On Your Own Without a Net: The Transition to Adulthood for Vulnerable Populations ‐ Edited by D. Wayne Osgood, E. Michael Foster, Constance Flanagan, & Gretchen R. Ruth

On Your Own Without a Net: The Transition to Adulthood for Vulnerable Populations. D. Wayne Osgood, E. Michael Foster, Constance Flanagan, & Gretchen R. Ruth (Eds.). Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. 2005. 401 pp. ISBN 0-226-63783-2. $40.00. (cloth) This important book, sponsored by the MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Transitions to Adulthood, was written as a companion to On the Frontier of Adulthood: Theory, Research, and Public Policy (Settersten, Furstenberg, & Rumbaut, 2005). The current volume focuses on seven groups of youth whose life circumstances and involvement in public social service systems present challenges to making a successful developmental transition to adulthood. The purpose is to identify the developmental challenges facing each of the vulnerable groups and to draw attention to relevant policy issues. The volume is a valuable resource for scholars, educators, policymakers, and program planners. In reviewing the literature on the transition to adulthood for former foster youth, Mark Courtney and Darcy Hughes Heuring describe the negative outcomes for this group. Rather than attributing these poor outcomes to time spent in the foster care system, they explore how family history and experiences in out-ofhome care may contribute to their difficulties. The authors discuss policies aimed at helping youth during the transition to adulthood, with a particular emphasis on the Foster Care Independence Act of 1999. They describe gaps in support for former foster youth as a result of limitations in the law itself, as well as differences in implementation at the state and local levels. Chapters 3 and 4 are devoted to youth transitioning to adulthood from the juvenile justice system. He Len Chung, Michelle Little, and Laurence Steinberg aptly stipulate that the current policy, which emphasizes punishment rather than rehabilitation fails to support psychological capacities young offenders need in order to make a successful transition to adulthood. On the basis of an excellent review of the literature on developmental turning points, Chung, Little, and Steinberg suggest that the juvenile justice system adopt a developmental approach to rehabilitation and promote psychological capacities in the areas of autonomous decision making, interpersonal relationships, and self-governance. In a companion chapter, David Altschuler examines relevant policies and program efforts. Consistent with Chung, Little, and Steinberg, he concludes that promoting resilience and social inclusion for young offenders are made difficult by a system that gives priority to deterrence and punishment. Altschuler concludes with an insightful analysis of organizational and programmatic issues that need to be addressed in order to ensure continuity of care and promote successful adult outcomes for these youth. The next two chapters focus on the challenges during the transition to adulthood faced by young adults reentering the community from the criminal justice system. In Chapter 5, Christopher Uggen and Sara Wakefield argue that youth entering the criminal justice system have far greater problems than their counterparts in the general population in the areas of employment, family, civic life, mental health, and substance abuse and will likely reenter the community with the same deficits. In Chapter 6, Jeremy Travis and Christa Vishner explain that current policies have contributed to the difficulties incarcerated youth face upon returning to the community. The authors review promising programs in the areas of employment, family attachment, and health care for returning prisoners and conclude that in order to promote successful transition to adulthood for these youth, a model that includes an integrated service network and provides a continuum of care between prison and community is necessary. In Chapter 7, John Hagan and Bill McCarthy present challenges during the transition to adulthood for homeless and runaway youth and examine relevant policy issues. …