Depression, Self-Esteem, and Anger in Emerging Adulthood

Developmental Psychology
2006, Vol. 42, No. 2, 350 365
Copyright 2006 by the American Psychological Association

0012-1649/06/$12.00 DOI: 10.1037/0012-1649.42.2.350
Depression, Self-Esteem, and Anger in Emerging Adulthood:

Seven-Year Trajectories
Nancy L. Galambos
Erin T. Barker
University of Alberta
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Harvey J. Krahn
University of Alberta
This study used a school-based community sample (N 920) to examine trajectories of depressive
symptoms, self-esteem, and expressed anger in the critical years of emerging adulthood (ages 18 25).
Using data from 5 waves, the authors discovered that multilevel models indicated that, on average,
depressive symptoms and expressed anger declined, whereas self-esteem increased. Between-persons
predictors of variability in trajectories included gender (gender gaps in depressive symptoms and
self-esteem narrowed), parents education, and conflict with parents (depressive symptoms and expressed
anger improved fastest in participants with highly educated parents and in those with higher conflict).
Across time, increases in social support and marriage were associated with increased psychological
well-being, whereas longer periods of unemployment were connected with higher depression and lower
self-esteem. Emerging adulthood is a time of improving psychological well-being, but individual
trajectories depend on specific individual and family characteristics as well as role changes.
Keywords: depression, self-esteem, anger, emerging adults, trajectories
forth between dependency and independence (see also Goldscheider & Goldscheider, 1999; Mitchell, Wister, & Gee, 2004).
Schulenberg et al. (2003) argued that the transition to adulthood
is marked by a series of psychological changes such as increased
emotional regulation as well as changes in roles (e.g., employment,
marriage). Even though there may be discontinuity in behaviors
and role statuses as individuals pursue developmental tasks, the
goal may remain continuous, that is, general adaptation. Understanding intraindividual variability in psychological functioning in
emerging adulthood is crucial, accompanied by investigation of the
influence of earlier and proximal events and experiences on trajectories of change in psychological well-being (Schulenberg, Bryant, & OMalley, 2004; Schulenberg et al., 2003). Accordingly, the
first goal of the current study was to examine trajectories of change
in three critical aspects of psychological well-being as young
people move from ages 18 to 25: depression, self-esteem, and
anger. The second goal was to identify earlier sources of variation
in trajectories of change in depression, self-esteem, and anger. We
considered between-persons differences in individual, family, and
school-related variables at age 18 that explain subsequent psychological functioning. The third goal was to learn how proximal
events and experiences are associated with changes in psychological well-being. Thus, we examined how within-person changes
across time in social support and role statuses accompany shifts in
trajectories of depression, self-esteem, and anger.
According to Arnett (2000), the years from ages 18 to 25 cover

a period of life best called emerging adulthood. Individuals passing through this period typically work on a variety of developmental tasks and engage in intense identity exploration (Roisman,
Masten, Coatsworth, & Tellegen, 2004; Schulenberg, Maggs, &
OMalley, 2003). As a group, not only do emerging adults show a
great deal of diversity in the paths they follow into and out of
education, work, and residential statuses, but subjectively many do
not feel that they have reached adulthood (Arnett, 2000, 2003).
Others have also pointed to emerging adulthood as a period during
which trajectories are highly variable. Using narrative descriptions, P. Cohen, Kasen, Chen, Hartmark, and Gordon (2003)
showed that from ages 17 to 27, the average individual gained
autonomy with respect to obtaining employment, establishing financial and residential independence, and becoming a parent, yet
these transitions did not occur at the same rate or in the same order
for everyone. Moreover, for some, there was movement back and
Nancy L. Galambos, Department of Psychology, University of Alberta,

Edmonton, Alberta, Canada; Erin T. Barker, Child and Family Research,
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Bethesda,
Maryland; Harvey J. Krahn, Department of Sociology, University of
Alberta.
Support for this research was provided by grants to Harvey J. Krahn
from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada and
Alberta Advanced Education. We thank Iris Maus for her suggestion to
control for depressive symptoms when examining the relation between
gender and expressed anger.
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Nancy L.
Galambos, Department of Psychology, University of Alberta, P-217 Biological Sciences Building, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2E9, Canada. E-mail:
galambos@ualberta.ca
Trajectories of Change in Psychological Well-Being in

Emerging Adulthood
During adolescence, depression not only increases but a marked
gender difference emerges, with more girls than boys experiencing
depressive symptoms and episodes of clinical depression (Galam350
DEPRESSION, SELF-ESTEEM, AND ANGER
bos, Leadbeater, & Barker, 2004; Petersen, Sarigiani, & Kennedy,

1991; Wade, Cairney, & Pevalin, 2002; Wight, Sepulveda, &
Aneshensel, 2004). Although there is a body of research on the
course of depression throughout adolescence (e.g., Ge, Lorenz,
Conger, Elder, & Simons, 1994; Hankin, Abramson, Moffitt,
Silva, & McGee, 1998), intraindividual changes in depression
from adolescence through emerging adulthood in community samples have gone largely unaddressed (Merikangas et al., 2003).
Cross-sectional studies indicate that the prevalence of major depression and depressive symptoms is highest in the teen years
compared with adulthood (e.g., ages 20 and older; Wade & Cairney, 1997; Wight et al., 2004). A study of Canadian adolescents in
Grades 712 found that elevated depressive symptoms in girls
were highest in Grades 9 and 10 but lower in Grade 12 (Poulin,
Hand, Boudreau, & Santor, 2005). A study that followed high
school seniors to 1 year postgraduation indicated that depressive
symptoms decreased significantly in that year (Aseltine & Gore,
1993), and in a multiwave study, there was a steady decrease in the
prevalence of depressive symptoms from ages 19 20 to the mid30s (Merikangas et al., 2003). This pattern of results led us to
hypothesize that, when measured in a prospective communitybased sample, the average trajectory in depressive symptoms from
ages 18 25 will be one of decline.
With respect to global self-esteem, cross-sectional data suggest
a decrease in adolescence and a gradual increase from the 20s to
the 30s (Kling, Hyde, Showers, & Buswell, 1999; Robins, Trzesniewski, Tracy, Gosling, & Potter, 2002), but little longitudinal
research has assessed intraindividual change in self-esteem across
emerging adulthood. Comparing the same individuals at ages 13
and 23, OMalley and Bachman (1983) reported an increase in
self-esteem. Baldwin and Hoffman (2002) followed a sample of
1116-year-olds and indicated a decrease in self-esteem by ages 16
or 17 that rebounded by age 21. Roberts and Bengtson (1996)
followed a group of young people (ages 16 26) for 20 years and
found that mean self-esteem had increased. Both studies (Baldwin
& Hoffman, 2002; Roberts & Bengtson, 1996) are limited because
they combined multiple birth cohorts and did not make repeated
measurements of self-esteem between ages 18 and 25. Schulenberg, OMalley, Bachman, and Johnston (2005), however, reported
that well-being (a composite measure including self-esteem, selfefficacy, and social support) increased in a longitudinal sample
followed from ages 18 to 24. The cross-sectional and longitudinal
results suggest an average trajectory of rising self-esteem in
emerging adulthood.
A third marker of psychological well-being is the extent to
which young people refrain from expressing their anger through
loss of temper, yelling, and fighting. After all, the regulation of
emotions such as anger is important for adaptive functioning
(Galambos & Costigan, 2003). Expressed anger, which is the
behavioral manifestation of anger arousal, can result in verbal or
physical abuse (Eckhardt, Norlander, & Deffenbacher, 2004). To
our knowledge, there are no multiwave longitudinal studies examining expressed anger from adolescence through emerging adulthood. Parallels can be drawn, however, with longitudinal research
on related constructs. McGue, Bacon, and Lykken (1993), for
example, found that negative emotionality (reactive stress, alienation, and aggression) declined in the same individuals tested at
ages 20 and 30. Similarly, McCrae et al. (1999) and Watson and
Walker (1996) reported a decrease through the 20s in neuroticism
and negative affect, respectively. Given the pattern of results
351
reflected in these studies, we expected expressed anger to decline

in emerging adulthood.
Between-Persons Sources of Differences in Trajectories of

Change
Although psychological well-being might improve in emerging
adulthood, trajectories of change are likely to differ considerably
from person to person (P. Cohen et al., 2003). Identifying sources
of interindividual or between-persons differences in intraindividual change is a key task for developmental scientists (Schulenberg et al., 2003). Longitudinal data allowed us to consider how
characteristics of the individual and his or her context in senior
year in high school relate to intraindividual changes in psychological well-being. Gender, family characteristics, and school experiences and performance are pinpointed as potentially important
predictors.
The gender intensification hypothesis (Hill & Lynch, 1983)
proposed the emergence or amplification of gender differences in
adolescence as a result of increased socialization pressures to
conform to adult gender roles. Adolescent girls increasing depression and declining self-esteem are consistent with this hypothesis
(Galambos, 2004). It is not clear, however, whether such differences are maintained, amplified, or diminished in emerging adulthood. Although the gender difference in depression is present from
15 to 54 years (Kessler et al., 1994), Poulin et al. (2005) pointed
to higher levels of depressive symptoms in middle compared with
later adolescence. Meta-analyses of data on gender differences in
global self-esteem across the adolescent and adult years found a
small gender difference that peaked in adolescence and a possible
narrowing of the gender gap in emerging adulthood (Kling et al.,
1999). With respect to expressed anger, Polce-Lynch, Myers,
Kliewer, and Kilmartin (2001) showed that by Grade 12, boys
were less emotionally expressive (i.e., less likely to display their
emotions) than were girls. On the other hand, where gender differences are found in the display of the specific emotion of anger,
boys report higher levels (Fischer, Mosquera, van Vianen, &
Manstead, 2004). These studies highlight the significance of asking whether gender is related to trajectories of change in depression, self-esteem, and expressed anger.
Family context likely affects these trajectories. The provision of
financial and other assistance from parents during their childrens
transition to adulthood may depend on the availability of family
economic resources (Mitchell et al., 2004; Shanahan, Sulloway, &
Hofer, 2000). Indeed, P. Cohen et al. (2003) showed that family
socioeconomic status (SES) was related to school enrollment,
employment, marriage, and parenting patterns in emerging adults.
The quality of relationships with parents is also important. In
adolescence, less parental support and more family conflict contribute to increased depression (Ge et al., 1994; Sheeber, Hops,
Alpert, Davis, & Andrews, 1997), whereas close relations with
parents and family are associated with increases in self-esteem
(Baldwin & Hoffmann, 2002; Greene & Way, 1995). Strong ties to
parents in adolescence seem to carry forward to influence young
adults higher psychological well-being (Holahan, Valentiner, &
Moos, 1994; Roberts & Bengtson, 1993). Aseltine and Gore
(1993) showed that improvements in parental support from Grade
12 to 1 year postgraduation were associated with decreases in
depressive symptoms.
352
GALAMBOS, BARKER, AND KRAHN
It is important also to consider the potential impact of school

experiences and performance on psychological well-being. In adolescence, students in more advanced or university-bound tracks
make the strongest achievement gains and have higher self-esteem
compared with those in lower tracks (Fuligni, Eccles, & Barber,
1995; Oakes, 1985). Higher grades and academic competence, too,
have been associated with improvements in self-esteem (Hirsch &
DuBois, 1991; Rosenberg, Schooler, Schoenbach, & Rosenberg,
1995; Schmidt & Padilla, 2003) but not consistently (Deihl,
Vicary, & Deike, 1997). Aseltine and Gore (1993) reported that
greater attachment to school in high school seniors was related to
lowered depressive symptoms 1 year later; self-reported grades,
however, were not associated with changes in symptoms. Thus, the
longer-term effects of school experiences on psychological wellbeing are either inconsistent or have been studied too rarely in
emerging adulthood to draw clear conclusions. Considering the
centrality of school in the lives of young people, it is important to
consider how high school experiences and performance (specifically, tracking, school commitment, and grades) might shape trajectories of depression, self-esteem, and anger in emerging
adulthood.
Within-Person Sources of Differences in Trajectories of

Change
P. Cohen et al. (2003) argued that understanding development in
emerging adulthood requires the inclusion of time-varying covariates of individual trajectories. In the current study, changes in
social support and role statuses are examined as they covary with
depression, self-esteem, and anger trajectories. Social support is
important because it is consistently related to psychological wellbeing through its ability to buffer the individual from the negative
effects of stress (S. Cohen, 2004). In two studies, support from
peers seemed to play a significant role in influencing trajectories of
self-esteem in early and middle adolescence (Deihl et al., 1997;
Hirsch & DuBois, 1991). In addition, Galambos et al. (2004) found
that decreases in social support across 2 and 4 years were related
to increases in depressive symptoms during these same intervals in
adolescence and emerging adulthood. These results suggest that
changing levels of social support across emerging adulthood
should be charted to determine how they relate to fluctuations in
depression, self-esteem, and anger expression. It is likely that
when social support increases, young people will show lower
levels of depression, higher levels of self-esteem, and less anger
expression.
Whether the young person lives with parents is a role status that
may be linked to changes in depression, self-esteem, and anger.
Leaving the parental home may be a way to reduce anxieties and
conflict resulting from problematic family relations (Mitchell et
al., 2004). Several studies indicate that leaving home is associated
with improved relations with parents (Aseltine & Gore, 1993;
Graber & Brooks-Gunn, 1996a; Smetana, Metzger, & CampioneBarr, 2004). Moreover, an improved relationship with parents in
the year after high school was related to lowered levels of depression (Aseltine & Gore, 1993). Thus, leaving home is expected to
have positive effects on psychological well-being.
P. Cohen et al. (2003) identified school enrollment as an important role status of emerging adulthood. Specifically, attending
school or university was connected with earlier residential and
financial independence in participants followed from ages 1727.
Given that such independence is a desirable goal for emerging

adults (Arnett, 2000), postsecondary education should be linked
positively with psychological well-being. Indeed, panel data from
the Monitoring the Future project indicated that there was a general increase in well-being between ages 18 and 24, with wellbeing the highest among unmarried students who lived away from
home and had no children. Moreover, whereas well-being leveled
off between ages 22 and 24 for many participants, it increased
across the same interval among unmarried, childless individuals
still enrolled in full-time education (and not working) at age 24
(Schulenberg et al., 2005).
Finding gainful employment and the means to financial independence are important developmental tasks that typically take
place in emerging adulthood (Arnett, 2000; Schulenberg et al.,
2005). There is clear evidence from previous research that the
inability to find employment is detrimental to psychological wellbeing in young people. Fergusson, Horwood, and Lynskey (1997),
for example, found that 18-year-olds who had left school and
reported 6 or more months of unemployment were at a significantly higher risk of experiencing a psychiatric disorder (e.g.,
major depression, substance abuse, anxiety disorders) than their
counterparts who were employed. Duration of unemployment was
related to the risk of psychiatric disorder even after controlling for
personal and family characteristics that were associated with the
likelihood of unemployment. Other research also indicates that
young peoples experiences of unemployment and underemployment lead to increased depression (Dooley, Prause, & HamRowbottom, 2000; Hartnagel & Krahn, 1995) and reduced selfesteem (Goldsmith, Veum, & Darity, 1997; Prause & Dooley,
1997). Thus, extended periods of unemployment should be associated with decreases in psychological well-being.
Marriage is a role transition that can be associated with higher
psychological well-being. Specifically, Roberts and Bengtson
(1993) found that being employed and being married buffered the
negative effects of low parent child affection on self-esteem in the
adolescent and early adult years as well as on self-esteem and
depression 14 years later. In the Monitoring the Future project, the
transition to marriage in emerging adulthood was related to increases in psychological well-being as well as to decreases in
alcohol, marijuana, and cocaine use (Bachman et al., 2002; Schulenberg et al., 2005). The association between marriage and subjective well-being is robust across different populations and cannot
be explained by a simple selection effect (Lucas, Clark, Georgellis,
& Diener, 2003). Getting married during emerging adulthood is
likely to be associated with a decrease in depression and anger and
an increase in self-esteem.
The Current Study

Studies that only follow individuals for 1 or 2 years beyond high
school (e.g., Aseltine & Gore, 1993) or that track multiple-age
cohorts (e.g., Baldwin & Hoffman, 2002) obscure identification of
specific trajectories through the critical years (ages 18 25) of
emerging adulthood (Merikangas et al., 2003). To understand
intraindividual change, it is important for researchers to follow
individuals within the same birth cohort (Shanahan et al., 2000),
but such studies in emerging adulthood are in short supply. Also
very rare are studies that track psychological well-being in large
samples for five or more waves across this period (Trzesniewski,
Donnellan, & Robins, 2003). The current study attempts to address
these limitations through the use of data collected from a single

cohort of high school students who were assessed once during their
senior year in high school and on four more occasions through
age 25.
Our aims were to examine (a) the average developmental trajectories of change in depressive symptoms, self-esteem, and expressed anger across the 7-year period; (b) between-persons predictors of developmental trajectories in depression, self-esteem,
and expressed anger, including gender, family characteristics
(SES, conflict with parents), and school experiences and performance (academic track, school commitment, grades); and (c) how
developmental trajectories of depression, self-esteem, and expressed anger covaried with changes in social support and role
statuses (living with parents, full-time postsecondary schooling,
months unemployed in previous 12 months, marriage).
On the basis of previous research, we expected self-esteem to
increase and depressive symptoms and expressed anger to decrease
on average in emerging adulthood. We left open how gender might
affect these trajectories, as there was too little previous research
from which to form directional hypotheses. We expected to find
that family and school would be between-persons sources of
differential trajectories in psychological well-being. Specifically,
higher family SES and lower levels of parentadolescent conflict
at age 18 should make the transition to adulthood easier; thus,
these family characteristics ought to be associated with improving
trajectories of psychological well-being. Experiences that are indicative of success in school (being in an academic track, feeling
committed to school, higher grades) were also expected to be
associated with increasing well-being, as feelings of academic
competence might arm adolescents as they attempt to cope with
the challenging transition to adulthood. Finally, we hypothesized
that intraindividual changes in social support and role statuses
would be associated with intraindividual changes in psychological
well-being. In particular, increased levels of social support, leaving
home, enrollment in full-time postsecondary education, and getting married were expected to be connected with improved psychological well-being, whereas longer periods of unemployment
were expected to be linked with decreased well-being.
Method
Sample
In the final months of the 1984 1985 school year, 983 Grade 12 students
(M age 18.21, SD 0.82) in six high schools in a large western
Canadian city completed questionnaires in class that asked about their
school and work experiences, values, goals, relationships with family and
friends, and personal well-being. The six schools comprised more than half
(6/11) of all the public high schools in the city and were chosen to represent
a cross-section of middle- and working-class neighborhoods. The survey
respondents were selected from a mix of academic and vocational classes
or programs within the schools; students in 66 classes were targeted.
Virtually all students present in class on the testing day participated (i.e.,
there were very few refusals). The members of this community sample
were invited to provide their name and address and additional contact
information, so that they could be retested in the future. More than 90%
volunteered to remain in this longitudinal study of schoolwork transitions
and youthadult transitions.1 Every effort was made to ensure that the
sample was representative of the citys Grade 12 population in the public
school system (for further details, see Krahn, Mosher, & Johnson, 1993;
Lowe, Krahn, & Tanner, 1988).
A year later, these 894 young people (now age 19) were sent a follow-up
questionnaire that repeated many of the previous questions but also in-
353
cluded new questions about postsecondary education, posthigh school

employment and unemployment experiences, and role transitions (e.g.,
leaving home, marrying, becoming a parent). After several reminder mailings and some additional telephone calls, 665 of the original study participants completed and returned their questionnaire. In 1987, 547 participated (now age 20). By 1989 (age 22), the number of individuals who had
participated in all four waves of data collection had declined to 503. By
1992 (age 25), the 404 young adults who had provided information at all
five waves represented 41% of the original 1985 sample of 983 but a
slightly higher proportion (45%) of those who had provided contact information 7 years earlier.
At age 18, 52% of the study participants were men (by 1992, this figure
had declined to 44%). Four out of 5 (80%) of the 1985 sample members
were born in Canada; the remainder had been born in a wide range of other
countries and had then immigrated to Canada with their parents. Fifteen
percent (of the participants at age 19)2 indicated that they were non-White
in terms of ethnic origin. At age 18, in response to a question about their
parents financial situation, 9% of the sample members said it was below
average, 51% said it was average, and 39% said that their family financial
situation was above average (1% did not answer). Data also revealed that
10% of the teenage study participants came from families in which both
parents had a university degree, whereas 16% reported that one parent had
completed university. Although these are crude measures of family SES,
these findings suggest that the sample was representative of the socioeconomic diversity of the community from which it was obtained.
In Canada, postsecondary institutions include universities (which grant
degrees) and colleges and vocationaltechnical schools (which grant diplomas or certificates). Regarding the educational activity of the sample,
almost half moved into the postsecondary system directly following Grade
12 in the fall of 1986 (30% in university, 17% in other postsecondary
institutions), but 27% also returned to high school to complete their
program, upgrade their marks so that they would be more competitive in
applying to postsecondary institutions, or participate in 1 more year of high
school sports or other extracurricular activities. At the time, high schools in
the province typically accommodated such decisions, and it was relatively
common for students to take advantage of this opportunity. A year later, by
the fall of 1987, two thirds of the sample was in the postsecondary system
(37% in university, 28% in other postsecondary institutions). By age 25,
69% had earned some kind of postsecondary credential (30% had a
university degree, 14% had a college diploma, and 24% had a technical
school diploma).
Because of cumulative missing data, all analyses in this article are based
on slightly smaller sample sizes, namely, 920 at age 18, 633 at age 19, 521
at age 20, 481 at age 22, and 384 at age 25. A series of t tests compared
depression, self-esteem, and anger scores at all earlier ages for those who
were present and those who were missing at a particular age. In none of
these 30 comparisons was the mean for the present participants significantly different from the mean for the dropouts, thus indicating that
dropouts did not show poorer or better psychological well-being. These
results support the missing at random criterion, which is an important
assumption underlying the estimation of trajectories (Raudenbush & Bryk,
2002; Singer & Willett, 2003). These analyses were rerun separately for
women and men (30 tests for each). There were a few statistically significant findings, but overall the pattern of nonsignificant findings led us to
conclude that cases were missing at random.
1
The longitudinal survey design and the questionnaire had been previously approved by a university research ethics committee. Parental consent
was obtained for the participation of students who were not yet 18 years of
age. For additional information about this research program, see http://
www.arts.ualberta.ca/transition/.
2
This figure is based on data collected at age 19 because the research
team was not allowed to ask about ethnicity in school at age 18.
354
We further examined attrition by correlating between-persons predictors

at age 18 (gender, family characteristics, school-related experiences) with
the number of waves of participation. Correlations ( p .05) showed that
participants who remained in the study for longer were more likely to be
female (r .13), have university-educated parents (r .07), be in an
academic (university-stream) track (r .22), and have higher self-reported
grades (r .15). Finally, correlations of social support and role statuses
(living with parents, months in full-time postsecondary education, months
unemployed, and marital status) at each age with the number of waves of
participation revealed one consistent association. Specifically, participants
who lived with their parents at any age were more likely to remain in the
study (rs between .09 and .15, p .05). In the analyses to follow, all cases
with data available at one or more points in time were used. The inclusion
of observed predictors of attrition in the analyses and the use of all
available time points for participants reduces the possibility of bias and
permits valid generalizations (Raudenbush & Bryk, 2002; Singer & Willett, 2003).
Measures
Time was coded as the number of years that had passed since age 18,
thus reflecting the uneven spacing of the intervals between occasions.
Specifically, time was coded as follows: age 18 (0), age 19 (1), age 20 (2),
age 22 (4), and age 25 (7). Gender was coded as 0 (female) or 1 (male).
Psychological well-being. Depressive symptoms, self-esteem, and expressed anger were assessed at all five ages. Depressive symptoms were
measured with the mean of four items from the Center for Epidemiological
Studies Depression Scale (CES-D; Radloff, 1977). Participants indicated
how often in the past few months they felt depressed, felt lonely,
talked less than usual, and felt people were unfriendly on a scale
ranging from 1 (never) to 5 (almost always). These items represented three
of four domains covered by the CES-D: depressed affect (depressed and
lonely), somatic activity (talked less), and interpersonal rejection (people
unfriendly). Most studies of depression use more CES-D items. However,
additional analysis of data from a study of middle-aged adults and their
15-year-old children (Galambos & Almeida, 1994) revealed that the correlation between this four-item scale and the full 20-item scale was .88 for
adult women, adult men, and adolescent females, and it was .84 for
adolescent males. These correlations indicate that the shorter scale is a
good proxy for the complete scale. Cronbachs alpha for this subset of
items ranged from .68 to .73 across the five waves.
Self-esteem was assessed with the mean of six items from Rosenbergs
(1989) Self-Esteem Scale. Participants rated these items (e.g., On the
whole I am satisfied with myself I feel that I have a number of good
qualities) on a scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree).
Alphas ranged from .75 to .78 across five waves.
The mean of four items measured the extent to which participants felt
and expressed angry feelings. On the basis of selected items from a larger
measure of psychological well-being (Petersen & Kellam, 1977), participants were asked How often in the past few months have you . . . . felt
angry, lost your temper, yelled at people, and got into fights or
arguments. These items were rated on a scale ranging from 1 (never) to 5
(almost always). Items pertaining to feeling angry or irritated, experiencing
outbursts and loss of temper, and yelling and fighting reflect the affective
and behavioral components of anger and are common in scales used to
assess anger expression (e.g., Buss & Perry, 1992; Eckhardt et al., 2004;
Sigfusdottir, Farkas, & Silver, 2004). Alphas across the five waves ranged
between .82 and .84.
Family. Two indicators of family characteristics at age 18 were parent
education (an indicator of family SES) and conflict with parents. Parent
education was coded as the number of parents who held a university
degree: 0 (no university degree), 1 (one parent with a university degree),
and 2 (two parents with a university degree). The mean was 0.37 (SD
0.66). This measure of SES was used because, on the basis of experience
surveying teenagers, we believe that participants reports of parents university education are considerably more reliable than their estimates of
parents income or even their knowledge about parents specific occupation or employment situation.
To assess the frequency of conflict with parents, we asked participants,
In the past few months, how often would you say that you have had
disagreements with your parents(s) or guardian about . . . . Ten areas of
parentadolescent conflict (e.g., school (including homework), spending money, your choice of friends, dating, your appearance (clothes
or hairstyle), household chores, and the time you come in at night)
were then rated on a scale from 1 (never) to 5 (almost always). These or
very similar items commonly appear in conflict frequency scales and
reflect the main sources of everyday parentadolescent disagreements (e.g.,
Montemayor, 1983; Prinz, Foster, Kent, & OLeary, 1979; Smetana, 1989).
Moreover, conflict frequency measures that are based on a slate of specific
issues are more sensitive to changes in parentadolescent relations over
time than are global ratings of conflict (Laursen, Coy, & Collins, 1998).
The mean frequency of conflict was calculated. Cronbachs alpha for the
10 items was .83 (M 2.12, SD 0.70).
School. Three school-related variables were assessed at age 18. Academic track indicated whether the participant was in a nonacademic track
(e.g., business, vocational, trades and services), coded as 0, or an academic
track (i.e., university-stream courses), coded as 1 (M 0.63, SD 0.48;
nonacademic 37%; academic 63%). School commitment was measured with the mean of six items, modeled after a scale constructed by
Murdock and Phelps (1973). Sample items are Overall, I have enjoyed my
time in high school Most of the classes at school are a complete waste of
time (reverse coded) and Continuing my education will help me get a
good job. The items were rated on a scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to
5 (strongly agree). Cronbachs alpha for this scale was .59. The mean was
calculated, with higher scores indicating more commitment (M 3.65,
SD .63). Self-reported grades were measured by asking participants On
average, what have your grades been like this past school year? Responses
were 1 (mainly As; 80% or above), 2 (mainly Bs; 70% to 79%), 3 (mainly
Cs; 60% to 69%), 4 (mainly Ds; 50% to 59%), or 5 (mainly Fs; under
50%). This item was reverse scored so that a higher score indicated better
grades (M 3.30, SD 0.88).
Social support and role statuses. Time-varying covariates assessed at
all five ages included social support and four role statuses (living with
parents, postsecondary education, unemployment, marriage). For social
support, participants were asked When you have problems, how much can
you rely on each of the following people for help? At age 18, mother,
father, other family members, friends, and others were included as
possible sources. At age 19, spouse, boyfriend, girlfriend was added to
capture the expanding social network. At ages 20, 22, and 25, people at
work joined the previous roster. The extent to which each source provided
social support was rated on a 4-point scale ranging from 0 (dont have such
a person or not at all) to 3 (very much). A social support score was
generated by taking the mean for the items available at each age. Autocorrelations of social support across all (17-year) intervals of the study
ranged from .41 (7 years) to .57 (3 years), providing evidence for the
reliability of the measure.
Living with parents was coded as 0 (not living with parent) or 1
(currently living with parent). The percentages living with a parent were
93, 87, 81, 59, and 32 for ages 18 25, respectively. The number of months
attending school full time in the previous year indicated the participants
full-time postsecondary education status at ages 19 25. This variable was
fixed at zero at age 18 (because all respondents were in high school at the
time). Unemployment was indicated by the number of months unemployed
(defined as not having a job and actively seeking work) in each previous
year at ages 19 25. Unemployment was fixed to zero at age 18. Although
roughly half of 18-year-olds indicated that, at some previous time, they had
wanted a job but could not find one, we distinguish these teenage jobfinding experiences as distinct and not as serious as periods of unemployment they encountered after high school. Marriage was coded as 0 (not
currently married) or 1 (married). For ages 18 25, the percentage of
married participants was 1%, 4%, 7%, 21%, and 43%, respectively. Few
355
from .41 to .76), self-esteem (with loadings ranging from .54 to

.82), and expressed anger (with loadings ranging from .53 to .80).
Data were analyzed with multilevel modeling using the hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) program (Raudenbush & Bryk,
2002). Multilevel modeling is a data analysis technique allowing
for the examination of between-persons differences (e.g., gender)
in within-person trajectories (e.g., change in depressive symptoms). The HLM program calculates a separate within-person
model of regression intercepts and slopes for each person. Then a
between-persons model is estimated in which the within-person
slopes and intercepts are treated as dependent variables regressed
on person-level predictor variables.
For illustrative purposes, the simple form of a multilevel model
can be conceived of as two separate models, one a within-person
model (Level 1) and the other a between-persons model (Level 2).
Equation 1 expresses depressive symptoms for person j across i
occasions as a function of initial levels of depressive symptoms,
0j; the linear time slope, 1j; and a random error component, eij:
participants were separated or divorced during the course of the study (1

case at ages 18, 19, and 20; 3 at age 22; and 7 by age 25).
Results
Means and standard deviations for the outcome variables and the
time-varying covariates at all five ages are presented in Table 1. At the
mean level, depressive symptoms and expressed anger appear to
decrease between ages 18 and 25, whereas self-esteem appears to
increase. The means for social support are similar at all ages. Means
for the role statuses indicate that across time, fewer participants lived
with parents and were enrolled in full-time postsecondary education,
whereas more participants married. Unemployment was variable.
Autocorrelations for the three outcome variables for the total sample across time were all significant ( p .001) and ranged from .35 to
.52 for depressive symptoms (median r .46), .45 to .61 for selfesteem (median r .55), and .34 to .57 for expressed anger (median
r .44). For all three outcome measures, the lowest autocorrelations
occurred across the longest interval (between ages 18 and 25); higher
autocorrelations were generally found for adjacent ages.
Within-time intercorrelations among the outcome measures for
the total sample were all significant ( p .001). Higher self-esteem
was associated with lower depression (range in r .46 to .59)
and with less expressed anger (range in r .20 to .37).
Depressive symptoms and expressed anger were positively correlated (range in r .31 to .41). To examine whether depression,
self-esteem, and anger were independent constructs, we submitted
all three measures across all ages (a total of 15 variables) to a
principal-components analysis with varimax rotation. Three distinct factors emerged: depressive symptoms (with loadings ranging
Level 1: Depressive Symptomsij 0j 1j Time eij.
Equations 2 and 3 model the between-persons effect of gender

on initial levels of depressive symptoms at age 18 (i.e., the intercept; Equation 2) and the effect of gender on linear change in
depressive symptoms across emerging adulthood (i.e., the slope;
Equation 3). Specifically, Equation 2 models initial levels of
depressive symptoms for person j, 0j, as a function of the mean
for depressive symptoms of all participants at study onset, 00;
plus the between-persons effect of gender, 01; and a random error
component, r0j. In Equation 3, trajectories of depressive symp-
Table 1
Means and Standard Deviations for Outcome Variables and Time-Varying Covariates by Age (in
Years)
Age
18
Variable
Outcome
Depressive symptoms
Total
Women
Men
Self-esteem
Total
Women
Men
Expressed anger
Total
Women
Men
Covariate
Social support
Living with parents
Postsecondary education
Unemployment
Marriage
Total N a
Female N a
Male N a
19
20
22
25
SD
SD
SD
SD
SD
2.74
2.88
2.63
0.66
0.67
0.63
2.73
2.79
2.66
0.63
0.64
0.60
2.72
2.76
2.66
0.63
0.64
0.63
2.56
2.60
2.52
0.62
0.61
0.62
2.46
2.47
2.45
0.66
0.68
0.63
3.88
3.75
3.99
0.64
0.66
0.60
3.86
3.81
3.91
0.62
0.65
0.59
3.93
3.87
3.99
0.64
0.64
0.62
4.01
3.99
4.02
0.64
0.63
0.66
4.04
4.04
4.05
0.64
0.63
0.66
2.61
2.72
2.53
0.80
0.81
0.79
2.56
2.63
2.49
0.74
0.76
0.72
2.49
2.61
2.37
0.74
0.73
0.73
2.34
2.43
2.24
0.69
0.71
0.67
2.26
2.32
2.19
0.70
0.70
0.70
1.54
0.93
0.60
0.25
1.66
0.54
0.87
0.34
4.19
4.09
1.23
2.61
0.04
0.21
629633
315
314315
0.01
0.09
920
432
488
(1)
Note. Dashes indicate that the variable was fixed at zero.

a
For outcome variables.
1.58
0.52
0.81
0.39
4.38
4.03
1.13
2.32
0.07
0.26
520521
271
249250
1.55
0.55
0.59
0.49
3.90
4.10
0.58
1.49
0.21
0.41
478481
251253
227228
1.58
0.51
0.32
0.47
1.41
3.14
0.85
2.21
0.43
0.50
382384
214
169
356
toms, 1j, are modeled as a function of mean growth rate, 10; plus
the effect of gender, 11; and random error, r1j:
Level 2: 0j 00 01 Gender r0j
(2)
1j 10 11 Gender r1j.
(3)
For each of the three outcomes, depression, self-esteem, and

anger, three models were examined. In the first, the unconditional
means or random-intercept model (Raudenbush & Bryk, 2002;
Singer & Willett, 2003), no predictors were entered; the analysis
simply partitions variance in the outcome into two components
(between-persons and within-person). In the second, the unconditional growth model, the linear rate of change for each outcome
was tested (preliminary analyses indicated the quadratic time slope
was not significant for any of the three outcomes and so was not
included in the models reported here). In the third, the full model,
the between-persons effects of gender, family characteristics, and
school variables on initial status and linear rate of change were
tested together. For all analyses, continuous predictors at Level 1
and Level 2 were grand mean-centered. A strength of the HLM
program is that all 920 individuals are included in the analysis.
Cases with complete data on the outcome measures are weighted
more heavily, but as long as one occasion of measurement is
available, the case is used in the estimation of effects.
Depressive Symptoms
The unconditional means model determined that 46% of the
variation in depression was between-persons (54% was withinperson). The unconditional growth model for depressive symptoms
showed that the average initial level of depressive symptoms was
2.75 (SE 0.02) and that, on average, there was a significant
decrease in depressive symptoms over time (coefficient .04,
SE .00, p .05). Chi-square tests of the variance components
for depressive symptoms indicated that there was significant variation in initial levels of depressive symptoms, 2(619, N 620)
1,883.50, p .05, and significant variation in the time slope of
depressive symptoms, 2(619, N 620) 853.22, p .05,

justifying the exploration of both Level 1 and Level 2 predictors of
variation in depression. The correlation between initial status, 0j,
and rate of change, 1j, was calculated (i.e., the population covariance of the Level 2 residuals was divided by the square root of
the product of its associated variance components; Singer & Willett, 2003). The correlation was .40, indicating that higher depressive symptoms at age 18 were associated with a steeper
decline in depressive symptoms across emerging adulthood.
Results for the full model (see Table 2) indicated significant effects
of gender on initial status and rate of change in depressive symptoms.
Depressive symptoms were higher at age 18 and declined more
rapidly across emerging adulthood for women compared with men
(see Figure 1). In order to test whether the gender difference at age 25
was significant, we ran an analysis in which time was recoded so that
the intercept for depressive symptoms was located at age 25. The
gender difference in depression at age 25 was not significant, t(918)
0.82, p .41. Turning back to the full model, results showed that
depressive symptoms declined more rapidly among emerging adults
whose parents had higher levels of education. Figure 2 illustrates this
fan-spread phenomenon, in which parent education was not related to
initial levels of depressive symptoms but was a source of differential
trajectories in depressive symptoms to age 25. Increased conflict with
parents at age 18 predicted higher levels of depressive symptoms
concurrently and faster rates of decline in depressive symptoms across
emerging adulthood (see Figure 3). Although lower school commitment was related to higher depression at age 18, it was not related to
the rate of change in depressive symptoms. Academic track and
grades were not related to initial levels or rates of change in
depression.
Self-Esteem
The unconditional means model determined that 53% of the
variation in self-esteem was between-persons (47% was withinperson). Results for the unconditional growth model indicated that
the average initial level of self-esteem was 3.87 (SE 0.02). Over
Table 2
Multilevel Results of the Between-Persons Effects of Gender, Family, and School on Initial
Status and Rate of Change in Depressive Symptoms, Self-Esteem, and Anger (Full Model)
Depressive symptoms
Self-esteem
Expressed anger
Variable
Coefficient
SE
Coefficient
SE
Coefficient
SE
Initial status (age 18)

Gender
Parent education
Conflict with parents
Academic track
School commitment
Grades
Rate of change
Gender
Parent education
Conflict with parents
Academic track
School commitment
Grades
2.90*
.21*
.02
.18*
.06
.15*
.06
.05*
.02*
.02*
.02*
.00
.01
.00
.04
.04
.03
.03
.04
.03
.04
.01
.01
.01
.01
.01
.01
.01
3.69*
.22*
.06*
.18*
.07
.09*
.07*
.03*
.03*
.00
.01
.01
.00
.00
.04
.04
.03
.03
.04
.03
.02
.01
.01
.01
.01
.01
.01
.01
2.74*
.17*
.02
.31*
.07
.10*
.02
.04*
.01
.02
.03*
.01
.01
.01
.05
.05
.04
.04
.05
.04
.03
.01
.01
.01
.01
.01
.01
.01
Note. N 920.
* p .05.
Figure 1.
The gender difference in initial level and rate of change in depressive symptoms.
time, there was a significant increase in self-esteem (coefficient .03, SE .00, p .05). Chi-square tests of the variance
components for self-esteem showed that there was significant
variation in initial levels of self-esteem, 2(619, N 620)
Figure 2.
357
2,099.79, p .05, and significant variation in the self-esteem

time slope, 2(619, N 620) 793.72, p .05, to be
predicted. The correlation between initial status, 0j, and rate of
change, 1j, in self-esteem was .22; lower self-esteem at age
Parent education as a source of differing rates of change in depressive symptoms.
358
Figure 3. Parentadolescent conflict (age 18) as a source of differences in initial level and rate of change in
depressive symptoms. Average trajectories are plotted for average (at the mean), high (1 SD above the mean),
and low (1 SD below the mean) levels of conflict.
18 was associated with a greater increase in self-esteem across

emerging adulthood.
The significant effects of gender on initial status and rate of
change in self-esteem are shown in the full model (see Table 2).
Self-esteem was lower among women compared with men at age
18 but increased more rapidly among women compared with men
across emerging adulthood (see Figure 4). An analysis to examine
the gender difference at age 25 revealed that self-esteem did not
differ for men and women, t(918) 0.55, p .58. The full model
revealed that both greater parental education and less conflict with
parents at age 18 predicted higher levels of concurrent self-esteem;
neither variable predicted change in self-esteem across emerging
adulthood. Higher school commitment and grades significantly
predicted self-esteem at age 18, but none of the school variables
predicted change in self-esteem over time.
Expressed Anger
The unconditional means model found that 44% of the variation
in anger was between-persons (56% was within-person). Results
for the unconditional growth model revealed that the average
initial level of expressed anger was 2.61 (SE 0.02). There was
a significant decrease in expressed anger on average across emerging adulthood (coefficient .05, SE .01, p .05). Chi-square
tests of the variance components for expressed anger showed there
was significant variation in initial levels, 2(619, N 620)
2,078.33, p .05, and rate of change, 2(619, N 620) 885.89,
p .05, to be predicted. The correlation between initial status, 0j,
and rate of change, 1j, in expressed anger was .65; greater
expressed anger at age 18 was associated with a steeper decline in

expressed anger across emerging adulthood.
The full model (see Table 2) showed that expressed anger was
higher at age 18 among women compared with men. Gender was
not related to rate of change in expressed anger, however. Greater
conflict with parents at age 18 predicted higher levels of concurrent expressed anger and steeper declines in expressed anger
across emerging adulthood (see Figure 5). As shown in the full
model, lower school commitment was associated with higher levels of expressed anger at age 18, but none of the school variables
predicted change in expressed anger over time.
Within-Person Sources of Variability in Depression, SelfEsteem, and Anger

Within-person effects of social support, living with parents,
months of postsecondary education, months of unemployment, and
marriage were tested for each outcome. Restrictions limiting the
number of parameters that can be tested at Level 1 prevented us
from testing all time-varying covariates together. Therefore, each
predictor was added separately to Level 1 of the full model for
each outcome. As an example, Equation 4 expresses depressive
symptoms for person j across i occasions as a function of initial
levels of depressive symptoms, 0j; the linear time slope, 1j; the
effect of social support, 2j; and a random error component, eij:
Level 1:Depressive Symptomsij 0j 1j Time
2j Social Support e ij.
(4)
Figure 4.
359
The gender difference in initial level and rate of change in self-esteem.
In addition, cross-level Gender Within-Person predictor interactions were tested by entering gender at Level 2 as a betweenpersons predictor of the effect of each time-varying covariate on
depressive symptoms (Equation 3 presents an example of a crosslevel interaction between gender and time). Results are shown in
Table 3.
Greater social support, fewer months of unemployment, and
being married each predicted lower levels of depressive symptoms.
In other words, changes in the direction of more social support,
less unemployment, and marriage were associated with shifts in
the trajectory of depressive symptoms toward lower levels. The
association between social support and depressive symptoms was
stronger for women compared with men (coefficient .10, SE
.05, p .05). In no case did the addition of a time-varying
covariate to the full model for depressive symptoms substantively
alter any of the other (significant or nonsignificant) results reported in Table 2.
When added to the full model for self-esteem, greater social
support and fewer months of unemployment were associated with
higher self-esteem. Improvements in self-esteem were associated
with the acquisition of more social support and less unemployment. When social support was added to the full model at Level 1,
the effect of academic track on initial level of self-esteem became
significant (coefficient .09, SE .04, p .05). Participants who
were in a university track had higher self-esteem than those who
were in a nonacademic track. There was no interaction of gender
and social support in the prediction of self-esteem.
When the covariates were added separately to the full model for
expressed anger, only social support attained significance. That is,
changes toward more social support were associated with shifts
toward less expressed anger. This association was stronger for
women compared with men (coefficient .14, SE .05, p .05).
Although living with parents was not a significant predictor of

expressed anger, controlling for it resulted in parents education
becoming a significant predictor of the rate of change in anger
(coefficient .02, SE .01, p .05). Participants whose
parents were more highly educated declined in expressions of
anger at a faster rate than did those with parents who were less
highly educated. Similarly, when marriage was added as a timevarying covariate, parents education emerged as a significant
predictor of the rate of change in expressed anger (coefficient
.02, SE .01, p .05). A fan-spread phenomenon was found
(similar to that for depressive symptoms in Figure 2), in which
initial levels of expressed anger did not differ but expressed anger
decreased faster among individuals with two university-educated
parents compared with those whose parents were less educated.
Discussion
The average trajectories of three measures indicated that psychological well-being generally improved from ages 18 25 in this
school-based community sample. Depressive symptoms and expressed anger decreased, whereas self-esteem increased. These
findings are notable, given the striking gap in the literature on
changes in depressive symptoms from ages 20 24 (Wight et al.,
2004), the general lack of knowledge about trajectories of change
in psychological well-being in single cohorts of emerging adults,
and the relative unavailability of research on anger expression in
community samples of young people. The findings are consistent
with trends seen in other longitudinal data on depression (Aseltine
& Gore, 1993; Merikangas et al., 2003) and self-esteem (Schulenberg et al., 2005) as well as with cross-sectional results (e.g.,
Wade & Cairney, 1997). We view these results as good news. That
is, although the 20s may be characterized by a prolonged period in
360
Figure 5. Parentadolescent conflict (age 18) as a source of differences in initial level and rate of change in
expressed anger. Average trajectories are plotted for average (at the mean), high (1 SD above the mean), and low
(1 SD below the mean) levels of conflict.
characterizes trajectories of depression and self-esteem in adolescence. In contrast to the gender intensification that occurs in
adolescence, gender convergence was indicated in depressive
symptoms and self-esteem in emerging adulthood. As expected,
women showed significantly higher levels of depressive symptoms
and lower levels of self-esteem at age 18 than did men, but on both
indicators, women improved at a faster rate than did men by age
25. Although comparable data on gender differences in trajectories
of depressive symptoms do not appear to have been published,
some longitudinal data on self-esteem find a narrowing of the
gender gap after adolescence (Kling et al., 1999). Given that
emerging adults in Western society see increased decision-making
power and independence as the most important criteria for reaching adulthood (Arnett, 2003), it is possible that transition-linked
which there is a diversity of life choices, flirtation with independence, and experimentation with lifestyle behaviors, at least in
Western societies (Arnett, 2000), this seems to be a time during
which young people are coming to grips with themselves and their
lives. That they feel better about themselves and experience less
emotional upheaval as time goes on is indicative of the acquisition
of psychosocial maturitya maturity that ought to be reached in
order to be a fully fledged, productive adult member of society.
The ongoing exploration that from the outside seems to point to
indecisiveness and a lack of direction may well reflect the processes of selection and optimization that lead to adaptation (see,
e.g., Baltes, Lindenberger, & Staudinger, 1998).
An interesting part of this story of improved psychological
well-being is the apparent reversal of the gender divergence that
Table 3
Multilevel Results of the Within-Person Effects of Social Support and Role Statuses on
Depressive Symptoms, Self-Esteem, and Expressed Anger
Depressive symptoms
Self-esteem
Expressed anger
Covariate
Coefficient
SE
Coefficient
SE
Coefficient
SE
Social support
Living with parents
Postsecondary education
Unemployment
Marriage
.26*
.00
.00
.02*
.14*
.03
.04
.00
.01
.05
.21*
.01
.00
.02*
.04
.03
.04
.00
.01
.04
.17*
.00
.00
.02
.05
.04
.05
.01
.01
.06
Note. N 920. Each within-person effect was tested separately by adding the covariate to the full model at
Level 1.
* p .05.
increases in these attributes accompany increases in psychological

well-being. The transition through the early 20s may enhance the
well-being of women because power and independence both
masculine attributesare less likely to have been a part of their
adolescent lives than it was for men (see, e.g., Galambos, Almeida,
& Petersen, 1990).
Consistent with this explanation, Mirowsky (1996) revealed that
the gender gap in depression was narrowest between ages 18 and
30 and increased with each older age group. Moreover, the rising
gender gap across the life span was associated with increasing
gender differences in employment, housework, child care, and
economic hardship that put women at a disadvantage. Similarly,
Nomaguchi and Milkie (2003) reported that the transition to parenthood was associated with increased housework and more marital conflict in women but not in men. These results suggest that
emerging adulthood could be a relative high point in the psychological well-being of young people and that the gender gap could
reemerge as women and men face life transitions that have greater
impacts on one gender than another.
The gender difference in initial levels of expressed anger,
favoring women, was puzzling, given that generally either no
gender difference is found or that men report more anger
expression (Fischer et al., 2004). Because depression and anger
were positively correlated in this sample and in others (Seidlitz,
Fujita, & Duberstein, 2000; Sigfusdottir et al., 2004), we tested
the hypothesis that higher depression in women was responsible
for the gender difference in anger expression at age 18. To do
so, we added depressive symptoms as a time-varying covariate
at Level 1 of the full model predicting expressed anger. This
analysis showed that, after controlling for depression at all ages,
gender was no longer significantly related to expressed anger
(coefficient .07, SE .04, p .05). The only other change
resulting from controlling for depression was the disappearance
of the relation between school commitment and expressed anger
at age 18.
Our second research question focused on between-persons
sources of variance in individual trajectories. As already discussed, gender was one source of such differences. Another was
parent education (family SES). Although parent education was
unrelated to depressive symptoms and expressed anger at age
18, depression and expressed anger decreased fastest among
emerging adults with two university-educated parents. As others have suggested (Mitchell et al., 2004; Shanahan et al.,
2000), it is likely that more affluent middle-class parents are
better able to assist children in making the transition to adulthood. The support they provide can be financial, in that parents
with more economic resources may be able to pay for further
education, help with buying a car, and assist in setting up an
independent household, as the means for self-sufficiency is
gradually acquired. Individuals from less advantaged families
may be in a more precarious position as emerging adulthood
unfolds, perhaps not as free to pursue their educational or career
choices and more likely to experience potentially demoralizing
financial stresses. Indeed, follow-up correlations of our data
reveal that having university-educated parents was associated
with participants full-time postsecondary education at ages 19,
20, and 22 (rs between number of university-educated parents
and months spent in postsecondary education ranged from .16
to .27, p .05).
361
Not surprisingly, higher levels of conflict with parents at age 18

were correlated with higher initial levels of depressive symptoms
and expressed anger. More interesting and contrary to our hypothesis is the finding that individuals with the highest levels of
conflict with parents decreased fastest in depression and anger
across emerging adulthood. The net result was one in which the
apparent negative influence of high conflict was much reduced by
age 25. These results may reflect stability and change in relations
with parents. That is, any continuing relation between conflict
frequency at age 18 and lower psychological well-being across
emerging adulthood could be due to (unmeasured) stability in
conflict from ages 18 25. At the same time, mean-level conflict
could have decreased, which would explain improvement in depressive symptoms and expressed anger, even in the high-conflict
group. In addition, as young people begin to make their own
choices, the impact of prior family problems might lessen as other
aspects of the transition intervene.
Whereas family characteristics were sources of differences in
trajectories of indicators of psychological well-being, we found
no evidence that school experiences and performance were as
important. At age 18, there was some predictable connection
between school experience and psychological well-being.
Higher school commitment and grades, for example, were related to higher self-esteem. It could be that school-related
variables are more significant for future educational experiences than to global indicators of well-being. Rosenberg et al.
(1995), for instance, found that self-reported grades were more
strongly related to specific academic self-esteem than to global
self-esteem. Two similar studies of younger adolescents showed
inconsistent results with respect to school experiences and
performance as sources of trajectories in self-esteem (Deihl et
al., 1997; Hirsch & DuBois, 1991). It is possible that the impact
of high school wanes as individuals encounter new educational
and/or vocational experiences during the transition to adulthood. It may be a relief to some parents that high school
experiences do not necessarily translate into longer-term
outcomes.
A third aim of our study was to examine how changes in
social support and role transitions such as moving out of the
parents home were related to trajectories of depression, selfesteem, and expressed anger. We found that when social support was higher, self-esteem was also higher, and depressive
symptoms and expressed anger were lower. This was especially
true for young women. These findings indicate that during
emerging adulthood, losses in social support are connected with
a shift toward lower psychological well-being, whereas gains in
such support are associated with improved psychological functioning. The apparent impact of social support on varied indicators of psychological well-being converges with past research
illustrating its importance for physical and mental health (S.
Cohen, 2004). It is possible that changes in social support may
accompany the many life transitions that individuals make
during emerging adulthood (P. Cohen et al., 2003). Covariation
among these transitions and changes in social support may
qualify as transition-linked turning points, which are experiences or events that have the potential to create shifts in
trajectories (Graber & Brooks-Gunn, 1996b).
Two of the four role transitions explored in the current study
also seemed to be turning points in psychological well-being:
unemployment and marriage. As expected, when emerging adults
362
experienced more unemployment, their depression increased and

self-esteem decreased. These findings are consistent with other
research noting the salience of unemployment for depression and
self-esteem (e.g., Dooley et al., 2000; Goldsmith et al., 1997).
Given that unemployment is more likely to be experienced by
young people between the ages of 15 and 24 than in any other age
group (Health Canada, 1999; Krahn & Lowe, 2002), this is a clear
transition-linked experience that can pose risks to psychological
health. On the other hand, reemployment is another turning point
that can shift the individual back onto an upward trajectory in
psychological well-being (Lucas, Clark, Georgellis, & Diener,
2004). Marriage was a positive turn of events associated with
reduced levels of depressive symptoms in this sample. This marriage effect is a robust finding in the literature and is not necessarily simply a honeymoon effect. That is, although the average
trend indicates that marriage provides a temporary boost in life
satisfaction, strong positive reactions to marriage can have lasting
effectsas can strong negative reactions (Lucas et al., 2003). Of
course, it is possible that part of the explanation for associations of
unemployment and marriage with psychological well-being is due
to a selection effect. Individuals who are better adjusted to begin
with may be more likely to get married and to stay employed.
Although large-scale studies have concluded that such selection
effects are evident, they are small and do not explain away the
effects that unemployment (Lucas et al., 2004) and marriage
(Johnson & Wu, 2002; Lucas et al., 2003) appear to have on
well-being.
Although we expected that leaving home and enrollment in
postsecondary education might be associated with changes in
psychological well-being, no significant effects were found. This
could be because leaving home might have indirect effects on
psychological well-being, mediated by the quality of the relationship with parents (see, e.g., Aseltine & Gore, 1993). If we had
repeated measures of conflict with parents, we would have been
able to detect whether leaving home improved the relationship and,
consequently, affected psychological well-being. Another possibility for the absence of an association between leaving home and
psychological well-being is that leaving home could be associated
with both positive (improvements in relations with parents) and
negative (increased financial stress) experiences, thereby canceling
the possibility of identifying a general trend in one direction.
Similarly, full-time enrollment in postsecondary education may,
on balance, be neither positive nor negative. Indeed, it might be the
quality of experiences in the role of student that would have more
influence.
This study has several strengths, including a relatively large
community-based sample of a single grade-based cohort of
individuals who were observed on multiple occasions as they
moved from ages 18 to 25. The fact that trajectories were
examined for three unique but related indicators of psychological well-being is also a strength. Limitations of the study
include the rate of attrition across the 7-year period of the study.
Although a higher retention rate would be desirable, the loss
that occurred did not appear to be selective with respect to
psychological well-being. That is, the dropouts at any particular
age were not more likely to show poorer or better levels of
psychological well-being at earlier ages compared with participating individuals. Thus, we have confidence that our estimates for trajectories of change in depression, self-esteem, and
anger are not biased. Like many longitudinal studies (e.g.,
Aseltine & Gore, 1993), however, the participants who remained in the study were more likely than dropouts to come
from higher SES families and to be more academically inclined.
In addition, participants who lived with their parents were more
likely to participate, probably because they were easier to
contact at follow-up. Although the inclusion of parents education, academic track, self-reported grades, and living with parents as predictors of trajectories of psychological well-being
helps protect against bias (Raudenbush & Bryk, 2002; Singer &
Willett, 2003), it should be recognized that there are limits to
generalizing the results.
Another limitation is the use of a shortened scale of depressive
symptoms. A complete measure would be preferable, as this would
allow the examination of change in severe levels of depression
over time as well as comparability with other studies. At its
extreme, depression may not decrease in emerging adulthood
(Merikangas et al., 2003; Pine, Cohen, Cohen, & Brook, 1999;
Wight et al., 2004), but we were unable to assess this possibility.
Nevertheless, the internal consistencies of the short measure were
acceptable, and it correlated highly with the full CES-D in a
sample of adolescents and middle-age adults. Furthermore, our
results of decreasing symptoms are consistent with the posthigh
school decline in scores on the full 20-item CES-D, noted by
Aseltine and Gore (1993), and the lowered depression in high
school seniors, compared with younger students, on a 12-item
version of the CES-D in Canadian women (Poulin et al., 2005).
Given the importance of the family context in the present
study, changing levels of conflict frequency and other indicators of relations with parents (e.g., support, parental encouragement of autonomy) should be assessed in future research. This
would enable the examination of how maturation in the parentemerging adult relationship is reflected in trajectories of change
in well-being. In addition, it would be useful to know how
intensity of conflict changes in emerging adulthood and
whether there are differential relations of conflict frequency and
intensity with indicators of psychological well-being. Another
question awaiting future research concerns financial and other
types of support (e.g., work, education, and career advice)
provided by parents. Understanding how parents beliefs and
behaviors concerning such support are connected to the adjustment of their grown children would lead to concrete advice
about how to make the transition to adulthood a successful one.
With respect to role transitions, it is clear that unemployment
and marriage are important. It is less apparent how leaving
home and enrollment in postsecondary education may influence
well-being. More fine-grained assessments of the quality of
experiences in the leaving home and education transitions will
lead to further knowledge of the impact of these role changes on
the adaptation of emerging adults.
The results of this study were encouraging for the nature of the
transition to adulthood. On average, psychological well-being increased, and some striking gender gaps apparent in adolescence
appeared to decrease in magnitude. Moreover, some initial disadvantages (e.g., parentadolescent conflict) seemed to wane somewhat over time, whereas new transitions (e.g., marriage) appeared
to provide a boost in psychological functioning. Nevertheless,
emerging adulthood is not a positive experience for everyone, as
there is great interindividual variability in intraindividual change.
Individuals who come from lower SES families may have a harder
time making the transition, as might those who experience losses
in social support or unemployment. It is clear that researchers will

learn more about the nature of emerging adulthood by considering
not only average trajectories of change but also by examining
between-persons predictors of variation from the average as well
as time-varying covariates that reflect common transitions during
this period.
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Received March 25, 2005

Revision received October 7, 2005
Accepted October 17, 2005

Depression, Self-Esteem, and Anger in Emerging Adulthood

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Developmental Psychology

2006, Vol. 42, No. 2, 350 365

Copyright 2006 by the American Psychological Association

Depression, Self-Esteem, and Anger in Emerging Adulthood:

National Institute of Child Health and Human Development

According to Arnett (2000), the years from ages 18 to 25 cover

Nancy L. Galambos, Department of Psychology, University of Alberta,

Trajectories of Change in Psychological Well-Being in

DEPRESSION, SELF-ESTEEM, AND ANGER

bos, Leadbeater, & Barker, 2004; Petersen, Sarigiani, & Kennedy,

reflected in these studies, we expected expressed anger to decline

Between-Persons Sources of Differences in Trajectories of

GALAMBOS, BARKER, AND KRAHN

It is important also to consider the potential impact of school

Within-Person Sources of Differences in Trajectories of

Given that such independence is a desirable goal for emerging

The Current Study

DEPRESSION, SELF-ESTEEM, AND ANGER

these limitations through the use of data collected from a single

cluded new questions about postsecondary education, posthigh school

GALAMBOS, BARKER, AND KRAHN

We further examined attrition by correlating between-persons predictors

DEPRESSION, SELF-ESTEEM, AND ANGER

from .41 to .76), self-esteem (with loadings ranging from .54 to

participants were separated or divorced during the course of the study (1

Level 1: Depressive Symptomsij 0j 1j Time eij.

Equations 2 and 3 model the between-persons effect of gender

Note. Dashes indicate that the variable was fixed at zero.

GALAMBOS, BARKER, AND KRAHN

For each of the three outcomes, depression, self-esteem, and

depressive symptoms, 2(619, N 620) 853.22, p .05,

Initial status (age 18)

DEPRESSION, SELF-ESTEEM, AND ANGER

2,099.79, p .05, and significant variation in the self-esteem

Parent education as a source of differing rates of change in depressive symptoms.

GALAMBOS, BARKER, AND KRAHN

18 was associated with a greater increase in self-esteem across

expressed anger at age 18 was associated with a steeper decline in

Within-Person Sources of Variability in Depression, SelfEsteem, and Anger

DEPRESSION, SELF-ESTEEM, AND ANGER

The gender difference in initial level and rate of change in self-esteem.

Although living with parents was not a significant predictor of

GALAMBOS, BARKER, AND KRAHN

DEPRESSION, SELF-ESTEEM, AND ANGER

increases in these attributes accompany increases in psychological

Not surprisingly, higher levels of conflict with parents at age 18

GALAMBOS, BARKER, AND KRAHN

experienced more unemployment, their depression increased and

DEPRESSION, SELF-ESTEEM, AND ANGER

in social support or unemployment. It is clear that researchers will

femininity, and sex role attitudes in early adolescence: Exploring gender

GALAMBOS, BARKER, AND KRAHN

Canadian society (pp. 169 187). Toronto, Ontario, Canada: Thompson

Radloff, L. S. (1977). The CES-D Scale: A self-report depression scale for

DEPRESSION, SELF-ESTEEM, AND ANGER

Wight, R. G., Sepulveda, J. E., & Aneshensel, C. S. (2004). Depressive

Received March 25, 2005

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