The Transition to Adulthood in Europe : a Comparison of Different Models

In a few decades, transition to adulthood has undergone significant changes in the manner and timing of attaining adulthood. The objective of the paper is to focus on the most significant transformations: the transition to adulthood process has undergone in different European contexts, through the use of the findings of research performed in 2004 in Denmark, Germany and Italy. For the purpose of the comparison, in‐depth analysis was performed of the interviews conducted on young people aged between 19 and 35, who had completed their education and were preparing to enter into the workplace. By means of the analysis of the interviews, the paper evaluates how youths perceive the passage from education to the workplace, taking into consideration the opportunities and resources provided by individual national contexts (social benefits, training and work opportunities) to facilitate the process of attainment of adult roles. The role played by family support to achieve transition is also analyzed. In particular, the type of support (financial, emotional and affective) provided by parents to their offspring during the various transition phases, with the aim of highlighting the existence of different parent‐child relationships in the three countries examined.