There are different stages of human lifespan development, with the main stages being birth and infancy, childhood, adulthood, and old age. Each stage has unique features, changes, environmental influences, and sociological influences that determine how an individual will navigate the stage. Early adulthood is a challenging stage, individuals at the beginning of adulthood have gone through many developmental milestones, and they are in the process of determining their identities and role in society. This paper is an analysis of two individuals in early adulthood stage to compare and contrast how they are navigating early adulthood stage.
Vivian*
Vivian is a 23-year old university graduate. Vivian is a tall, petite, and sociable young woman. She did a bachelor degree in Communication. She hopes to work for an advertising firm, but currently, she is interning at a consulting firm.
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Vivian was brought up in a stable, loving home, she is the first born in a family of three, and she has a good relationship with her parents and siblings. Vivian is not in an intimate relationship, and she seems to have trouble in maintaining long term relationships.
From the interview, Vivian is struggling to adjust to adulthood life. Vivian graduated five months ago; she is living alone in a small apartment, and she finds it very lonely. While at the University, she had a perfect social life because her friends were always there, but now she only meets up with friends once or twice a week over drinks. Vivian has made new friends at the office, though she does not consider them real friends. She is thinking of taking up evening classes or a hobby to keep her busy and to make new friends.
Vivian reports that she is overwhelmed with new responsibilities, rent and utilities are expensive, and her internship does not pay much. She is worried about her future; she is worried she might not get a good job and lead a life she imagined she would.
David*
David is a 25-year-old accountant in a small procurement firm. David did not share much like Vivian but answered all the interview questions. David graduated two years ago with a bachelor of commerce degree, and he is a certified CPA. David has worked with the procurement firm for almost two years and is hoping to be promoted or to get a better opportunity elsewhere.
David and his older brother were brought up by a single mother. The father was not in the picture, and David feels that they had to grow up early to help her mother. David communicates with his brother regularly, but only visits his mother over the holidays. David does not have much of a social life, and he prefers to work long hours. He wishes he had a better social life, over the weekends; he hangs out with his brother, his girlfriend, and occasionally his colleagues.
David seems to be handling adulthood responsibilities well. David wants to take the next step with his girlfriend, but he is afraid he might not be able to provide for the family. David has been with his girlfriend Emma* for almost two years, and he wants to propose to her.
Comparing and Contrasting
The two individuals are in the early adulthood stage, and they are navigating different challenges that come with early adulthood (Ashford & Lecroy, 2009). They are only two years apart, and they have certain similarities, they are at the initial stage of their careers, and they are on the lookout for something better. A rewarding career will give them some sense of stability. Additionally, the two individuals wish they had better social lives than the ones they have at the moment.
On the contrary, Vivian is a friendly person, and she has a lot of friends. She does not get to see her friends regularly anymore, but they meet up at least once a week to have fun. Vivian also has a good relationship with both her parents and her siblings. She is open with family about most aspects of her life, and her mother gives her advice on the early adulthood problems she faces. David does not have a close relationship with his mother like Vivian, but he is close with his brother. Also, David does not have a busy social life, and he wishes he had more friends to have fun with like Vivian.
Regarding adulthood responsibilities, David seems to be handling them better. David has worked as an accountant for two years; he does not have a problem with adulthood responsibilities like paying bills as compared to Vivian. However, David is worried that if he proposes to his girlfriend soon, he might have a problem with providing for her and the family. David has been in an intimate relationship for almost two years, yet Vivian complained that she cannot maintain romantic relationships for long.
Vivian and David have unique psychological and social factors that determine their social functioning. Social functioning refers to an individual’s interaction with the environment, and the ability to fulfill their roles such as work, social, activities, and to maintain relationships. Vivian is a friendly individual with good relationships with friends and family. Vivian communicates well with people in her social cycle and engages in fun group activities. Vivian was brought up in a loving and happy environment, and she wants to lead such a life even in adulthood. Despite being well adjusted socially, Vivian has problems in making intimate relationships work because she does not want to settle for the sake of being in a relationship. On the other hand, David accepts that he has a poor social life, but he is glad he has his brother and his girlfriend.
Psychologically, David seems to be more developed in comparison to Vivian. David has a better grasp on adult responsibilities and appears more grounded. He is more committed given his ability to be in an intimate relationship for two years in comparison to Vivian who cannot stay in relationships for over six months. David’s upbringing could have a role; David seems to be looking for stability. David has complex thinking; he evaluates external expectations and tends to look at the bigger picture. Vivian seems to think more like an individual in late teenage, and tends to make decisions based on consequences.
Lifespan Development Theories
According to Robinson et al. (2013), early adulthood has a unique set of challenges as one transition to adulthood. Most nations recognize the age of 18 as the official age for transitioning to adulthood, such that individuals over 18 have the legal right to marry, vote, gain full-time employment, drink, and engage in all adulthood activities. Individuals in their teenage years often want freedom, but when they gain freedom in the early adulthood stage, they realize that freedom comes with a lot of responsibilities.
Erik Erikson classifies early adulthood period as a period of intimacy versus isolation (Robinson, 2013). Erikson posits that every stage of lifespan development has unique challenges, and the predominant challenge for early adulthood is intimacy versus isolation. At this stage, individuals are forming committed relationships with other people, and the relationships tend to be romantic and intimate in nature. Individuals in early adulthood are interested in forming lasting relationships. Erikson defines intimate relationships as those characterized by closeness and honesty ( Erikson, 1994).
Individuals who solve the intimacy versus isolation conflict in early adulthood form meaningful relationships with others. They forge strong relationships with friends, family, and intimate partners; hence they will not lead lonely lives. Robinson et al. (2013) argue that they are other significant challenges in early adulthood. With the newfound independence, individuals in early adulthood have to establish their identity and develop emotional stability to help them navigate adulthood challenges. Young adults have to prepare themselves for serious adulthood responsibilities like marriage and children, as well as economic responsibility.
Piaget’s stages of life development are classified into four: sensorimotor stage, pre-operational stage, concrete operational stage, and formal operational stage. The formal operational stage starts at the age of 11 to adulthood, in this stage an individual can process abstract concepts. Piaget argued that this is the last stage of intellectual development as individuals in this stage will keep accumulating knowledge, but they do experience a lot of cognitive changes. Piaget’s theory of life development has notable similarities with Freud’s psychosexual theory. Freud argued that children and adults go through unique sexual drives that determine their stage of development. There are five stages of psychosexual development; they are: oral, anal, phallic, latency, and genital. The last stage begins at the age of 12, during this stage, sexual impulses come back, and if an individual went through well, he/she would develop appropriate sexual behavior which leads to marriage.
Alternatively, Levinson's four life stages classify lifespan development into four stages, childhood and adolescence, early adulthood, middle adulthood, and late adulthood (Lewis & Ryan, 2014). According to Levinson, early adults start thinking about their place in the world away from the established relationships at home and school. They also learn to develop a sense of identity and stability to help them navigate the uncertainties of early adulthood.
Piaget’s and Freud’s perspectives on early adulthood are generalized in comparison to Erikson’s perspective. Both Piaget and Freud believe that psychological and cognitive development reaches its peak at 11 and 12 years respectively. Erikson’s developmental stages focus on individual stages within adulthood.
Conclusion
Lifespan development theorists like Erikson, Freud, and Piaget associate different stages with certain characteristics. Erikson asserts that the biggest issue in early adulthood is intimacy versus isolation, but he acknowledges that the previous developmental stages can affect one’s social functioning in early adulthood.
From interviewing Vivian and David, it is evident that they both have a great deal of challenges and uncertainty about their lives. Vivian just finished school, and she is worried that she might not be able to handle adulthood financial responsibilities, she is also worried about changes in her social life, and desires to be in an intimate relationship. David has been in a romantic relationship for almost two years, but his social life is wanting. David intends to take the next step, but he is worried he might not be able to provide. Both individuals are still developing socially and emotionally, and they are trying to reconcile their freedom and identities they formed in their teenage with the responsibilities of adult life. Individuals in early adulthood often try to change their behavior and expectations as they realize that adulthood is approaching.
References
Ashford, J. B., & LeCroy, C. (2009). Human behavior in the social environment: A multidimensional perspective . Nelson Education.
Erikson, E. H. (1994). Identity: Youth and crisis (No. 7). WW Norton & Company.
Lewis, C. C., & Ryan, J. (2014). Age and influence tactics: a life-stage development theory perspective. The International Journal of Human Resource Management , 25 (15), 2146-2158.
Robinson, O. C., Wright, G. R., & Smith, J. A. (2013). The holistic phase model of early adult crisis. Journal of Adult Development , 20 (1), 27-37.
