Purpose: Researchers' knowledge regarding older users of illicit drugs is limited despite the increasing numbers of users. In this article, we apply a life course perspective to gain a further understanding of older adult drug use, specifically contrasting early- and late-onset heroin users. Design and Methods: We collected qualitative data from…

Examined volunteering bias in racial, gender, and age groups in an adult development study. Results showed the middle-aged group volunteered at a higher rate, but this effect was restricted to Whites. Women volunteered more readily than men, except the elderly. Whites volunteered more readily than Blacks. (JAC)

Determines patterns of differential human development in a longitudinal study of 417 male and 358 female college students ages 18 to 30. Findings suggest individuality in development is associated with significant qualitative individual differences that are best described on a cross-time basis. (BJD)

The concept of Personal Major Events is proposed as a methodological approach to the study of death and dying with retired couples. A pilot study which elicited the personal major events during retirement of retired couples indicated that these couples tended to place different emphases on death. (Author)

This article describes a collaborative research action study, Action Research on Change in Schools (ARCS). Findings indicate teachers at different developmental stages reacted differently to collaborative action research, behaved differently in action research teams, and understood the goals and outcome of research differently. (IAH)

A study of 60 adults, ages 23-38, was done to assess the fit of life-stages (periods during which adults of similar age face common problems, events, pressures, situations) identified by writers in adult development for these ages. Focus was on (1) creating a structured interview schedule to obtain data which should be age-related and (2) creating…

Identified several possible explanations and methodological problems in previous research about the relationship between family life span and kinship interaction. Developed three hypotheses to resolve ambiguity. Used two data sets to test these hypotheses. Findings indicated the family life span variable has no effect on amount of interaction.…

The theoretical framework, methodology, findings, and implications for three studies which explored the relationship between adult development, collaborative action research, and instructional supervision are discussed. Each study concluded that educators define and practice supervision in qualitatively different ways depending upon their own…

Few studies concerning siblings have taken a lifespan approach, i.e., studying sibling relationships from childhood to old age. To outline the developmental changes that occur in the quality of the sibling relationship during various periods of the life cycle and to test the feasibility of devising a coding system to identify such changes, 47…

family literacy, and workplace sites) for a year or more to examine their experiences of learning and change. Each program was aimed at enhancing participants? English language fluency, content knowledge, and effectiveness as students, parents, and/or workers. The purpose of this study was to better understand how these adults experienced learning…

Over 90 papers focus on adult education research. Selected titles include "Karl Marx's Theoretical Contributions to Radical Adult Education" (Allman, Wallis); "Educating Educators" (Armstrong); "Comparative Study of Philosophical Foundations of Adult Education in China and United States" (Bao); "Ethical Value Dilemmas of Professional Adult…

This report on the proceedings of a workshop on the older woman presents purposes of the workshop, including the stimulation of interest by researchers in questions currently relevant to the lives of older women and the generation of future research agenda for the two sponsoring institutes. The following areas of concern are addressed: (1)…

Combining community participation in decision making with methods of social investigation, participatory research focuses on involvement of the subjects of the research in the research process. Adult educators are exploring this research method which, unlike quantitative research, serves the needs of individuals and not those of policy makers who…

A study selectively examined factors that have contributed to observed limitations of congruent data describing normative, developmental change in adult cognition. A preteritive design was used first to examine limiting factors, and secondly, to examine research strategies that could be used to provide necessary reforms of the data. Three factors…

Summarizes the conduct and results of the Seattle Longitudinal Study, an investigation that has assessed mental abilities in more than 5,000 adults and has followed some for as long as 35 years. Integrative findings are presented on age changes, cohort differences, factor structure, individual differences, and interventions. (SLD)