‘then the 25th (birthday) Arrived and at That Point I Wanted to Take a Decision about My Future': Time, Rhythmicity and Waithood in Youth's Uncertain Transitions

Youth transitions literature considers the investigation of procratination and interruption of (what used to be) linear paths as a core theme. From the classic idea of Erikson’s moratorium (1968) onward, the notion that young people find themselves taking time before embarking on one path or another, or while doing so, has been seen as a constitutive element of transition, whether in erratic forms or under institutionalised shapes – such as ‘gap years’ spent travelling. However, while the need for exploration brings along openess to the future, forms of ‘time taking’ such as ‘waithood’ are more slippery and often hide ambivalent ways of looking at the future.               

Departing from the notion of waithood, this presentation reflects on the rhytm of imagined futures as emerged in the analysis of 300 essays written by 18 year-old Italian students who were asked to imagine to be 90 and narrate their future lives (in the past). In this extremely rich material, two contrasting temporal narratives emerge in relation to the work dimension: one where aspirations result totally unrealistic due to the understimation of time and efforts normally involved in developing those paths; another, where it is expected that a few years will be spent waiting for something to happen (a job to be offered, the ‘right’ mentor to be met ect).

Drawing on youth transitions literature, but also on studies on the life course and temporality (as in Brannen and Nilsen, 2002), this paper ultimately relates these themes with the context where they emerged, in an effort to reconstruct the meanings that young people give to the phases and rhythmicity of their transitions to adulthood.

Brannen, J., Nilsen, A., (2002) Young People’s Time Perspectives: From Youth to Adulthood, Sociology 36(3): 513–537

Erikson, E. H. (1968) Identity, Youth and Crisis. New York: Norton.