In recent decades, the lives of people in their late teens and twenties have changed so dramatically that a new stage of life has developed. In an original paper published in 2000, Jeffrey Jensen Arnett identified this period, coining it "emerging adulthood," and he distinguished it from both the adolescence that precedes it and the young adulthood that comes in its wake. His new paradigm received a surge of scholarly attention after his first book on the topic launched the field, and both a flourishing society and journal developed to further expand this area of research. Studies and publications on emerging adulthood now abound, and the leading research has yet to be organized into a single handbook that covers the field.

The Oxford Handbook of Emerging Adulthood is the first and only comprehensive compilation spanning the field of emerging adulthood. Expertly edited by Arnett, this Handbook is comprised of cutting-edge chapters written by leading scholars in developmental psychology. Topics include theoretical perspectives and structural influences in the field; cognitive development during emerging adulthood; family, friendship, and romantic relationships; sexual identity and orientation; education and work; leisure and media use; mental health; religious and political beliefs; positive development; and substance abuse and crime, to name a few. Sure to be the definitive resource for researchers, scholars, and students studying emerging adulthood, this Handbook will pave the way for new scholarship in this expanding area of inquiry and serve as an excellent resource for the wider field of developmental psychology.

Jeffrey Jensen Arnett, PhD, is a Research Professor in the Department of Psychology at Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts. He originally proposed the theory of emerging adulthood to describe the lives of today's 18-29-year-olds, and he is the Founding President and Executive Director of the Society for the Study of Emerging Adulthood.

1. Introduction: Emerging Adulthood Theory and Research: Where We Are and Where We Should Go
Jeffrey Jensen Arnett

Part 1. THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES

2. Emerging Adulthood: Developmental Stage, Theory, or Nonsense?
Moin Syed

3. Generational perspectives on Emerging Adulthood: A Focus on Narcisissm
Jacob A. Paulsen, Moin Syed, Kali Trzesniewski, and Brent Donnellan

Part 2. STRUCTURAL INFLUENCES

4. Emerging Adulthood Theory and Social Class
Manuela du Bois-Reymond

5. How Gender Shapes Emerging Adulthood
Jerika C. Norona, Teresa M. Preddy, and Deborah P. Welsh

6. How Race and Ethnicity Shape Emerging Adulthood
Moin Syed and Lauren L. Mitchell

Part 3. COGNITIVE AND BRAIN

7. Cognitive Development in the Emerging Adult: The Emergence of Complex Cognitive Skills
Patricia M. King and Karen Strohm Kitchener

8. Emerging Adulthood Brain Development
Bradley Taber-Thomas and Koraly Perez-Edgar

9. Social Cognitive Development in Emerging Adulthood
Daniel Lapsley and Ryan D. Woodbury

Part 4. FAMILY RELATIONS

10. Emerging Adulthood in the Context of Family
Karen L. Fingerman and Jenjira J. Yahirun

11. Leaving Home: Antecedents, Consequences, and Cultural Patterns
Inge Seiffge-Krenke

12. Closeness, Distance, and Rapprochement in Sibling Relationships
Miri Scharf and Shmuel Shulman

13. Maturing and Aging Together: Emerging Adult Grandchildren-Grandparents' Relationships
Miri Scharf

Part 5. FRIENDSHIPS, ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIPS, AND SEXUALITY

14. Growing Up with a Little Help from Their Friends in Emerging Adulthood
Carolyn McNamara Barry, Stephanie D. Madsen, and Alyssa DeGrace

15. The Challenge of Romantic Relationships in Emerging Adulthood
Shmuel Shulman and Jennifer Connolly

16. Casual Sexual Relationships and Experiences in Emerging Adulthood
Shannon E. Claxton and Manfred H.M. van Dulmen

17. Contemporary Issues in Sexual Orientation and Identity Development in Emerging Adulthood
Elizabeth M. Morgan

18. On the Horizon: Marriage Timing, Beliefs, and Consequences in Emerging Adulthood
Brian J. Willoughby and Jason S. Carroll

Part 6. EDUCATION AND WORK

19. Developing Self-Authorship in College to Navigate Emerging Adulthood
Marcia Baxter Magolda and Kari Taylor

20. School-to-Work Transitions in Emerging Adulthood
E. Anne Marshall and Kathryn Butler

21. Emerging Adults and Work: A Model of Phase-Adequate Engagement
Julia Dietrich and Kateriina Salmela-Aro

Part 7. LEISURE AND MEDIA USE

22. Media Uses in Emerging Adulthood
Sarah M. Coyne, Laura M. Padilla-Walker, and Emily Howard

23. Television Uses and Effects in Emerging Adulthood
L. Monique Ward, Rita Seabrook, Soraya Giaccardi, and Angie Zuo

Part 8. THE SELF

24. Selves in a World of Stories During Emerging Adulthood
Kate C. McLean and Andrea V. Breen

25. Identity in Emerging Adulthood: Reviewing the Field and Looking Forward
Seth J. Schwartz, Byron L. Zamboanga, Koen Luyckx, Alan Meca, and Rachel Ritchie

26. "Adulthood" By Whose Definition? The Complexity of Emerging Adults' Conceptions of Adulthood
Larry J. Nelson and Stephanie S. Luster

27. Life Authorship in Emerging Adulthood
Dan P. McAdams

Part 9. CULTURAL BELIEFS

28. Moral Development during Emerging Adulthood
Laura M. Padilla-Walker

29. The Experience of Meaning-Making: The Role of Religousness and Spirituality in Emerging Adults' Lives
Carolyn McNamara Barry and Mona Abo-Zena

30. Political Beliefs and Civic Engagement in Emerging Adulthood
Jennifer Núñez and Constance Flanagan

Part 10. RISK AND RESILIENCE

31. Mental Health in Emerging Adulthood
Jennifer L. Tanner

32. Substance Use in Emerging Adulthood
Judy A. Andrews and Erika Westling

33. Crime and Punishment in Emerging Adulthood
Jessica M. Craig and Alex R. Piquero

34. Aging Out of Foster Care in Emerging Adulthood
Johanna K.P. Greeson and Allison E. Thompson

35. Homeless Emerging Adults: A Developmental Perspective
Sanna Thompson, Kristin Ferguson, Kimberly Bender, Stephanie Begun, and Yeonwoo Kim

36. Positive Development and Resilience in Emerging Adulthood
Meredith O'Connor, Ann V. Sanson, John W. Toumbourou, Mary T. Hawkins, Primrose Letcher, Paige Williams, and Craig Olsson