This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Molgat, M. Articles by Vézina, M. Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Transitionless biographies?

Youth and representations of solo living

University of Ottawa, Canada

Mireille Vézina

Institut national de la recherche scientifique — Urbanisation, Culture et Société, Montréal, Canada

The sociology of youth has typically focused on transitions as a way of determining how young people make it to adulthood. However, the transition from single life to partnership and family life seems to warrant further investigation because many young people are putting off conjugality and family formation. Some may not view living alone only as a transitional period but also as a more or less permanent feature of their existence. Analysis of in-depth semi-structured interviews con-ducted with individuals aged under 65 and living alone (n = 51) in two Montreal neighbourhoods shows that younger respondents in their mid to late twenties and early thirties have three representations of ‘solo living’: (i) a youth lifestyle; (ii) a period of transition to conjugality; (iii) a way of life for the long term. Impli-cations for transitions research are raised, in particular how to grapple with bio-graphies that are ‘transitionless’ in the relational sphere.

Key Words: sociology of youth • transitions • youth • adulthood • biography • living alone

Young, Vol. 16, No. 4, 349-371 (2008)
DOI: 10.1177/110330880801600401


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?