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Stability and Change in Positive Development During Young Adulthood

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Abstract

Calls have been made for a greater focus on successful development and how positive functioning can be conceptualized in theory and empirical research. Drawing on a large Australian community sample (N = 890; 61.7% female), this article examines the structure and stability of positive development at two time points during young adulthood. Previously, we developed and empirically tested a model of positive development at 19–20 years comprised of five first-order constructs (civic action and engagement, trust and tolerance of others, trust in authorities and organisations, social competence, and life satisfaction) and a second-order positive development construct. In the current study, we replicated this model at 23–24 years and found that it was again a good fit for the data, and was equally applicable for young men and women. Hence, positive development can be conceptualized according to five important dimensions at both ages. While variable-oriented tests suggested continuity in levels of positive development, person-oriented analyses revealed four distinct patterns of positive development over time—two reflecting stability (stable high [34.5%] and stable very low [11.6%]) and two characterized by change (low/average increasing [30.4%] and average decreasing [23.5%]). There were significant differences in the gender composition of these groups, with young women overrepresented in the more favourable groups. Thus, despite mean level stability, positive development is characterized by change for many young people, suggesting the importance of identifying factors that support young people’s capacity for positive functioning over this transitional period. The current findings contribute to our understanding of the nature and course of positive development over this important period.

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Acknowledgments

The ATP study is led and managed by the Australian Institute of Family Studies, and further information is available from the ATP website (www.aifs.gov.au/atp). Funding for this analysis was supported through grants from the Australian Research Council. Professor Toumbourou and Dr Craig Olsson are supported by a Victorian Health Promotion Foundation Senior Research Fellowship. We wish to acknowledge the work of professors Margot Prior and Frank Oberklaid, along with other collaborators who have contributed to the Australian Temperament Project. We would also like to sincerely thank the participating families for their loyal support of the study. We are grateful to the anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Paediatrics, Royal Children’s Hospital, The University of Melbourne, Flemington Rd, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia

    Mary T. Hawkins, Primrose Letcher, Ann Sanson & Meredith O’Connor

  2. School of Psychology, Deakin University, Geelong, VIC, Australia

    John W. Toumbourou

  3. Centre for Adolescent Health, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, Royal Children’s Hospital, The University of Melbourne, Flemington Rd, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia

    Craig Olsson

  4. Psychological Sciences & Department of Paediatrics, The University of Melbourne, Flemington Rd, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia

    Craig Olsson

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  1. Mary T. Hawkins
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  2. Primrose Letcher
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  4. Meredith O’Connor
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  5. John W. Toumbourou
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  6. Craig Olsson
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Correspondence to Mary T. Hawkins.

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Table 4 Comparison of retained sample and original cohort on characteristics at recruitment in 1983
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Hawkins, M.T., Letcher, P., Sanson, A. et al. Stability and Change in Positive Development During Young Adulthood. J Youth Adolescence 40, 1436–1452 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-011-9635-9

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