It has been argued that the transition from adolescence to adulthood has been prolonged in many industrialized countries with many young adults pursuing a higher education degree. Accordingly, Arnett introduced a new life phase "emerging adulthood" in which the transition from education to work is a central event. The current systematic…

Compared the identity-formation process of three groups of Norwegian late adolescents: university students, employed youths, and unemployed youths. Interview data indicated that all groups considered work of primary importance to sense of identity. Three factors initiated identity transitions differently across the groups: qualities of vocational…