Answer:
Youth analysts are increasingly speaking of a new phase in the life course between adolescence and adulthood, an elongated phase of semiautonomy, variously called “postadolescence,” “youth,” or “emerging adulthood” (Arnett, 2000). During this time, young people are relatively free from adult responsibilities and able to explore diverse career and life options. There is evidence that “emerging adults” in their 20s feel neither like adults nor like adolescents; instead, they consider themselves in some ways like each. At the same time, given the wide variety of perceived and actual options available to them, the transition to adulthood has become increasingly “destructured” and “individualized” (Shanahan, 2000). Youth may begin to make commitments to work and to significant others, but these are more tentative than they will be later. Jobs are more likely to be part-time than at older ages, particularly while higher education, a priority for a growing number of youth, is pursued. There is increasing employment among young people in jobs limited by contract, denoted as contingent or temporary. Such jobs are often obtained through temporary job service agencies. Young people are also increasingly cohabiting prior to marriage or as an alternative to marriage.
This extended period of youth or postadolescence is filled with experimentation, suggesting that linking career preparation to military service might be attractive to a wider age range of youth than among traditionally targeted 17–18-year-olds who are just leaving high school (especially extending to youth in their early and mid-20s). But what about their values of citizenship and patriotism? Are young Americans motivated to serve? Are their parents and counselors supportive?
Explanation:
The committee is aware that responses to questions designed to elicit attitudinal responses are subject to varying interpretations by respondents and, therefore, must be treated accordingly. This is one of the reasons why our analysis focuses on changes over time rather than the absolute value of the response.
