WE’VE all heard of the midlife crisis, but how about the quarter-life crisis?

While writers, TV producers and film scripts have for years wrung dry the cliché of a 50-something meltdown, could it now be happening to people in their mid-20s and 30s?

According to new research at the University of Greenwich and Birkbeck College, young people are increasingly seeking “more meaning” from life between the ages of 25 and 35. It found many were looking for a change of direction before they reached 30, but, unlike the traditional midlife crisis brought on by a loss of youth, the quarter-life wobble is more about realigning priorities.

Researcher Dr Oliver Robinson said: “It is linked to the demanding nature of people in their 20s and 30s who want it all. They want to be feeling like they are contributing something, that their life is meaningful, that they are living their values.”

The Daily Echo spoke to Bournemouth people in the survey’s age bracket.

Michelle Dry, 36, a business analyst, is a media graduate.

She said: “I enjoy my job at the moment, but importantly it gives me the financial security to be a writer.

“I used to work as a photographer. You can earn a lot of money in one day but then you might not get paid for a year.”

Philip Marks, 28, works in financial services. He said: “I was made redundant twice in the space of 12 months working in sales.

“I decided I would rather work for myself. I am more content now, but it is very easy to become complacent as long as you have enough money and a comfortable life.”

In a tough economic climate, many aspire to “better” jobs but don’t want to risk job security.

Kelly Day, 29, an estate agent, said: “I didn’t aspire to be an estate agent, I ended up here. I always wanted to be a nurse but it just didn’t work out.

“I don’t ever see me changing jobs now. I am lucky to have a job in the current climate.”

But redundancy has inspired some to follow a career that they had given up on.

Barbara Eccles, 30, a student at Bournemouth University, said: “I was made redundant and in a way it was good. It has made me pursue the idea of studying again, so I decided to do Media Studies at the university. I will be able to do a job that I enjoy.”

Dr Robinson interviewed 50 people aged 25-35 and found that symptoms included a sense of being trapped and anxiety about the future.

Despite these findings it appears in Bournemouth that people don’t have time for a “meltdown”. Those the Echo spoke to said financial security outweighed their feeling of being trapped, and their anxiety is more focused on having a job and keeping it.