Stability and Instability of Subjective Well-Being in the Transition from Adolescence to Young Adulthood: Longitudinal Evidence from 20991 Young Australians

<div><p>Purpose</p><p>This study assessed the long-term stability and instability of subjective well-being during post-school transition (i.e., transition from adolescence to young adulthood) and evaluated the determinants of transition stability.</p><p>Methods</p><p>Using two cohorts from a national representative longitudinal study, the Longitudinal Study of Australian Youth (N = 20991), latent profile analysis and latent transition analysis were conducted to examine transition patterns among subjective well-being profiles for youth from age 17 to 25. Multinomial logistic regressions were conducted to evaluate whether key socio-demographic variables were associated with transition stability.</p><p>Results</p><p>We identified: (1) three subjective well-being profiles: Low (30%), Moderate (50%), and High (20%); and (2) three major transition patterns among these subjective well-being profiles: stable, partially-stable, and unstable. The majority of youth had stable transition patterns during the transition from adolescence to adulthood. A large percentage of youth (52%) started low in subjective well-being profile and remained in the low subjective-wellbeing profile. Our examination also revealed gender was the most pronounced indicator for transition stability during this time period, with males more likely to have unstable transition patterns than females.</p><p>Conclusions</p><p>Results suggest that different subjective well-being status and transition patterns can be identified in the post-high school transition to adulthood, including unstable transitions. By targeting those groups more vulnerable to transition, mental health promotion and interventions may be delivered more effectively.</p></div

Sample Characteristics for Both Cohorts.

<p>Sample Characteristics for Both Cohorts.</p

Influences of Demographics, Family, Life Path on Stability of Transition Patterns for cohort 2003.

<p>Influences of Demographics, Family, Life Path on Stability of Transition Patterns for cohort 2003.</p

Transition Probability for Cohort 2003.

<p>Transition Probability for Cohort 2003.</p

Percentage of population for each transition pattern based on three-wave latent transition analysis results for <i>Cohort 2003</i>.

<p> M = Moderate; L = Low; H = High. In this sense, LMH represents the transition pattern of L → M → H across three waves.</p

Subjective well-being profiles for Cohort 2003 across time from three-wave latent transition analyses.

<p>Fig presented here is based on raw scores. Percentages represent the proportion of population classified into the respective profiles at wave1/wave2/wave3.</p

Search strategy following PRISMA guidelines.

<p>Search strategy following PRISMA guidelines.</p

Risk of child and under-five mortality by breastfeeding status and kitchen location.

<p>Risk of child and under-five mortality by breastfeeding status and kitchen location.</p

Forest plot of suicide risk following unemployment, follow up over time, results of meta-analysis.

<p>Reference is the employed population.</p

Use of cooking fuel associated with total under-five mortality in Pakistan.

<p>Ref = Reference category; n = number of under-five mortality cases and N = total number of under-five children; n(%) = weighted incidence proportion of under-five mortality cases; OR (95% CI) = odds ratio adjusted for wealth index, place of residence, mother’s age, education and working status, sex of child, breastfeeding status, household’s floor material and wall material, location of kitchen and smoking status of mother; clean fuels = electricity, liquid petroleum gas (LPG), natural gas, biogas; Polluting fuels = kerosene, coal/lignite, charcoal, wood, straw/shrubs/grass and animal dung.</p