Adaptive Behavior in Childhood as an Antecedent of Psychological Functioning in Early Middle Age: Linkage Via Career Orientation

The main aim of the study was to investigate the link between child and adolescent adaptive behavior and adult psychological functioning, and the role of career orientation in this linkage. This was based on a Finnish longitudinal study, where data at ages 8, 14, and 42 were available for 118 females and 115 males. Adaptive behavior, indicated by three aspects of high self-control of emotions: constructiveness, compliance, and trustworthiness, was assessed at ages 8 and 14. Psychological functioning at age 42 was indicated by psychological well-being, self-esteem, social coherence, and trust in life. Connections between adaptive behavior and psychological functioning were studied using structural equation modeling. For males, a path from a latent variable for adaptive behavior to a latent variable for adult psychological functioning was obtained via two components of career development: (1) stable career and employment situation; and (2) the length of education and occupational status. For females, only constructiveness was linked to a latent variable for the length of education and occupational status which accounted for a latent variable for psychological functioning.