“Mom, can I be a human being?”: educational supported living as a space for transition to adulthood

Context and relevance. Adolescence is regarded as a transitional stage from childhood to adulthood. Adolescents with neurodevelopmental disorders and their families face significant challenges associated with the transition to adulthood. This article examines the perceptions of participants in an educational supported living project and their parents regarding the process of growing up, as well as the project`s contribution to the transition to adulthood. Objective. To map the meanings attributed to the transition from childhood to adulthood by participants in an educational supported living project and their parents. Hypothesis. Research participants note subjective markers of adulthood, paying no attention to traditional markers of adulthood. Methods and materials. In the summer of 2025, 8 interviews with parents, 5 interviews with project participants (adolescents and young adults), and 2 focus groups with educators of the Moscow-based educational supported living project for adolescents and young adults with mental disability were conducted. A total of 22 individuals participated in the study. Thematic analysis of the interview and focus group materials was performed using MAXQDA. Results. Markers of increased independence and maturation among educational supported living project participants include the development of agency and goal-setting capacity, as well as a shift in roles within parent–child relationships. Across different families, these markers manifest in varying ways — ranging from “socially invisible” behavioral changes to the development of more complex skills. Conclusions. The educational supported living project for adolescents and young adults promotes participants' maturation both in terms of subjective markers of adulthood and through an understanding of this process as a sequence of culturally normative life course events.

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