Transitioning Through Emerging Adulthood and Physical Health Implications

Abstract

Emerging adulthood represents a developmental period marked by many life transitions as 18- to 29-year-olds leave adolescence to adulthood. Some individuals can successfully navigate through this transitional period, whereas others may struggle. Past research has shown individual differences in the perceptions of the (un)success of emerging adulthood transition can predict mental health outcomes; however, there is a paucity of studies testing physical health outcomes. Emerging adult participants ( N > 2,000) completed measures of emerging adulthood, stress, sex, and somatic physical health symptoms, and results showed that the perceptions of emerging adulthood dimensions representative of an unsuccessful transition (negativity/instability) positively predicted stress and somatic physical health concerns, but positive emerging adulthood transition dimensions (experimentation/possibilities) negatively predicted these outcomes. Further, stress mediated the simple relationships between the aforementioned emerging adulthood dimensions and physical health symptoms. Finally, despite sex differences in all measured variables, participant sex did not moderate these overall relationships.