Coming of age in America is an increasingly lengthy, challenging, and fascinating process. It represents the most dramatic example of the complex processes involved in negotiating a critical period of normal development. It illustrates the shifting interplay between the biological, psychological, and cultural demands on the individual. At the present time much of the focus of attention has been on the failures of coping in this era, especially as indicated by higher suicide rates, prevalence of drug abuse, and increase in violent behaviors. (39 pp.)