Where have all the good men gone? That’s a question asked by the Wall Street Journal in an article recently by Kay Hymowitz. We at Fuller, especially Chap Clark, have been talking about the lengthening of adolescence for years, and Hymowitz’s article is a helpful look at the extended adolescence of males in particular.

I found this paragraph in particular interesting:

“Like adolescents in the 20th century, today’s pre-adults have been wait-listed for adulthood. Marketers and culture creators help to promote pre-adulthood as a lifestyle. And like adolescence, pre-adulthood is a class-based social phenomenon, reserved for the relatively well-to-do. Those who don’t get a four-year college degree are not in a position to compete for the more satisfying jobs of the knowledge economy.”

I’m always fascinated by the intersection between socio-economic status and lifestyle, and Hymowitz may be right that pre-adulthood (aka “emerging adulthood” according to Jeffrey Arnett) is a phase more likely experienced by those who are middle class or upper middle class. It’s harder to delay adulthood when you are wondering how to feed yourself, or your family.