When Coping Is Not Enough: Resilience as a Mediator of Quarter-Life Crisis Among Hungarian Emerging Adults in Transylvania

Quarter-life crisis (QLC) represents a challenging developmental experience for some emerging adults as they navigate uncertainty related to identity, relationships, employment, and future life direction. This study examined the associations among proactive coping, resilience, and QLC severity, with particular attention to the potential mediating role of resilience. Participants were 174 Hungarian emerging adults living in Transylvania, Romania, aged 20–30 years (M = 24.83, SD = 2.32). Participants completed self-report measures of quarter-life crisis, resilience, and proactive coping. Hierarchical regression and mediation analyses were conducted, with current employment status included as a covariate. Higher resilience and greater proactive coping were associated with lower QLC severity, while proactive coping was strongly and positively associated with resilience. In the final regression model, resilience was the only significant psychological predictor of QLC severity (B = −2.82, SE = 0.41, p < .001). The indirect effect of proactive coping on QLC through resilience was significant (B = −2.49, BootSE = 0.45, 95% CI [−3.45, −1.66]), whereas the direct effect of proactive coping was not statistically significant after resilience was included in the model. These findings highlight resilience as an important psychological resource during emerging adulthood and suggest that its role may be particularly relevant for understanding how proactive coping is associated with lower vulnerability to quarter-life crisis.