“I Don’t Feel like an Adult”—Self-Perception of Delayed Transition to Adulthood in NEET Sample

Anna Parola (), Lucia Donsì and Santa Parrello
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Anna Parola: Department of Humanities, University of Naples Federico II, 80133 Naples, Italy
Lucia Donsì: Department of Humanities, University of Naples Federico II, 80133 Naples, Italy
Santa Parrello: Department of Humanities, University of Naples Federico II, 80133 Naples, Italy

Societies, 2023, vol. 13, issue 7, 1-12

Abstract: Nowadays, there has been a debate about factors still crucial for the actual definition of adulthood and the role played by uncertainty in employment, the economic crisis, changing cultural contexts, and globalization in the adulthood transition. This study aimed to provide a deeper understanding of the self-perception of the transition to adulthood among the Italian NEET (young people not engaged in education, employment, or training). A group of 53 NEETs were asked to assess their transition from adolescence to adulthood by rating themselves on a scale from 1 (=adolescence) to 7 (=adulthood). They were also asked to reflect on the reasons why they felt like adults or not. The qualitative data were coded using the criteria of adulthood attainment proposed by Arnett’s markers of adulthood scale. Analysis showed that the category with the highest frequency was role transition, and almost all the NEETs in this category felt “in-between”. The excerpts portrayed the centrality of work as a crucial factor in self-perception as an adult. The research emphasizes the importance of mixed-methods research to understand where and how people feel about the transition to adulthood, aspects that are difficult to grasp using only quantitative data.

Keywords: transition to adulthood; NEET; role transition; mixed-method research (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A13 A14 P P0 P1 P2 P3 P4 P5 Z1 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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