Are There Similar or Divergent Transitions to Adulthood in a Mediterranean Context? A Cross-National Comparison of Italy and Spain

Authors

  • Ugo Pace
    Faculty of Human and Social Sciences, Kore University of Enna, Enna, Italy
  • Marco Cacioppo
    Department of Human Sciences, Lumsa University of Rome, Rome, Italy
  • Valentina Lo Cascio
    Department of Economics, Business and Finance, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy
  • Giovanni Guzzo
    Faculty of Human and Social Sciences, Kore University of Enna, Enna, Italy
  • Alessia Passanisi
    Faculty of Human and Social Sciences, Kore University of Enna, Enna, Italy

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the differences and similarities between Italy and Spain in regard to emerging adults’ perceptions of identity status, autonomy, attachment, and life satisfaction. The goal was to verify whether a Mediterranean model of transitions from adolescence to adulthood exists. Three hundred and forty undergraduate students (171 Italians and 169 Spanish) ranging in age from 19 to 22 completed measures of identity status, emotional autonomy, attachment style, and life satisfaction. Multiple correspondence analyses provided a graphic synthesis of results. The results indicate that no common model of young adult development exists in Spain and Italy and that Italian youth have a more complex quality of development compared to their Spanish peers.