Front cover image for Coming of age in times of uncertainty

Coming of age in times of uncertainty

"Adulthood is taken for granted. It connotes the end of childhood, the resolution to the "storm and stress" period of adolescence. This conception is strongly entrenched in the sociology of youth and the sociology of the life course as well as in the policy arena. At the same time, adulthood itself remains unarticulated; journey's end remains conceptually fixed and theoretically uncontested. Adulthood, then, is both central to the social imagination and neglected as an area of sociological investigation, something that has been noted by sociologists over the last four decades. Going beyond the overwhelmingly psychological literature, this book draws on original qualitative research and theories of social recognition and thus presents a first step towards filling an important gap in our understanding of the meaning of adulthood."--pub. desc
Print Book, English, 2007
Berghahn Books, New York, 2007
xi, 144 pages ; 24 cm
9781845452858, 1845452852
74987810
Introduction
Representations of adulthood
Adulthood, individualization, and the life course
Adulthood and social recognition
From adulthood as a goal to youth as a value
New adult voices I : the meaning of adulthood
New adult voices II : without a center that holds
Conclusion: Redefining adulthood
Epilogue