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David Levinson Life Course Perspective

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Life Course Perspective Sociologist Glen Elder Jr. first wrote about the Life Course Perspective over fifty years ago (Hutchinson, p. 10). In his studies, he first noticed the effects history had on the development of individuals and families. He then looked into developmental theories that looked into how historical events not only effect microsocial groups, individuals and families, but how it affected macrosocial groups, education and work roles (Hutchinson, p. 10) The Life Course Perspective is the understanding of the relationship between human behavior and how it develops over an individuals’ life span. It identifies a person’s biological, psychological, and social factors and the importance these factors played in their growth (Hutchinson, …show more content…

A life event is any major change that happens to one’s circumstance, they occur throughout a person’s lifetime. These changes can have a profound effect on a person’s behavior and their life course trajectories; these can be positive or negative changes but are significant and may have long lasting effects. The change an event has on a person depends on the type of life event one experiences. The more dramatic or abrupt change the more stress one will experience, for example the death of a spouse or divorce are major stress factors. (Hutchinson, p. …show more content…

David Levinson’s (Hutchinson, p. 276-277 & 320-321) life structure theory characterizes adulthood as a period of instability with great stress, especially in the young adulthood, as important decisions are being made during this time. He describes those who are seventeen to twenty-two are in a novice phase. In the novice phase, personalities are still developing and they find themselves separating from their families. This phase is where ideas start to form and initial decisions are made in regards to families, relationships, and careers. Transition into adulthood happens around age thirty, when significant changes in life trajectory happen. The life structure theory illustrates how a person’s being is influenced by their social and physical environment. Their socioeconomic status, parental expectations, adult role models, and community impact decisions on whether they finish high school, enter the trade work force, join the military, go to college, or get married and have children at an early

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Their decisions have long term consequences and thus they need to think more than once before considering them in their life actions. One wrong decision and whole life can be upside down. In adulthood friends are made to in order that they can be help full in time of need. When the need is over friendship is also over. With all this adulthood is the most complex period of one’s life, wherein the young minds finds a conflict between who they are and who they should be.

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