Monday, December 21, 2009

Song "Second Chance" Has EA Themes

Jeff Arnett e-mailed me about a song, "Second Chance," from the group Shinedown. I must confess that I hadn't heard of either the song or the group. A video of the song is available via the group's website and the lyrics can be seen here.

Jeff writes of the song that, "It's a powerful dramatization of a point I've made in my 2004 book, that for EAs with a troubled family life, leaving home is often a way for them to make great changes for the better in their lives" (see pp. 50-51).

Having now listened to the song, I think it also illustrates the self-focus element of emerging adulthood, the point at which a young person transitions to taking full responsibility for him or herself. Here are some sample lyrics:

Tell my mother,
Tell my father
I've done the best I can
To make them realize
This is my life


and

I'm not afraid of
What I have to say
This is my one and
Only voice

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Parental Assistance to Grown Children

The December issue of Journal of Marriage and Family includes an article by Karen Fingerman and colleagues entitled "Giving to the Good and the Needy: Parental Support of Grown Children" (abstract, press release from Purdue University). The theme of today's young people receiving greater assistance and for longer periods of time than their counterparts from previous generations is not new. What's interesting about this new article is that the greatest amount of parental aid (emotional as well as material) flowed not just to children having the most trouble making the transition to adulthood, but also to the most successful ones. The authors suggested that parents may assist successful children to bask in the latter's achievements (and their own childrearing) or to sew the seeds for the child to assist the parents in their old age.