| Abstract: | The future of societies depends on their success in providing pathways whereby young people develop and prepare themselves to be contributing adults to their communities. When these pathways are well marked, stable, supported by the community, and inviting to adolescents, a society can be confident that new generations will join the ranks of adulthood well prepared. When these paths are hazardous, unpredictable, uninviting, or ill fitted to the demands of adulthood in that society, the future is insecure, both for adolescents and for society. This volume and the additional two volumes of this study group (Brown, Larson, && Saraswathi, 2002; Mortimer && Brown, 2002) suggest the following observations about the experiences of youth and how well they are being prepared for adulthood in the 21st century. |
