The Illusion of the Prolongation of Youth Is it true that 'youth' as a life stage is increasingly being prolonged, as is often claimed? Are young people increasingly delaying their entry into adulthood? Advanced societies have recently undergone deep transformations, which in turn have affected young people's pathways of transition. However, the widespread assumption that youth is being extended may well be inaccurate. Indeed, the concept of adulthood itself needs reconsideration. In this comparative study, young Finnish and French female university students offer their perspectives on their own processes of transition. They evaluate their passage from university to working life, the dilemmas they face in attaining independence, their ambivalence about starting a family, and their perspectives both on becoming an adult and on the meaning of adulthood. This book provides up-to-date knowledge for readers seeking to understand what it takes to come of age today, and what it means to be an adult in the early 21st century.