Young adulthood from 22-34 is a period of transition and identity exploration regarding love, work and worldviews. Identity is shaped by culture, family, social environment and experiences. Social groups and relationships provide support and influence how people see themselves. Major life changes like having children, relationships, jobs and stress levels impact adult identity and roles. Hormones also influence physical traits and behaviors related to gender and sexuality.

1. Young adulthood
(Identity)
• Hunter Forte, Sara, Jackie, and Cierra
• 11/11/13
• Socw323
• Dr. Alston

2. Sara
• 1) Young Adulthood, from 22-34 years of life
• 2) “Characterized by a period of transition into adult roles but
constitutes a distinct period of the life course that emphasized change
and exploration of possible life directions in love, work, and
worldviews” (Ashford and Lecroy).
• 3) Developmental tasks…
• 4) Behind the task, there’s the task-maker
• 5) Who is that person?
• 6) IDENTITY

3. Culture and Young Adulthood
• 1) Activity: Everyone think of how they would define themselves by three characteristics…
• 2) Ascribed v. Acquired Identity
• 3) We are shaped by our surroundings
• 4) According to the ecological systems theory, we can only be understood within the contexts in which
we live.
• 5) Comparison
• 6) Culture
• 7) Holism – “The whole is more than the sum of its parts” (K. Richardson, 2000).
• 8) Kriesberg mentions how our “Identities are constructed on the basis of various traits and
experiences” (2003).
• “The ‘I’ invoked is not clearly divisible from ‘the world,’ and no inviolable interior space, no fixed essence
which we can unequivocally label ‘private,’ can be distilled out from the domains of what we call politics,
economics, language, culture, and history (Kondo, 1990).

4. Social Identity
• 9) How do social groups form identity?
• 10) Social structures can be a source of support, or oppression.
• “People strive to overcome fear and uncertainty and therefore adopt a strong social
identity.” (Korostilina)
• “The social environment… shape and place limits on behavior and… are constructed by
the other people who inhabit a person’s social world.” (Ashford and Lecroy)
• 11) OR
• 12) Participation in a group can help shape us into who we want to be. “A
psychological group is defined as one that is… significant for the members, to which they
relate themselves subjectively for social comparison and the acquisition of norms and
values,…which influences their attitude and behavior.” (J.C. Turner)

5. Life changes
• 1) Birth of children, starting of own family
• Less time for the adult(s) (mother and father) to spend on selves;
particularly the mother of the child since she stays away from work to be
home with the newborn for months after the child is born
• Adults must make a transition into role of a parent; some women face
Post-Partum Depression (also linked to change in hormones since
pregnancy) but pre-existent stress, the sleep irritability that results from
having to care for the child, mixed feelings about the pregnancy, or lack of
sufficient support system increases the likelihood of post-partum
depression occurring
• Also, with unplanned pregnancies, the mother may be made to feel as
though she is “trapped” and experience contempt or disgust from not first
accomplishing more in life prior to conceiving a child

6. Life changes (cont’d.)
• 2) Maintaining long lasting relationships/support systems
• Having people to depend on for physical and emotional support
positively affects health which in turn generates a person to feel
better about his or her self.
• 3) Marriage/ long-term romantic partners
• Role of “husband” or “wife” provides an identity for the adult to
conform to and additionally gains another relationship that is
considered to be long-term; the married couple is expected to be able
to support and love one another which has a positive effect on the
male’s identity

7. Life changes (cont’d.)
• 4) Occupation
• Often how an adult will self-identify; “I am a psychologist...”; “I am a
teacher...” etc. (in additional to being a mother or father)
• Every job has a set of expectations that must be accommodated into
adult’s everyday life in order to be successful; example: A police
officer must become accustomed to having less free time, no longer
consuming drugs that may have been present in his/her past, possibly
losing friendships due to inability to spend time or the fact that the
relationship could possibly jeopardize having the job as a police
officer, etc.

8. Life changes (cont’d.)
• 5) Stress
• The lower a person’s financial status is, the more he/she is likely to suffer from
stress which increases susceptibility to certain health complications or conditions
such as strokes, depression, heart disease, obesity, etc.
• Households of lower income cannot necessarily afford the healthy foods that
lower risk of diseases/ health conditions or doctor visits; in the same way, lower
income households may be eager to work overtime to earn additional money,
which can take away from time to properly care for one’s health or practice self-
love, again increasing risks of being prone to disease or other health
complications
• The job itself can result in fatal consequences - for example, the firefighters,
police officers, military men/women, etc. that face danger on the job at any given
moment or the stress from the job can negatively (also, positively; eustress) affect
one’s self-image or mental health- for example, police officers and military
personnel that suffer from PTSD
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=TmTGJtMPrPQ

9. Identity
• Culture: The ways young people access culture as users or creators, or
simply participants of a cultural experience and identity, are various
and sometimes experimental. Access to culture goes beyond
accessing cultural products, attending spaces and receiving
information, it is also about an experience of personal development
and enjoyment.

10. Family and social environment are fundamental elements in
encouraging cultural participation and Identity.
• Social relations, family/social environment and school have an
essential importance in building young people’s access to culture and
identity. The studies also show a link between cultural upbringing and
participation. The search for identity is a life-long process that even
psychologists cannot fully define. The family unit plays a significant
role in shaping individuality. Parents may also pass on these traditions
to their children, which helps strengthen their sense of belonging
even in adulthood.

11. Cognitive Development
• Cognitive Growth: changes in thinking, typically described as being
increasingly efficient, creative, or complex; in adulthood, growth may
be promoted by major life events (such as entry into a new career or
the birth of a child) or by brain growth (such as the development of
the frontal lobe) or, perhaps, by interaction of nature and nurture

12. Identity formation
• a crucial part of social development by finding identity it means
merging these two for one cohesive sense of self. Adult stage of
cognition beyond formal operations, called postformal thought. It is
generally applied in social situations and involves intuition and
emotion as well as logic. Criteria include ability to shift between
reasoning and practical considerations; awareness that problems can
have multiple causes and solutions
• http://youtu.be/j2YlksFcCf0

13. Young Adult Sexuality/Intimacy
“Individuals who do identify themselves as gay tend to be well
educated. In fact, twice as many college-educated as high-school-
educated men, and eight times as many college-educated as high-
school-educated women stated they were gay…(Ashford, Lecroy 513)”
Experimentation-the act, process, practice, or an instance of making
experiments.
• Ex.-guys wearing “feminine” clothing and vice-versa
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRdo7WXTVoM
• Intimacy-Different relationships have different expectations which
brings about distinct roles

14. Young Adult Sexuality/Intimacy (cont’d.)
• Ex 1-Guy and girl are dating and he’s expected to show more affection
and be more passionate but, has problems doing so because he’s
never been in a serious relationship
• Ex 2-Guy gets into relationship with girl who has child from previous
relationship and she the new guy to provide a father figure to her
child
• Ex 3-Guy is used to living with parents/guardian but girl he’s with
wants him to live with her in cohabitation

15. Hormones
• Estrogen is the main hormone present in females; associated with the
female reproduction system
• Testosterone is the primary male hormone; associated with aggression and
male sexual characteristics
• Females with an unbalanced hormonal system may experience male traits
such as excess pubic/arm/stomach/facial hair, a deepened voice, more
distinct male-like bone structure, etc., vice versa (with males experiencing
female-like characteristics)
• Overall, hormones influence our outside appearance and how we behave
(in reference to gender roles/expectations) and as a result, have an impact
on Identity (being that gender/sexuality is a grand aspect of Identity)
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7uSbbGHFxQ

16. References
• PAPALIA, D. E., OLDS, S. W., FELDMAN, R. D. P., OLDS, S. W., &
FELDMAN, R. D. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://highered.mcgraw-
hill.com/sites/0073133809/student_view0/chapter13/
• Martha, H. The famil'ys influence on idenity. Retrieved from
http://everydaylife.globalpost.com/familys-influence-identity-
17733.html
• Feixa, C., & Huq, R. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://ec.europa.eu/youth/documents/study-on-youth-access-to-
culture-full-report_en.pdf
• http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0004481/
• http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/150999.php
• Human Behavior in The Social Environment (textbook)

17. References (Cont’d.)
• http://www.beyondintractability.org/essay/identity-issues
• (Germain 1991)
• (K. Richardson, 2000)
• http://sociology.about.com/b/2011/03/25/sociology-concept-
spotlight-achieved-status-versus-ascribed-status.htm
• (Korostilina).
• Ashford, Jose. Lecroy, Winston. 2013. Human Behavior in the Social
Environment. Belmont, CA. Brooks/Cole.
• Experimentation. 11, November, 2013. Dictionary.com. 11/11/2013