time, supporting your ideas with research conducted on that particular generation.
4. Assuming the perspective of your elder, describe any opinions (positive, negative, etc.) they might have on your personal path to adulthood. Provide examples to support your ideas.
5. Support your work with citations from your course text, scholarly resources, and your library research.
Reference
Required Readings
• Arnett, J. J., & Jensen, L. A. (2019). Human development: A cultural approach (3rd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
o Chapter 9, "Emerging Adulthood" (pp. 384-431)
• Arnett, J. J. (2000). Emerging adulthood: A theory of development from the late teens through the twenties. American Psychologist, 55(5), 469-480. doi:10.1037/0003- 066X.55.5.469
• Arnett, J. J. (2016b). Does emerging adulthood theory apply across social classes? National data on a persistent question. Emerging Adulthood, 4(4), 227-235. doi: 10.1177/2167696815613000
• Patton, E., & Fry, R. (2015). How millennials today compare with their grandparents 50 years ago.
• Pew Research Center. (2015). The whys and hows of generations research.
Required Media
• Arnett, J. J. (2015). Why does it take so long to grow up today? [YouTube Video].
Optional Resources
• Arnett, J. J. (2001). Conceptions of the transition to adulthood: Perspectives from adolescence through midlife. Journal of Adult Development, 8(2), 133-143.
• Arnett, J. J. (2010). Emerging adulthood [YouTube Video].
• Howe, N., & Strauss, W. (2007). The next 20 years: How customer and workforce attitudes will evolve. Harvard Business Review, 2007(July/August),1-13.
• Bachai, S. (2014). 4 puberty rituals from around the world: Some involve tooth filing and head shaving.