Emerging into Adulthood

The process of entering adulthood is, as we have seen, increasingly complex, and diverse. Overall, adolescence is extended into the third decade, though some adolescents who are among the more disadvantaged take a ‘fast track’ route into adulthood. For others, the ‘slow track’ route, taking longer to fully enter adulthood, implies that the process into adulthood needs reconceptualising to include thinking that the transition to adulthood can last at least the period up to the mid twenties. Chapters 1 and 2 explored this new thinking about the transition to adulthood. Amongst the many ways of characterising the route from adolescence into adulthood, we have focused on the tensions between individualised and relational aspects of subjectivity. This chapter explores the different ways that adolescents enter adulthood — or emerge into it. How taking up different adult roles impacts on subjectivity is discussed.