Table 1.

Illustration of turning point narratives and coding systems

Example turning point narrative	Self-event connection score	Agency score
“I was told that I had to go to a class with a lower educational level, because my grades were too bad. I was very annoyed by this. I realized that school has a big influence on what I can do with my life in the future. I became more serious at school and notice that therefore I have better grades now.”	1	4
“My grandmother passed away. I heard it when I came home from school. I felt sad because my grandfather and I had a good relationship. It changed me in the sense that I know that everyone will die at some point and that I also should expect this a little. Every time when people talk about cancer, I get tears in my eyes. Since then I know that I want to become an oncologist.”	1	2
“My parents were divorced and years later my father got a new girlfriend in another city and we were going to live there. At first I was excited but as we were getting closer to the move it got harder and harder to leave. When I finally moved I went through a hard time and I still find it equally difficult. I see this as a turning point because this is very difficult for me.”	0	0

The examples presented here are composed of parts of narratives by two or three adolescents about a similar event. Additionally, slight changes were made to guarantee anonymity