Criteria for the transition to adulthood, developmental features of emerging adulthood, and views of the future among Greek studying youth

Abstract

This study investigated emerging adulthood and transition to adulthood in Greece, a highly underresearched issue in this country. Participants were 784 university students aged 17.5-27.5 years. Criteria for the transition to adulthood, developmental features of emerging adulthood, perceived adult status, views of the future (optimism), and sociodemographic variables were assessed. The results support the existence of emerging adulthood as a distinct life period in Greece. More than two thirds of the sample were self-perceived emerging adults. Most prevalent criteria were Norm compliance and Family capacities. Developmental features of emerging adulthood ranked high, especially Identity exploration, Experimentation/possibilities, and Feeling “in-between”. Statistically significant variations emerged as a function of gender, age, living arrangement, job experience, and perceived adult status. Views of the future were cautiously optimistic. Similarities with existing data and differences related to the specific characteristics of the Southern European context are discussed.

Dimensions of Emerging Adulthood, Criteria for Adulthood, and Identity Development in Greek Studying Youth: A Person-Centered Approach

“…For example, individualistic criteria were found to be prominent in one study which presented data collected before the beginning of the financial crisis and in which no factor analyses were performed (Petrogiannis, 2011). In contrast, factors representing a mixture of individualistic and collectivistic criteria emerged as the predominant conception of adulthood in another study (Galanaki & Leontopoulou, 2017). In addition, another recent Greek study (Vleioras & Mantziou, 2017) showed that the achievement of two role transitions, that is, marriage and semiautonomous and independent living, decreased the feeling of being an emerging adult only after the age of 30 and only for women, whereas it had no effect on people aged 25-29.…”

“…The factors were labeled family capacities, norm compliance, age/biological transitions, financial independence, and relational maturity and were similar, although not identical, to those found in the aforementioned three studies (see Table 4). More specifically, the main divergence from the factor structures that have emerged in several studies up to now is the financial independence factor (found only in Greece by Galanaki & Leontopoulou, 2017 and in Romania by Nelson, 2009). It represents a conception of adulthood as a time of financial independence after the end of education and the establishment of a permanent full-time job, which enables the individual to purchase a house, live independently, and form a family.…”

“…These deviations may reflect cultural specificities regarding Greece and may also be attributed to differences in time of study (i.e., before vs. after the financial crisis) and in sample characteristics (e.g., different age ranges and geographical locations). For example, in one of these studies (Galanaki & Leontopoulou, 2017), a new factor emerged, named financial independence, which reflects Greek young people's conception of adulthood as resulting from the following rather individualistic accomplishments: finishing education, finding full-time employment, and settling into a long-term career, therefore acquiring financial independence from parents and becoming able to live on one's own. This constellation of criteria is a common and long-standing view of adulthood in Greece and shows that financial independence is still highly valued in the context of severe economic adversity and high youth unemployment rates.…”

Adult roles as predictors of adult identity and identity commitment in Polish emerging adults: Psychosocial maturity as an intervening variable

“…A number of studies conducted in the United States (Nelson and Barry 2005), Western Europe (Sirsch et al 2009), Southern Europe (Galanaki and Leontopoulou 2017), and Central Europe (Oleszkowicz and Misztela 2015;Macek et al 2007) also suggest that the majority of people at the age of 20-something do not consider themselves as entirely adult. Arnett (2000) called this group of young people, especially those in their twenties, 'emerging adults'.…”

Clinical Evaluation of Depression in University Students During Quarantine Due to Covid-19 Pandemic

“…This period is associated with developmental challenges, difficult in some cases, but with great heterogeneity per context, mainly due to socio-cultural differences. It occurs mainly in developed modern societies, which provide the opportunity to explore different alternative routes in their lives (Galanaki & Leontopoulou, 2017-Galanaki & Sideridis, 2018-Leontopoulou, Mavridis, & Giotsa, 2016-Petrogiannis, 2011. It becomes clear, therefore, that the university, as a social context in which the student lives and works, plays a decisive role, especially in Greece, where the majority of young people study in higher education (Raikou, 2019).…”