Quarter-life crisis

"Quarter Life Crisis" redirects here. For the Baby Queen album, see Quarter Life Crisis (album).

In popular psychology, a quarter-life crisis is an existential crisis involving anxiety and sorrow over the direction and quality of one's life which is most commonly experienced in a period ranging from a person's early twenties up to their mid-thirties, although it can begin as early as eighteen. It is defined by clinical psychologist Alex Fowke as "a period of insecurity, doubt and disappointment surrounding your career, relationships and financial situation".

Aspects

According to Meredith Goldstein of The Boston Globe, the quarter-life crisis occurs in one's twenties, usually after entering the "real world" (i.e., after graduating from college, after moving out of the family home, or both). German psychologist Erik Erikson, who proposed eight crises that humans face during their development, proposed the existence of a life crisis occurring at this age. The conflict he associated with young adulthood is the Intimacy vs. Isolation crisis. According to Erikson, after establishing a personal identity in adolescence, young adults seek to form intense, usually romantic relationships with other people.

Common symptoms of a quarter-life crisis are often feelings of being "lost, scared, lonely or confused" about what steps to take in early adulthood. Studies have shown that unemployment and choosing a career path is a major cause of stress and anxiety in young adults. Early stages of one living on their own for the first time and learning to cope without parental help can also induce feelings of isolation and loneliness. Re-evaluation of one's close personal relationships can also be a factor, with sufferers feeling they have outgrown their partner or believing others may be more suitable for them.

Recently, millennials have occasionally been referred to as the Boomerang Generation or Peter Pan Generation, because of the members' perceived penchant for delaying some rites of passage into adulthood for longer periods than previous generations. These labels were also a reference to a trend toward members returning home after college or living with their parents for longer periods than previous generations. These tendencies can be explained by changes in external social factors rather than characteristics intrinsic to millennials (e.g., higher cost of living and higher levels of student loan debt in the US among millennials when compared to earlier generations can make it more difficult for young adults to achieve traditional markers of independence such as marriage, home ownership or investing).

Contributing Factors

Internal

A literature review of the existing research on the quarterlife crisis reveals various internal factors that contribute to this phenomenon, three of which are more influential. These three critical factors include feelings of anxiety, commitment to purpose, and the level of one's religious and spiritual beliefs. Regarding anxiety, the level of anxious feelings one feels, such as fear, uncertainty, and stress, influence the harshness of the crisis that one is feeling. With commitment to purpose, people can feel imprisoned by the various life tasks or goals that they feel a responsibility of fulfilling, such as various obstacles getting in the way of a man’s pursuit of a well-paying job, or in a woman’s way of getting married, which will also influence the level of crisis they experience. Lastly, peoples religious and spiritual beliefs work to create a defense against the prevalence of this crisis in their lives. Related to anxiety, being less religious or spiritual may lead to having more anxiety and experiencing this crisis more severely. Aside from the big three internal factors, other internal factors that influence the presence of this issue in one’s life are issues of identity formation, how they feel about themselves, how confident they feel about themselves and their abilities, how motivated they feel, their ability to disclose, whether they have an optimistic or pessimistic view of the future, and their ability to reflect and focus on the positivity in their lives.

External

The literature review also reveals various external factors that contribute to this crisis, in which the more influential ones are relationships and demographic variables, such as age and gender. Lacking relationships and social support can increase the prevalence and severity of this crisis in one’s life. Social support acts as a buffer against the many challenges and stressors that come about in early adult life. With age, those in their late twenties and early thirties are more prone to experiencing this crisis. Those in their early twenties are less likely to experience this because they are still in school and still have time to make decisions and change their life directions. Those between the ages of twenty five and thirty three are more likely to experience this crisis because they are in a transitional period from college to the real world and working adult life. One's ethnicity can also have an impact on the prevalence of this crisis. Lastly, women are more likely to experience this crisis than men. Aside from the big two external factors, other external factors include finances, fitness habits, and substance use.

In film

The notion of the quarter-life crisis is explored by the 1967 film The Graduate, one of the first film depictions of this issue. Other notable films that also do so are Bright Lights, Big City; The Paper Chase; St. Elmo's Fire; How to Be; Reality Bites; Garden State; Accepted; Ghost World; High Fidelity; (500) Days of Summer; Lost in Translation; Silver Linings Playbook; Vicky Cristina Barcelona; Amélie; and Shaun of the Dead; as well as the musical Avenue Q, in the television show The Office, and the HBO television series Girls. The 2008 web series Quarterlife was so named for the phenomenon. Other movies exploring the quarter-life crisis include: Tiny Furniture, The Puffy Chair, Fight Club, Stranger than Fiction, Greenberg, Frances Ha and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. A 2014 comedy directed by Lynn Shelton titled Laggies delves into the complexities of a quarter-life crisis. The 2nd season of 2021's Cubicles revolved majorly on quarter life crisis psychology, its symptoms, effects and ways to deal with them.

In music

The 2003 John Mayer single "Why Georgia" explores the concept of a quarter-life crisis. The song was based upon John Mayer's experiences during this age period, when he moved to Georgia.

The 1975 Fleetwood Mac song "Landslide", written by Stevie Nicks in her late twenties, explores many of the self-doubts and fears of the quarter-life crisis, at a time when Nicks professed to be uncertain about her musical career and her romantic life.

English indie rock band Spector's song "True Love (For Now)", the opening track to their 2012 album Enjoy It While It Lasts, references a quarter-life crisis.

"20 Something", the final track on SZA's 2017 album Ctrl, delves into the many insecurities she experienced in her twenties, both personal and professional, and the urgency she felt to make the most of her life before entering into mature adulthood.

In the album "Pep Talks" by Judah & the Lion, lead single "Quarter-Life Crisis" is about the ensuing rootlessness and insecurity that Akers, band's lead vocalist, felt during his twenties, caused by loss of his aunt and his parents' divorce.

The 2020 released EP "Young Life Crisis" by UPSAHL is about a breakup, lost friendships and a canceled tour, all during the coronavirus pandemic and the uncertainness around her life.

The 2022 song "Quarter Life Crisis" (stylized in all-caps for the track listing as "QUARTER LIFE CRISIS"), by singer-songwriter Taylor Bickett, addresses this topic through the eyes of its twenty-three year old subject who lists many aspects common to the central motif of young adult anxiety from a female perspective.

On 10 August 2023, British singer Baby Queen, announced her debut album titled "Quarter Life Crisis". It was released on 6 October 2023. The albums lead singles are portrayed by "Dream Girl", "We Can Be Anything" and for the deluxe edition "All The Things" and six of her other songs that were featured in the Netflix series based on the graphic novel, Heartstopper. Bella stated in an interview, "This album tells the story of my journey through my early 20s – leaving my childhood and my adolescence behind but never really losing my childlike wonder and never quite growing up. The songs are all facets of what early adulthood has been like for me while discovering new parts of myself, my sexuality, my past and my place in this world." She also added, "I really want this album to leave people feeling hopeful, because there is so much beauty to live through and look forward to and it truly is magical and extraordinary to be alive and to have the very short opportunity to experience every emotion imaginable." To support the album's release, Baby Queen also announced a headline tour titled "The Quarter Life Crisis Tour" throughout November 2023.

In 2023, singer-songwriter Wallice released her EP "Mr Big Shot", with the title "Quarterlife" as the 4th track. The song is about herself, as she takes a look back on her life, and the choices she made, as she is about to turn 25. It explores many subjects people in their twenties can experience, such as regret, growing up and losing things along the way. This is also a message of hope, as she is "ready for a second fight". She also stated that the whole EP was supposed to be titled Quarterlife too, as she saw this EP as more personal and authentic.

See also

• Angst
• Disenchantment
• Existential crisis
• Fear
• Midlife crisis
• Panic
• Status attainment

Further reading

• Barr, Damian. Get It Together: A Guide to Surviving Your Quarterlife Crisis. Hodder & Stoughton Paperbacks, 2004. ISBN 0-340-82903-6.
• Hassler, Christine. 20-Something, 20-Everything: A Quarter-life Woman's Guide to Balance and Direction. New World Library, 2005. ISBN 978-1-57731-476-9.
• Hassler, Christine. 20-Something Manifesto: Quarter-Lifers Speak Out About Who They Are, What They Want, and How to Get It. New World Library, 2008. ISBN 978-1-57731-595-7.
• Pollak, Lindsey. Getting from College to Career: 90 Things to Do Before You Join the Real World. Collins Business, 2007. ISBN 0-06-114259-X.
• Robbins, Alexandra. Conquering Your Quarterlife Crisis: Advice from Twentysomethings Who Have Been There and Survived. Perigee, 2004. ISBN 978-0-399-53038-8.
• Robbins, Alexandra; Wilner, Abby. Quarterlife Crisis: The Unique Challenges of Life in Your Twenties. Tarcher, 2001. ISBN 1-58542-106-5.
• Wilner, Abby; Stocker, Catherine. Quarterlifer's Companion: How to Get on the Right Career Path, Control Your Finances, and Find the Support Network You Need to Thrive. McGraw-Hill, 2004. ISBN 978-0-07-145015-7.

External links

• Does graduation mark the start of your quarter-life crisis?
• Life is hard when you're in your 20s – BBC News