Using longitudinal data collected from a college cohort in the United States ( N = 922), we examined the associations between systemic and structural factors (gender, race/ethnicity, family SES, and first-generation college status), financial parenting (teaching, and modeling behavior), and emerging adults’ financial behavior. We conducted a series of one-way repeated measure ANOVA analyses (GLM) to assess patterns of average change in financial parenting and financial behavior in the first year in college, fourth year in college, and two years after college and found evidence suggestive of recentering—a gradual transfer of responsibility during emerging adulthood from parent-directed behavior to self-directed behavior; however, the decline in financial parenting was not offset by an improvement in emerging adults’ financial behavior. Despite similar patterns of change, family socioeconomic status (SES), first-generation college student status, and gender influenced both financial parenting and financial behaviors at each time point. We discuss the findings and the implications on the timing and length of the recentering process.

Although emerging adults (i.e., individuals aged 18–29 years old) may be at a lesser risk of COVID-19 severe illness and mortality, studies have found that the negative impact of COVID-19 on mental health and well-being is higher among emerging adults when compared to other age groups. The current study aimed to identify profile(s) based on resilience resources, which could help emerging adults in managing the disruptions to their lives following the pandemic. A cross-national sample of 1,768 emerging adults from China, Italy, Lithuania, Portugal, Slovenia, and the US was utilized to identify profiles based on different resilience dimensions (ego-resiliency, positivity, religiosity, socioeconomic status, family support, peer support). Results of the Latent Profile Analysis suggest the presence of four different profiles: no resources, only peer, only family, and well-equipped. The association of these profiles with demographic variables, adulthood markers, self-perceived COVID-19 impact, present well-being, and future life perception was investigated. Implications for resilience theory as well as for future interventions are discussed.

Young adulthood (18–30 years old) is a crucial period due to its developmental tasks such as career establishment and financial independence. However, young adults’ relative lack of resources makes them vulnerable to employment disruptions (job loss and income loss), which may have both immediate and long-term effects on their financial wellbeing and mental health. The economic impact of COVID-19 restrictions resulted in an increase in unemployment and a decrease in income worldwide, especially for young adults. This study examined to what extent and how job loss and income loss due to the pandemic influenced young adults’ perception of their present financial wellbeing, future financial wellbeing, and psychological wellbeing by using cross-sectional survey data collected from six countries (China, Italy, Lithuania, Portugal, Slovenia, and the United States). Results showed that the impact of income loss and job loss on all three types of wellbeing were mediated by young adults’ negative perception of the COVID-19 lockdown restriction (i.e., perceived as a misfortune). Cross-country differences existed in the key variables. The association between employment disruptions, young adults’ perception of the COVID-19 lockdown restriction, and wellbeing were equivalent across countries except China. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.