Findings indicated: much interage consensus in expectations about the nature of adult development; the nature of adult development was perceived to be multidirectional (gains and losses coexist), although the overall conception implied increasing risk of decline and decreasing potential for growth across adult life span; and older adults held more…

While research has examined the salient effect of fathers in child development, little attention has focused on the effect of the infant on the father. The impact of fatherhood on normative male development was investigated in a twofold manner. First, to assess the extent to which the birth experience and actual parenthood produced differing…

Presents several reconceptualizations of adult cognitive development and its relation to everyday problem solving. Argues that investigation of relations between adult cognitive development and everyday problem solving may be facilitated through causal modeling that includes task characteristics, social context, and personality and motivational…

Psychologists have often observed an underlying pattern or theme in the accounts that individuals give of their lives. To test a humanistic-existential approach to human development, 48 women were interviewed with the Loss and Transcendence (L/T) Life History Form. The L/T Life Theme is expressed in two ways: the expanded version includes the…

Post-formal operational thought is characterized by both relativism and dialecticism. To examine age differences across adulthood in relativistic and dialectical thought, and to determine whether formal operations are necessary but not sufficient for these forms of thought, 20 young (mean age, 19.6), 20 middle aged (mean age, 46.2), and 20 older…

Recent psychological investigations have demonstrated the significant impact of the sibling relationship throughout the lifespan. To determine the extent of developmental consistency in sibling relationships, 62 working class adults (40 female, 22 male) were interviewed about the nature of their relationship with the sibling to whom they felt…

The quality and stability of sibling relationships during adulthood were assessed by comparing Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) themes of sibling affiliation, conflict, and separation at the periods of active child-rearing (CP) and the empty nest (EN). Thirty men and 30 women, equally divided between the two life stages, were randomly selected…

Although the literature links the presence of a confidant with successful adaptation to loss, and widowhood with a blurring of personal identity, the relationship between these two areas has seldom been explored. To examine the relationship between the presence of a confidant and adaptation in widowhood, 70 women from northeastern Connecticut who…

Current research focusing on long-term marriages have assessed marriages at one time period only. To sort out age and stage differences from cohort effects, a longitudinal case study analysis was undertaken with the 17 surviving couples of the Berkeley Older Generation Study, a group that has been interviewed in young adulthood (1929-30), in…

Adulthood for females is a complex maturational process, rooted in the mother-daughter relationship. To investigate the dynamics of the mother-daughter relationship and its influence on maturing, 20 women, ranging in age from 30 to 75, were interviewed for 6 to 8 hours over a 1-month period. The subjects were chosen for their self-reflective…

To systematically test previous assumptions about grief in widows and divorcing women, 410 separated, divorced, or widowed women, between the ages of 23 and 76, with at least one child, completed the Multiple Affect Adjective Checklist, the Revised UCLA Loneliness Scale, the Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory--Form C, the Attachment Index, and the…

Although research in episodic recall memory, comparing younger and older adults, favors the younger adults, findings in semantic memory research are less consistent. To examine age differences in semantic and episodic memory recall, 72 young adults (mean age, 20.8) and 72 older adults (mean age 71) completed three memory tests under varied…

Results from this study confirmed the hypotheses that child rearing styles characterized by acceptance, a nonauthoritarian approach to punishment, and identification of the child with the parent related to high levels of adult ego development 22 years later. (PCB)

Self-efficacy, or a person's perception of his/her own mastery of a skill, affects subsequent task performance and predictions of future performance. To examine older adults' metamemorial knowledge with respect to predicting their performance on everyday and laboratory memory tasks, 28 adults (22 females, 6 males), aged 58 to 80 years, completed a…

Offers perspectives on the role of extrinsic factors in the aging process, the long-term consequences of extrinsically initiated changes, and implications for gerontological research. Explains the distinction between usual and successful aging in light of physiologic and psychosocial characteristics. (ML)