This document discusses the parent-adolescent relationship as social capital for adulthood. The first chapter reviews results of empirical studies which addressed the question of how the parent-adolescent relationship contributes to the successful transition of adolescents into adult society. The review is grounded in studies of parent-adolescent relationships in well-functioning families of middle socioeconomic status. The results are then used as the framework for assessing other factors which bear on contemporary youths' transition into adulthood. The second chapter discusses divorce and its effects on such areas as family income, parent-adolescent relationships, stepparents, educational achievement, psychosocial well-being, heterosexual relationships, and maternal employment. The third chapter discusses career development from a framework based on three sets of factors which are important for work and career development, i.e., psychological factors, social-structural factors, and family factors. The final chapter reviews studies regarding peer relationships with regard to the question of whether they counter or extend parent-adolescent relationships. The popular view of a unitary youth culture with separate values from adult culture is rejected. This chapter contends that the friendships children establish are healthy and need not be competitive in terms of affection or value orientation. The conclusions section discusses factors that either undermine or support the mutuality of adolescent-parent relationships that assists youth in passing on the worthwhile traditions of the social order. Two commentaries on the document are included. (ABL)