The Adolescent Transition to Emerging Adulthood and College

Let’s talk family dynamics and development - some of my favorite topics!

It’s pretty widely known that the transition from adolescence to adulthood can be a difficult one, but there are many factors that determine how difficult it is.  The shift from high school to college is significant for teenagers as it is coupled with some big developmental changes, high emotions, and overall major adjustments.  As teenagers move into the later years of high school and possibly begin the college admissions process, they are entering a life stage called “emerging adulthood.” This is the time when they begin to take on adult responsibilities, seek out autonomy, and develop more self-reliance -  all good things!

Late adolescence and emerging adulthood is often perceived as a time when they distance themselves from their parents.  However, research tells us that adolescents value the connection with their parents and family and yearn to maintain those relationships during this time!  We usually see the decline in family cohesion when children reach early adolescence (pre-teen age), likely due to the want for independence and time spent with friends.  But even through the rise in disagreements and hostility, teens and parents still naturally yearn for a healthy and supportive relationship. At late adolescence (late teens), levels of family cohesion often regain their pre-adolescence status, and familial relationships continue to provide nurture and connection in the young adult’s development even years after high school.

Basically - society tells us that during age 16-18, teens just want to GET AWAY from their parents and move out, but that really isn’t the case.  They’re moving out of that early to mid adolescence time and into a stage of desire for family support.

So what about when the child begins the transition to college?

Research has shown repeatedly that the pre-college characteristics and pre-existing personal factors impact adjustment during the college transition.  There’s a theory that suggests positive academic and social trajectories throughout the transition to college can predict a more positive academic outcome by the end of college.  Personal factors such as the level of parental support during this time, academic involvement, and parental attachment were found to be important predictors of social adjustment, institutional attachment, and persistence in college.  In other words, the more positive relationships, parental support, and academic involvement a student has, the better they will do in college!

When thinking about students who attend college in another town or city, they often feel higher levels of social anxiety, depression, homesickness, and loneliness during the transition to college.  However, students with a higher quality of parental support and healthier attachment may experience a more positive transition. As family and close relationships are factors in an adolescent’s identity, and considering the significance of the parent-child relationship through adolescence, it is understandable that characteristics of the relationship affect adjustment later in this important developmental transition.

If you walk away with anything after reading this, know that family background, cohesion, parental support are significant predictors of early assimilation into college, and that it is NORMAL for pre-teens to distance themselves (because they’ll probably come back around!).