Flourishing in Emerging Adulthood Positive Development During the Third Decade of Life

Flourishing in Emerging Adulthood highlights the third decade of life as a time in which individuals have diverse opportunities for positive development. There is mounting evidence that this time period, at least for a significant majority, is a unique developmental period in which positive development is fostered. Dr. Lene Arnett Jensen highlights the importance of this work in an engaging foreword, and chapters are written by leading scholars in diverse disciplines who address various aspects of flourishing. They discuss multiple aspects of positive development including how young people flourish in key areas of emerging adulthood (e.g., identity, love, work, worldviews), the various unique opportunities afforded to young people to flourish, how flourishing might look different around the world, and how flourishing can occur in the face of challenge. Most chapters are accompanied by first-person essays written by a range of emerging adults who exemplify the aspect of flourishing denoted in that chapter and make note of how choices and experiences have helped them transition to adulthood. Taken together, this innovative collection provides rich evidence and examples of how young people are flourishing as a group and as individuals in a variety of settings and circumstances. This unique resource will be useful to students, faculty, professionals, clinicians, and university personnel who work with young adults or who study development during emerging adulthood.

Laura M. Padilla-Walker, PhD, is an Associate Professor in the School of Family Life at Brigham Young University. Her research focuses on how parents and other socialization agents (e.g., media, siblings) help to foster prosocial and moral development during adolescence and emerging adulthood.

Larry J. Nelson, PhD, is a Professor in the School of Family Life at Brigham Young University. His research examines social and emotional development in childhood with a particular emphasis in shy and withdrawn behaviors, flourishing and floundering during the third decade of life, and the role of parents and culture in the transition to adulthood.

Foreword by Lene Arnett Jensen
About the Editors
Contributors

Section 1: Positive Development during Emerging Adulthood

1. Flourishing in Emerging Adulthood: An Understudied Approach to the Third Decade of Life
Laura M. Padilla-Walker and Larry J. Nelson

2. Identity Formation and Moral Development in Emerging Adulthood
Daniel Lapsley and Sam A. Hardy
Emerging Adult Essay: Between "being" and "having": How faith and charity changed my life

3. The Role of Purpose Among Emerging Adults
Kendall Cotton Bronk and Rachel Baumsteiger
Emerging Adult Essay: Be japy - We make people happy

4. Healthy Transitions to Family Formation
Erin Holmes, Geoffrey Brown, Kevin Schafer, and Nate Stoddard
Emerging Adult Essay: Success Through Hands and Feet
Emerging Adult Essay: Charlie and Me

5. Healthy Transitions to Work
Phil Gardner and Georgia Chao
Emerging Adult Essay: Surviving the Usual
Emerging Adult Essay: What Color is your Collar

6. The Role of Civic and Political Participation in Successful Early Adulthood
Dan Hart and Anne Van Goethem
Emerging Adult Essay: History Shapes Us, Molds Us, and is Part of Us
Emerging Adult Essay: Generation Citizen

7. Environmental Activism in Emerging Adulthood
Kyle Matsuba, Susan Alisat, and Michael Pratt
Emerging Adult Essay: Founder, Spirit Bear Youth Coalition
Emerging Adult Essay: Turning our Unfortunate Past into our Strengths: The Story of Ruganzu

8. Positive Relationships as an Indicator of Flourishing During Emerging Adulthood
Laura Padilla-Walker, Madison Memmott-Elison, and Larry Nelson
Emerging Adult Essay: Change
Emerging Adult Essay: Grandparents' Influence on Developmental Growth

9. "I Think, Therefore I Do": Cognitions Related to Flourishing in Emerging Adulthood
Larry Nelson, Nathan Jorgensen, and Adam Rogers
Emerging Adult Essay: Marriage: It is our cornerstone rather than capstone

Section 2: Unique Opportunities for Service during Emerging Adulthood

10. National Service as an Institutional Pathway to Flourishing
Victoria Faust and Constance Flanagan

11. Cultural Immersion as a Context for Promoting Global Citizenship and Personal Agency in Young Adults
Bryan Sokol, Katie Gauthier Donnelly, Justin Vilbig, and Katie Monsky
Emerging Adult Essay: Crossing Borders
Emerging Adult Essay: Finding Purpose Through a Romanian Adventure

12. Military Service in Midlife
Meredith Kleykamp, Ryan Kelty, and David Segal
Emerging Adult Essay: Taking the Long Road

13. Crucibles of Transformation: Religious Service and Emerging Adults
Pamela King and Christine Merola
Emerging Adult Essay: Sweden: A Beautiful Crucible
Emerging Adult Essay: My Crucible Flame: My Encounter with the Street Children of Lima, Peru

Section 3: Positive Development Around the World

14. Positive Development in Africa
Joseph Lah Lo-oh
Emerging Adult Essay: Overcoming Challenges During Young Adulthood
Emerging Adult Essay: My Life My Struggle

15. Volunteer Work among Young Adults in Asia
Ben Law, Daniel Shek, and Rosemary Liang
Emerging Adult Essay: The positive impact of volunteerism on young adults

16. Flourishing Through Participation: Positive Young Adult Development in Australia and New Zealand
Bonnie L. Barber
Emerging Adult Essay: Sport as a vehicle for growth

17. Flourishing in European Emerging Adults: The Challenges of Positive Development in a Continent of Inequality
Oliver Robinson and Rita Zukauskiene
Emerging Adult Essay: In a strange land but a stranger no more

18. Positive Development in Latin American Emerging Adults
Alicia Facio, Maria Cecilia Sireix, and Maria Eugenia Prestofelippo
Emerging Adult Essay: I Believe

Section 4: Positive Development in the Face of Challenge

19. Former Foster Care Youth and Resilient Functioning in Young Adulthood: Predictors of Success and Future Research Directions
Manfred Van Dulmen and Haylee DeLuca
Emerging Adult Essay: Stepping in when others step back

20. Healing From Inner City Violence
Jocelyn Smith

21. Offender Rehabilitation and Reentry during Emerging Adulthood: A Review and Introduction of a New Approach
Michael Rocque, Judy Plummer-Beale, and Agneiska Serwick

22. The Transition to Adulthood for Those With Disabilities
Ryan Kellems, Dawn Rowe, Denya Palmer, and Caroline Williams
Emerging Adult Essay: Jenny Lu Designs
Emerging Adult Essay: Life Moving Forward: A Personal Perspective on Transitioning into Adulthood

23. Emerging Adults Who have Flourished Through a Physical Health Challenge
Jaehee Yi, Tian Tian, and Jonghee Kim
Emerging Adult Essay: Cancer: Why I can't look at anything the same again

24. Positive Development during Emerging Adulthood for Queer Populations
Christina Peter, Russell Toomey, Justin Heinze, and Stacey Horn
Emerging Adult Essay: Pathways to positive development for Queer Emerging Adults

25. Emerging Adults and Migration: Diversity and Social Contributions
Hinda Seif and Jason Jenkins

Index