Introduction
Stage, when individuals shift from childhood dependency to adult independence, is known as emerging adulthood (Wood et al., 2018). The stage begins with finishing mandatory schooling and presents an individual with new freedoms and opportunities, notably postsecondary education, employment, and romantic relationships. Emerging adulthood is manifested in “the onset of adult commitments such as gainful employment, permanent partnership, and parenthood” (Schwartz & Petrova, 2019, p. 305). At the beginning of the stage, most people are dependent on family or social resources, living with their parents or caretakers. Emerging adults gradually become more independent: start living alone, begin long-term relationships, and acquire clear career paths and visions for the future (Wood et al., 2018).
Risky Behaviors
Emerging adulthood presents numerous freedoms, but not all of them are harmful. As a transition from adolescence to full adulthood, the stage is characterized by maximalism when more is more (Schwartz & Petrova, 2019). Individuals want to try an array of new activities that have become more freely available to them, such as drinking, smoking, having casual sex, etc. However, many of these activities require precautions, moderation, or avoidance. Alcohol, nicotine, and drug abuse can have irreparable consequences on one’s well-being. Driving under the influence is a criminal offense and is life-threatening. Casual sex without protection increases the risk of sexually transmitted diseases. Gaming or internet addiction often leads to an unhealthy diet, poor sleep, and a sedentary lifestyle that may affect health.
Substance Abuse
Among all age groups, emerging adults have the highest prevalence. The National Survey on Drug Use and Health (2015) reports that 59.6% of people aged 18-25 years have admitted to regular alcohol consumption, while 37.7% have been binge drinking. Additionally, 19.6% of emerging adults admitted to using marijuana (as cited in Rabbi et al., 2018, p. 2). The prevalence can be explained by ‘peer group culture’ with the high approval of drinking. Drinking is often central to peer groups of young adults. As such, drinking peers influence their friends to drink (Schwartz & Petrova, 2019). Unfortunately, excessive alcohol use leads to other risky behaviors such as DUI, aggression, and unprotected sex. The long-term consequences of drinking are alcoholism and all manner of incurable diseases.
Long-term Consequences
Addictive substances grant immediate pleasure but cost dearly. Fighting dependence is much more complicated than getting dependent. Psychological consequences include withdrawal symptoms, mood, memory, sleep disorders, and sexual dysfunction (HPA, 2014). Physiological damage from long-term drinking and smoking is often life-threatening and incurable. The list is vast and concerns every part of the human body. Alcohol, for example, damages the liver, food pipe, pancreas, intestines, heart, circulation, nervous, and brain systems (HPA, 2014). Additionally, substance abuse accelerates aging, leading to worsening appearance, and is responsible for overall weakness, breathlessness, and tiredness. It causes infertility and eventually death, which leads to a logical conclusion: immediate pleasure is not worth human life.
Risky Sexual Behavior
Emerging adulthood is a period of instability in many aspects, especially in sexual behavior (Wendland et al., 2018). On one side, sexual experimentations are a positive and necessary component of human development. They help explore one’s sexual identity and sexual boundaries. On the other, instability in sexual behavior leads to risky practices. Studies show that young adults “engage in risky sexual practices such as early sexual intercourse, multiple sexual partners, unprotected sexual intercourse, and casual sex” more often than other age groups (Wendland et al., 2018, p. 1). Frequently, risky sexual behavior occurs under the influence of addictive substances and is encouraged by peers.
Dangers of Risky Sexual Behavior
The main danger of risky sexual behavior is sexually transmitted diseases. According to statistics, young adults aged 15-24 years represent 50% of patients diagnosed with STDs (Wendland et al., 2018, p. 1). There are many curable STDs, such as gonorrhea, syphilis, genital warts, and chlamydia. However, four of the diseases are incurable: human immunodeficiency virus, papillomavirus, genital herpes, and hepatitis B. Moreover, papillomavirus is known to cause cancer. As evident from Figure 1, men have higher rates of STDs, which is an indicator of more frequent risky sexual behavior (Wendland et al., 2018). Additional dangers of risky sexual behavior are unwanted pregnancy, possible psychological consequences like self-blame, and negative impact on one’s social life.
Proactive strategy #1
Setting limits requires understanding the dangers of a particular behavior and being proactive and forward-thinking. Reflect on the dangers and decide whether endangerment still seems reasonable, then draw boundaries. It may be hard to make independent decisions within the peer context, but saying ‘yes’ whenever a friend says so is unreasonable. Learn to say ‘no’ when you do not wish to do something (Schwartz & Petrova, 2019).
Finally, the four most evident precautions regarding substance abuse and risky sexual behaviors are:
- avoiding excessive amounts of alcohol and any or at least illegal drugs;
- not having sex under the influence of substances;
- using protection.
Proactive strategy #2
Experiences, positive or negative, can be influential teachers. It is entirely normal to try new things and make mistakes. However, it is essential to learn from mistakes and avoid negative experiences in the future. Another vital point in accepting responsibility is to stop blaming others for negative experiences. Utilizing one’s knowledge in one’s social group to positively affect the norms and behaviors of peers is the key to “decreasing the prevalence of risky behavior” (Schwartz & Petrova, 2019, p. 306). Finally, trying something healthy, for example, jogging or swimming, may prove to be as fun as risk-taking. It is common knowledge that a healthy lifestyle correlates not only to physical well-being but emotional as well.
Proactive strategy #3
Poor mental health, depression, and anxiety, is the main decisive factor for risky behaviors. According to American Psychiatric Association (2013), 13.7% of emerging adults suffer from severe mental problems (Wood et al., 2018, p. 133). It is crucial to seek help from healthcare providers if one feels depressed, suicidal, or self-injurious. Moreover, consulting with teachers or psychologists regarding mental health and behavior may prove fruitful, enabling a positive mentality and healthy psyche. Keeping in touch with loved ones, such as family, and expressing one’s feelings and worries to them are proven to foster resilience. It is one’s adaptability to change during stressful events with a healthy approach (Wood et al., 2018). Taking a break from stressors by doing something one’s good at and partaking in activities like acting, music, or reading takes time but provides healthy relaxation, and increases mood and overall happiness.
Conclusion
In conclusion, emerging adulthood is a period of vast freedoms and opportunities: school, work, and love. However, emerging adults tend to have high rates of risky behavior because of maximalism, peer group culture, poor mental health, and insufficient stress recovery. Knowing the dangers enables individuals to use proactive strategies effectively. Presented approaches include setting limits to avoid unwilling or risky activities, reflecting on past experiences to foster positive and exclude negative behaviors, and improving one’s mental health as it is central to human well-being. These strategies are helpful, but they represent only a tiny part of the things one can do. Many other approaches may be implemented concerning risky behaviors.
References
Health Promotion Agency (HPA). (2014). Alcohol, the body and health effects: A brief overview. Author.
Rabbi, M., Kotov, M. P., Cunningham, R., Bonar, E. E., Nahum-Shani, I., Klasnja, P., Walton, M., & Murphy, S. (2018). Toward increasing engagement in substance use data collection: Development of the Substance Abuse Research Assistant app and protocol for a microrandomized trial using adolescents and emerging adults. JMIR Research Protocols, 7(7), 1-16. Web.
Schwartz, S. J., & Petrova, M. (2019). Prevention science in emerging adulthood: A field coming of age. Prevention Science, 20(3), 305-309. Web.
Wendland, E. M., Horvath, J. D. C., Kops, N. L., Bessel, M., Caierão, J., Hohenberger, G. F., Domingues, C. M., Maranhão, A. G. K., de Souza, F. M. A., & Benzaken, A. S. (2018). Sexual behavior across the transition to adulthood and sexually transmitted infections: Findings from the national survey of human papillomavirus prevalence (POP-Brazil). Medicine, 97(33), 1-7. Web.
Wood, D., Crapnell, T., Lau, L., Bennett, A., Lotstein, D., Ferris, M., & Kuo, A. (2018). Emerging adulthood as a critical stage in the life course. In N. Halfon et al. (Eds.), Handbook of life course health development (pp. 123-143). Springer.