Thus far in this chapter, we have focused most of our attention on childhood. Let’s now look at social development across the span of life, starting with adolescence.

Adolescence is the period between childhood and adulthood. Societies differ in beliefs about its exact time span (Arnett & Taber, 1994). However, adolescence generally is thought to begin around ages 12 to 13 and to run throughout the teenage years.

Adolescence features numerous changes: physical, emotional, social, intellectual. Think back to your own experience. In adolescence, you suddenly did not look like a child anymore. Your peer groups changed when you entered middle and high school. Adults expected you to be more self-reliant. You developed romantic interests.

Adolescence poses two big psychological challenges. One stems from the biological changes of puberty. Another is the psychological challenge of establishing a personal identity.

PUBERTY. Puberty is the time when a child reaches sexual maturity. Girls and boys experience physical changes that transform them into women and men who are biologically capable of reproduction (Figure 14.13).

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Behavioral changes accompany the biological ones. Compared with children, adolescents are more likely to have conflicts with parents (Laursen, Coy, & Collins, 1998; Paikoff & Brooks-Gunn, 1991); to engage in antisocial behavior (fighting, damaging property, using illegal drugs; Moffitt, 1993); and to experience bad moods and “swings” in mood (from good to bad and back) during the day (Larson & Ham, 1993).

How do the biological and behavioral changes relate to one another? There are two theoretical possibilities (Figure 14.14):

How can you tell which model is correct? It’s not easy; it requires longitudinal research that measures both biological changes and social environments. One example of such work is research on antisocial behavior among girls who reached puberty at different ages, by Swedish psychologist David Magnusson (1992).

If the biological model (Figure 14.14) were correct, then among all girls, those who reach puberty at a relatively young age should differ behaviorally from others. Biology should drive behavior. This, however, is not what Magnusson found. Rather, biological changes affected behavior only among some girls, and the effects depended on the social environment. A key social factor was peer groups. Some (but not all) early-maturing girls hung out with other early-maturing girls who, in turn, tended to hang out with older boys. The girls who hung out with older boys were more likely to engage in antisocial behavior such as drinking, drug use, and cheating at school (Magnusson, 1992). Similarly, other research shows that a main reason why girls and boys who experience early puberty are more likely to develop drinking problems is social: They are more likely to hang out with peers who drink (Biehl, Natsuaki, & Ge, 2007).

Results therefore support a biopsychosocial model. Biological changes can create social changes that, in turn, affect the development of behavior.

IDENTITY. Suppose you were asked to describe yourself: your personal history, social roles, and goals in life. Your answer would indicate your identity. In the study of social development, identity is people’s overall understanding of themselves, their role in society, their strengths and weaknesses, their history, and their future potential.

Questions about identity strongly arise in adolescence (Erikson, 1959; see Chapter 13). Many adolescents begin to ask: What is my true personality? What are my strengths and limitations? What will I do in my future? In essence: Who am I?

People differ in whether and how they think about identity, and in how long they take to decide on a life path. Some find an answer quickly and commit themselves to a role in life. Others experience prolonged doubt and confusion. Still others give identity questions little thought at all. The psychologist James Marcia (1980) summarizes these differences by suggesting four different identity statuses, that is, different approaches to coping with the challenge of establishing a personal identity. (Marcia’s efforts capitalize on earlier analyses of personal development by Erik Erikson; see Chapter 13.)

People with different identity statuses differ in their behavior—particularly in prosocial behavior, which is actions that directly benefit others (e.g., comforting those in distress). Researchers find that people with identity achievement status are the most likely to act prosocially, whereas people with identity diffusion status are the least likely to do so (Padilla-Walker et al., 2008). People who have achieved a clear personal identity appear better able to look beyond themselves and consider their responsibility for the welfare of others.

CULTURAL OPPORTUNITIES

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Decades ago, most Americans entered into the work and family life of adulthood soon after adolescence. In the 1950s and 1960s, the average age of first marriage was under 23 for men and 21 for women (Information Please Database®, 2009). But times have changed. Today, the average age of first marriage is more than five years later for both men and women.

This change creates, for many people in their early 20s, a relatively novel developmental period. The psychologist Jeffrey Arnett (2000) calls it emerging adulthood. Emerging adulthood is a period of life in the very late teen years and early 20s (roughly ages 18 to 25). It is experienced by people who, on the one hand, have the rights and psychological independence of adulthood but, on the other, do not yet have the obligations and responsibilities of family life (Arnett, 2000). Surveys show that people experience this period of life as unique. When asked whether they feel like adults, most people do not say yes or no. They say, “Yes and no” (Figure 14.16).

Emerging adulthood is a time of exploration. People may try one job, quit, then try another; move from one city to another; and explore new relationships before settling down into marriage. The relationships of emerging adulthood often are in flux. Research shows that, among emerging adults who experience a relationship break-up, about half get back together with their ex-mate (Halpern-Meekin et al., 2013). This finding suggests that traditional relationship categories (“going out,” “broken up”) may not describe emerging adulthood relationships, which “go through periods of being undefined or … fluid” (Halpern-Meekin et al., 2013, p. 183).

Today’s emerging adults allocate time to activities that did not exist in the past: an average of 3½ hours a day on the Internet and 45 minutes a day texting or making phone calls (Coyne, Padilla-Walker, & Howard, 2013). Major developmental tasks, such as establishing a social identity, are now accomplished electronically.

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Some years from now, you’ll be done with school. You might have a job and a family and be settled into “the afternoon of life,” the midlife years. Or maybe you’re already there.

Biologically, midlife is not sharply defined. Culture shapes people’s thoughts about this life period. In fact, the entire concept of “middle age” is a cultural construction (Shweder, 1998); nothing about human biology delineates an exact middle-age period. Nonetheless, many cultures recognize a middle age that starts around age 35 and continues to 60. Midlife adults share numerous concerns that are particularly relevant to this time period: advancing professionally, establishing and maintaining a family, preparing for retirement, and coping with the illness and death of older relatives (Lachman, 2001).

MIDLIFE CRISIS? Fill in the blank: midlife _______. Many people would say “crisis.” A stereotype is that midlifers become overwhelmed with their loss of youth, experience a crisis, and do surprising things: quit their job, join a new religion, buy a flashy sports car.

Research findings challenge this stereotype. Most midlife adults do not experience a sudden crisis and drastically change their lifestyle (Wethington, Kessler, & Pixley, 2004). Midlifers do “take stock” of their lives—assessing past accomplishments and future challenges. But this rarely triggers a crisis (Wethington, 2000). Even when it does, the crises often center on problems that could occur at any age, such as job loss or the death of a family member.

Similarly, some midlife events have less psychological impact than you might guess. Consider, for example, menopause, the end of female reproductive fertility, which generally occurs around age 50. Is menopause a psychologically negative event because it signals advancing age? Interviews with women suggest not; their “attitudes toward menopause ranged from neutral to positive” (Sommer et al., 1999, p. 871). So many women live such busy lives that menopause isn’t a major event. For example, among African American women, who had the most positive attitudes toward this life transition, “menopause seemed a minor stressor,” especially compared with others, such as “the consequences of racism they had experienced throughout their lives” (Sommer et al., 1999, p. 872).

LIFE STORIES AT MIDLIFE. By early adulthood, people usually have developed a life story—a narrative understanding of the major events and themes of their lives (Habermas & Bluck, 2000). Midlife stories often reflect on accomplishments, after decades of time devoted to work and family.

Everyone’s life story is unique, yet life stories have common themes. Two are generativity and redemption:

Researchers have studied these themes by asking people to tell stories highlighting “turning points” in their life and to describe what they personally are striving for (McAdams et al., 2001). Adults whose life stories included themes of generativity and redemption were more well-adjusted—they were less depressed, more satisfied with life, and saw life as comprehensible and manageable.

Midlife, then, is not a time of inevitable crisis. Midlifers assess their lives and experience greater psychological well-being if they feel they have coped with life challenges and are contributing to the next generation.