DEVELOPMENTAL CRISIS IN EARLY ADULTHOOD: A ...

Phase 3 and 4: Exploration and Resolution
For Jack and Dan there is change from being stuck in a post-sacking malaise
towards a new, more proactive approach to building a new life, which leads to
resolution in a new, more satisfying career and home life.
Exploration of Alternatives
The car crash has an immediate impact on Jack. After recovering from his
injuries, he changes from the static, uninvolved life that he was living before, and
instead embarks on a dynamic process of finding new activities to appreciate and of
understanding himself, almost as if he has been jolted awake, or back to life:
“I think there was a desperate need to find more ways to appreciate life, I think, and I
found quite a lot of new friends. I started doing things that I hadn’t done before like
going round to friend’s houses to cook, and to go out a bit more.” (p.5)
He describes being on a quest to understand himself:
“I think I started to have a bit more of a quest really, in understanding other people
and understanding myself, and studying, and I started to get much more involved.”
(p.6)
He goes to see a counsellor, he starts reading psychology books, and he describes how
enhanced self-knowledge is the aim of quest:
“I read a lot of psychology books, basically Freud. I remember one book that had a
profound effect on me was his Interpretation of Dreams. I was reading things, and
something in my mind was applying his theory to my dreams and how I felt, and just
reading things about biology, mostly scientific disciplines. It just felt so kind of
important. It felt like it was important to know yourself. I felt quite strongly that I
could do it.” (p.6)
Dan starts to explore alternative career avenues, when his situation seems
hopeless. Up until this point he has been looking for the same kind of work as he was
fired from. Now he sees the possibility of alternative careers. He sees an advert in
the local paper advertising for film lecturers at the local college, and initially gets just
one day a week, which gradually increases. The lecturing experience he actually
enjoys, and for the first time appreciates the importance of enjoying work, rather than
gaining merely money and status from it.
Back to Study
Jack goes back to study within a year of the car crash. He initially goes onto a
psychology degree, but then changes his mind and does a chemistry degree. He says:
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