After analyzing the data, we recognized a variety of turning points in parent young adult relationships during the first year at college. The first turning point that marked significance with the students was immediately after saying goodbye to loved ones as they were dropped off at their residence halls. The graphs demonstrated a trend in the following months where there was a drop of closeness between the students and their parents. Many students contributed this drop in closeness to adjusting to their new found home. After living with their family for the majority of their lives, the students were not used to being away from their parents and having to make time in order communicate with them. This “homesick trend” also including factors such as making new friends, juggling school work and new material, and possibly being on different time zones adding to the difficulty of finding time to communicate with parents back at home. The next turning point that many students marked as important during their first year in college away from their parents was coming home for the holidays. This represented an increase in closeness mostly because the students were physically with their parents. The students were surrounded by familiar settings along …show more content…
A significant turning point that stood out was during Spring Break. Several students were having a decrease of closeness to their families, only reaching out to make summer plans regarding work, internships, and their summer living situation. Students developed new friend groups and became less dependent on their parents in comparison to the start of first semester where they needed their parents almost as a safety blanket. Several students marked not wanting to go home for spring break and instead chose to make other plans with their new friends at school. Students are used to their new homes and are adjusted to their routines at