industry & research
campusreview.com.au
other colleagues and collaborators joined.
Our team is really working extensively
to preserve, engage and learn from this
valuable cohort as they transition from
that interesting period of adolescence into
young adulthood.
We are hoping to continue this work
and adjust the lens with which we look at
this cohort, based on the specific life stage
which our respondents are in. As they move
through life goals, these young people are
confronting very different challenges. For
example, they voted for the first time in the
federal election, and we made that a bit of
a focus.
Just recently we were looking at their
housing careers, because they’re at a
stage in their lives where they’re oscillating
between dependency on the parental
home and their efforts to strike out on an
independent housing career.
We are hoping to continue with this work
for as long as we practically can.
One interesting finding of the 2017 survey
was that only one in 10 of the now 23
to 24-year-olds owned their own home.
Another interesting finding was that only
8 per cent were married. How stark do you
think that contrast is between this cohort
and what was expected, say, in the 1960s?
Well, the differences are quite interesting.
Now, the census measures household
home ownership as an individual’s
home ownership. But we do know that
since the 1970s, economic changes and
challenges have meant that people with
low incomes, and that typically includes
young people, have found it increasingly
difficult to purchase a home. Seemingly,
changes in social expectations have meant
that people no longer feel compelled to
marry at a younger age. They are instead
more inclined to postpone this milestone
while they, say, undertake those secondary
studies and so on. There are certainly some
stark differences in these patterns.
Young adults today rely on parental
support for longer than their prior cohorts.
There is absolutely no question about that.
And so parental transitions were far more
standardised as predictable, as opposed to
the generation of younger adults that we
are interested in.
What have been some of the other surprising
revelations of the study?
Well, we began the study examining this
cohort’s aspirations, while they were
still very young. They were at that stage
as I mentioned earlier, probably about
12–13 years of age. At that time there
was abundant literature that argued that
many traditional influences on young
people’s career formation were waning,
leaving individuals with greater flexibility
and freedom to pursue a wider range of
potential pathways. There was this strong
sense of possibility and optimism that was
reflected in our early data.
What has been perhaps the most
surprising has been the doubled-edged
nature of these changes, which have also
meant a great deal of uncertainty and
insecurity for the respondents in our study.
As they mature, that sense of uncertainty
increases. Now this cohort graduated high
school in the years that roughly follow the
global financial crisis. They were entering
a youth employment landscape that was
more precarious than when they first began
thinking about their post-school careers.
We have observed striking implications of
this increased uncertainty spill over into all
of the respondents’ life domains. They were
affecting a whole host of areas of their life.
They move out of home to make long-term
relationship commitments and so on.
So now let me just say this, at age 22 just
6 per cent of respondents were uncertain
about what occupation they would have
at the age of 30, and 16 per cent rate their
mental health as fair or poor. However, by
age of 26 a few years later, 18 per cent of
respondents had now become uncertain
about what job they would have by the age
of 30, and 29 per cent now reported having
fair or poor mental health.
Those changes are quite striking, and
they’re telling us a really important story
about the times we live in.
Do you and your co-researchers feel that
society is failing young people on various
levels? And if so, which areas?
Let me just go back to the mental health
question. I think it’s difficult to make
generalisations, but let’s probe into one of
these areas. If you look at the way in which
young people in our study reported on their
mental health, the drop is quite significant.
It says something about the broader
constellation of relationships within society,
and what it means and how that impacts on
the individual.
Now, similarly in relation to physical
health, at the age of 22, nearly 90 per
cent reported feeling positive about their
physical health, but four years later that
had decreased to 79 per cent. Again, it
says something both about the times we
live in, but also the age and corresponding
sense of security and wellbeing that our
respondents are experiencing.
I think that research like this is really
helping remind us of some of these
developments that profoundly impact
the people that live in our community.
Specifically, it’s telling us something about
the people who are really transiting into
adulthood, and how they feel about
themselves.
What are some of the big challenges
you face in research clearances for this
big project?
There are probably two key challenges,
both are unavoidable when you’re doing
such large-scale longitude research. The
first one is around financial support. This
kind of research can only be done with the
generous support of the funders. We have
been absolutely blessed with a wonderful
[Greater flexibility and
freedom] have also meant a
great deal of uncertainty and
insecurity for the respondents.
support and commitment of the Australian
Research Council. So that is certainly
something that is always on our mind, our
capacity to attract that external funding.
All researchers doing longitudinal
research also face another challenge:
attrition. We’ve been interrogating these
young people for a decade and a half; it
is inevitable that they move bases, they
move jobs. They sometimes keep in touch,
sometimes they don’t. A lot of our effort,
energy and funding really is dedicated to
ensure that we keep in touch with as many
of them as possible.
While difficult to avoid, our attrition
has been kept at acceptable levels to
maintain adequate statistical power and
representativeness. We’re quite satisfied
with that. But it’s an ongoing battle, and
ongoing effort is being put into ensuring
we can continue this important research,
which is telling us so much about the times
we live in. ■
For more information about the project,
visit ourlives.org.au
21