Entering Adulthood
Establishing close, committed relationships while maintaining an individual identity is this developmental task of young adulthood.
Developing intimacy
An adult who accepts responsibility for personal decisions and their consequences demonstrates this characteristic.
Personal responsibility
Adults may experience this internal struggle when their actual accomplishments do not match the goals they imagined earlier in life.
Reevaluating goals and expectations
Loss of sleep, reduced privacy, financial strain, and increased responsibility are four stresses associated with this adult role.
Parenting
Adults without dependable friends, family, or community connections may experience this painful emotional condition.
Loneliness or social isolation
Selecting a career, becoming financially responsible, and establishing an independent household reflect this developmental task.
Achieving occupational and economic independence
Maintaining satisfying connections with family, friends, coworkers, and intimate partners demonstrates this characteristic.
Changes in appearance, energy, health, fertility, or physical ability require adults to adjust to this developmental reality.
Differences between caregivers about discipline, rules, and responsibilities can create this parenting stress.
Conflict over child-rearing practices
A lack of social support can weaken coping abilities and increase vulnerability to this type of distress.
Psychological or emotional distress
This strong inner understanding of one’s values, abilities, needs, and goals helps an adult make independent decisions.
Personal identity
Adjusting plans after a job loss and seeking new opportunities rather than giving up demonstrates this quality.
Flexibility or adaptability
Changes in appearance, energy, health, fertility, or physical ability require adults to adjust to this developmental reality.
Conflict between personal needs and responsibilities
Guiding children while also caring for aging parents places many middle-aged adults in this generation.
Sandwich generation
Fear of HIV and AIDS may lead some young adults to avoid intimacy, experience anxiety, or change these personal practices.
Sexual behaviors or relationship decisions
Without a stable sense of personal identity, a young adult may depend excessively on others for approval and have difficulty making these.
Choices or commitments
Recognizing strengths and limitations without feeling either worthless or superior demonstrates this.
Realistic self-concept
Questioning the meaning, direction, and accomplishments of one’s life may be described by this familiar term.
A midlife crisis or midlife reevaluation
Poverty, unemployment, discrimination, unsafe housing, inadequate health care, and community violence are examples of these problems.
Environmental stressors
Helping an adult identify problems, recognize strengths, explore alternatives, and make realistic decisions is this therapeutic intervention.
Problem-solving assistance
The ability to form meaningful relationships, assume responsibility, and adapt constructively to change reflects these.
Characteristics of a successful adult
Responsibility, healthy relationships, and adaptability are three characteristics associated with this outcome.
Successful adult functioning
Reevaluating goals, adapting to aging, and balancing personal needs with responsibilities are examples of these.
Internal or developmental problems of adulthood
Environmental problems may reduce access to employment, housing, transportation, education, health care, and these resources needed for coping.
Social and community supports
Providing emotional support, strengthening coping and problem-solving skills, and connecting an adult with appropriate resources are three interventions intended to improve this.
Psychosocial functioning