Part 1: Introduction*
*This will be a multi-part blog on this topic, and credit for much of the research and facts are from Richard A Ross. I heard Richard give a talk on this topic about a year ago and you can learn more here.
It seems more and more it feels that kids are growing up too fast in our society. But something else is trending…these kids aren’t growing up. And no matter who you are, parent, youth worker, etc, you NEED TO BE AWARE of this trend. This trend is changing society as we know it.
Think about this…prior to 150 years ago older teenagers were…
- Mostly married and parenting
- Working full-time jobs
- In high capacity leadership (leading armies, sailing ships, etc)
- Doing “hard” things (building businesses, families, etc).
“Adolescence” is a fairly new term and idea in our American culture. Before adolescence was “created” as a life stage you pretty much went immediately from being a child to being an adult. Past generations saw the majority of 16-25 year olds taking on adult responsibilities and commitments. But since then, things have changed. Older teenagers and young adults are much more hesitant to take on commitments and responsibilities. Why is this?
Dr. Tim Elmore, President of Growing Leaders and author of Generation iY, says “The years between 18 and 25 have become a distinct life stage – a strange ‘no man’s land’ between adolescence and adulthood in which young people stall, putting off adult responsibility.” Look at these trends today that support Elmore’s quote.
Older teenagers and early 20’s…
- 40% of college students return home
- over 50% of 25 year olds say “I am not an adult”
- many young adults have no clear vocational focus
- many aren’t motivated to achieve independence financially
- many aren’t ready to accept lifetime commitments (like marriage & parenting).
There has been a dramatic shift in what is deemed an “adult” today. And this trend of delayed adolescence is happening quickly. Is this good, bad, or neutral? Well, it depends on how you view it. We are going to take a look at what this means for those of us who are connecting to the emerging generation. We are also going to look at what challenges this brings to those of us leading young people today. If you are a parent, youth worker, or even a student read on, this directly affects you.
First of all, what are some reasons for this shift? Richard Ross offers some suggestions, and I’ve added some of my own.
- Overprotective parenting that removes all risks and challenges
- A parenting approach to family that is child-centric
- Increased academic and extra-curricular demands that lessen opportunities for jobs/work
- Teenagers spending an average of 16 hours a week with adults vs. 60 hours with their peers (for majority of human history it was the opposite)
- Online gaming as a release for adventure in guys (13 hours a week)
- Youth ministry environments that under-challenge which bores students
- Changes in health care laws where young adults are still legally dependents
There are multiple factors and many are not included in this short list. Let me say from the outset that my bias is that the trend towards young adults not “growing up” is not a good thing in my opinion. And I believe as adults we need to surround young people with encouragement and the skills to become successful, Christ-following adults who are Kingdom builders redeeming the world for God’s good.
The next blog posts on this topic I’ll be offering some ideas for solutions to parents, youth workers, and to students themselves.
As always, I’d love to get your thoughts and feedback on this and all of our topics. Hit me up on Twitter @jeffeckart #aretheygrowingup or the Never The Same Facebook page where this will be linked.
Jeff Eckart, CEO
Never The Same
© 2015, Never The Same