A group of young adults laughing together on the street
Key Points
Rationale
Previous research has established social connection as a leading factor in health, well-being, and longevity (Berkman, Glass, Brissette, & Seeman, 2000; Holt-Lunstad, Smith, & Layton, 2010).
Life span development theorists have proposed that early adulthood is a critical period for developing social connections that can foster lifelong social skills and networks (Arnett, 2000; Erikson, 1959; Levinson, 1978).
However, prior studies have primarily relied on global self-report measures subject to biases (Sneed, Whitbourne, Schwartz, & Huang, 2012; Whitbourne, Sneed, & Sayer, 2009) and have focused almost exclusively on perceived interaction quality.
Drawing on the selective optimization with compensation model (Baltes & Carstensen, 2003; Baltes, 1997) and socioemotional selectivity theory (Carstensen, 1995), this study tests the hypothesis that the prognostic value of interaction quantity and quality depends on the developmental relevance of social goals at ages 20 and 30.
Method
The study used aprospective cohort designwith data collected across 30 years. Participants completed the Rochester Interaction Record (RIR), an experience-sampling diary, at ages 20 and 30.
Social integration, friendship quality, loneliness, depression, and psychological well-being were assessed at age 50 through web-based questionnaires.
Procedure
At ages 20 and 30, participants reported on social interactions lasting 10 minutes or longer using the RIR immediately following each interaction. At age 50, participants completed online questionnaires assessing midlife psychosocial outcomes.
Sample
The sample consisted of 133 adults (73 female, 59 male, 1 transgender) aged 48-52 (M = 49.28) who had provided RIR data as undergraduates at the University of Rochester between 1974-1980. The majority (94.7%) self-identified as White/Caucasian.
Measures
Statistical measures
Structural equation modeling was used to test direct and indirect effects of early adult social activity on midlife outcomes. Bivariate correlations and multigroup comparisons were also conducted.
Results
Insight
This study highlights the long-term significance of early adult social activity for midlifepsychosocial adjustment.
High-quality interactions at age 20 appear to set the stage for a pattern of emotionally meaningful social engagement that, when sustained at age 30, promotes better social and psychological functioning in midlife.
These findings support the idea that young adults may selectively orient their social activities to optimize developmentally relevant goals, with enduring consequences for well-being.
Future research could examine whether similar patterns emerge in more diverse samples, later-born cohorts, and additional outcome domains such as physical health.
Strengths
Limitations
Implications
The results suggest that early adult social activity has long-term consequences for social and psychological adjustment in midlife.
Facilitating diverse, high-quality social interactions in early adulthood may promote the development of enduring social competencies and emotional closeness that serve as resources for well-being across the lifespan.
Clinicians working with midlife adults experiencing social or psychological difficulties may find it helpful to consider the role of early adult social experiences in shaping current adjustment.
References
Primary reference
Carmichael, C. L., Reis, H. T., & Duberstein, P. R. (2015). In your 20s it’s quantity, in your 30s it’s quality: The prognostic value of social activity across 30 years of adulthood.Psychology and Aging, 30(1), 95–105.https://doi.org/10.1037/pag0000014
Other references
Arnett, J. J. (2000). Emerging adulthood: A theory of development from the late teens through the twenties.American Psychologist, 55(5), 469-480.https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.55.5.469
Baltes, P. B. (1997). On the incomplete architecture of human ontogeny: Selection, optimization, and compensation as foundation of developmental theory.American Psychologist, 52(4), 366-380.https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.52.4.366
Baltes, M. M., & Carstensen, L. L. (2003). The process of successful aging: Selection, optimization, and compensation. In U. M. Staudinger & U. E. M. Lindenberger (Eds.),Understanding human development: Dialogues with lifespan psychology(pp. 81-104). Norwell, MA: Kluwer Academic Publishers.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-0357-6_5
Berkman, L. F., Glass, T., Brissette, I., & Seeman, T. E. (2000). From social integration to health: Durkheim in the new millennium.Social Science & Medicine, 51(6), 843-857.https://doi.org/10.1016/S0277-9536(00)00065-4
Carstensen, L. L. (1995). Evidence for a life-span theory of socioemotional selectivity.Current Directions in Psychological Science, 4(5), 151-156.https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8721.ep11512261
Erikson, E. H. (1959). Identity and the life cycle. New York, NY: Norton.
Holt-Lunstad, J., Smith, T. B., & Layton, J. B. (2010). Social relationships and mortality risk: A meta-analytic review.PLoS Medicine, 7(7), Article e1000316.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1000316
Levinson, D. J. (1978).The seasons of a man’s life. New York, NY: Knopf.
Sneed, J. R., Whitbourne, S. K., Schwartz, S. J., & Huang, S. (2012). The relationship between identity, intimacy, and midlife well-being: Findings from the Rochester Adult Longitudinal Study.Psychology and Aging, 27(2), 318-323.https://doi.org/10.1037/a0026378
Whitbourne, S. K., Sneed, J. R., & Sayer, A. (2009). Psychosocial development from college through midlife: A 34-year sequential study.Developmental Psychology, 45(5), 1328-1340.https://doi.org/10.1037/a0016550
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Olivia Guy-Evans, MSc
BSc (Hons) Psychology, MSc Psychology of Education
Olivia Guy-Evans is a writer and associate editor for Simply Psychology. She has previously worked in healthcare and educational sectors.
Saul McLeod, PhD
BSc (Hons) Psychology, MRes, PhD, University of Manchester
Saul McLeod, PhD., is a qualified psychology teacher with over 18 years of experience in further and higher education. He has been published in peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Clinical Psychology.
