Entre parents et enfants : liens et relations à l’épreuve du cheminement vers la vie adulte

Abstract

The process of transition toward adulthood is changing historically and this affects the evolution of the relations between young people and their parents. Have such relations therefore become individualistic and elective or is there still something structural in them which relates to symbolic places that resist time ? How does the affinity relation forged between two adults interact with the irremovable bond between parents and children ? Based on a longitudinal survey which follows a group of young people over several years, this article shows that the ties of kinship retain a permanent nature, in particular in painful and conflicting family situations. Relations with family members are implemented more freely and in a more varied manner ; at the transition to adulthood, they become increasingly personalised. There is some ambiguity in such developments, however. For young people, becoming a parent turns out to be very embedded in their relations with their own parents which focuses on the ‘ two-fold inter-generational dimension’.

Risk of Social Exclusion and Resources of Young NEETs

“…Relationships are best when the young adults no longer live with their parents: 15% of those who live with their parents, compared to 9% of those who do not, report that "there are occasional tensions" with at least one parent (Figure IV-B). This suggests that moving out of the parental home has a pacifying effect on relationships (Bidart & Pellissier, 2007). In the population as a whole, however, there are few differences between boys and girls, while Bozon & Villeneuve-Gokalp (1994) found significant differences at age 18, with girls being more likely to report difficult relationships with their parents.…”

Approche longitudinale de l’ajustement psychosocial des étudiants primo-entrants en contexte universitaire : une question de transition vers l’âge adulte

“…Pourtant, les parents peuvent continuer à ressentir le besoin d'aider leurs enfants (Nelson, Padilla-Walker, Christensen, Evans, & Carroll, 2011) et plus particulièrement, lors d'une période de transition telle que l'entrée à l'université. La difficulté va alors être de trouver un équilibre entre distance et proximité dans la redéfinition de cette relation (Kins et al, 2014), d'autant plus qu'elle prend part au processus de transition vers la vie adulte (Bidart & Pellissier, 2007).…”