The objective of the study was to gain data on the prevalence, types and perceived outcomes of crisis episodes in three age decades of adult life: 20-29, 30-39 and 40-49. A further aim was to explore the relationship between crisis occurrence and empathy. A retrospective-autobiographical survey instrument and an empathy questionnaire were…

The benefits of lifelong musical participation have been repeatedly demonstrated through research and anecdote, and yet the challenging question of why more people are not engaged in these activities is rarely addressed. This project used interviews with eighteen current and past amateur ensemble members to explore themes of social acceptance,…

In this response to the commentaries, the author makes some general observations on the nature of the Inquiry into the Future for Lifelong Learning (IFLL) and "Learning Through Life" ("LTL"): their design and purpose. He then turns to the comments from the "International Journal of Lifelong Education"…

The article argues the case for rethinking the way we look at the process of ageing in the work place and the images we use to describe the nature of life for people over 50. Rather than there being more old and frail people in the community, many more people are experiencing an extended middle age, and their numbers are increasing. There are in…

Considers traditional approaches to identity across life span, then presents discursive perspective showing how, during interaction, individuals actively construct age-salient identities for themselves and others through talk. Conversational processes of age-identity management are explored in corpus of geriatric medical outpatient consultations.…

Explains the Women in Technology (WIT) program, which aims to help women engineers not currently in paid employment to prepare for a return to technological work. Provides evidence that the project is fulfilling its objectives at a modest cost. (ML)

Using a model of successful transition outcomes (independent living, social competence, economic self-sufficiency, and postschool education and employment) and data from 360 British young adults with special needs, patterns of transition are described. It is suggested that productive daytime activity and quality of life may be more relevant…

This book argues that radical adult education, which supports progressive social movements and tries to produce critically reflexive people capable of shifting social balance towards social justice, needs to recast the ways that it conceives of the human subject, experience, and power by taking on board recent developments in feminist…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to present the findings of an evaluative case study that used an electronic portfolio to enhance the employability of older adults. The evaluation sought to identify programme effects and highlight the factors that were instrumental in generating them. Design/methodology/approach: Qualitative inquiry methods…

Discusses the nature and importance of social skills for the elderly, including social skills deficits and psychological disorders related to aging, in five papers presented as part of a Symposium on Social Skills at the XII International Congress of Gerontology, Hamburg, July 1981. (JAC)

Many organizations are not satisfied that their methods of evaluating training are rigorous or extensive enough to answer questions of value to them. Complaints about Kirkpatrick's popular four-step model (1959) of training evaluation are that each level is assumed to be associated with the previous and next levels and that the model is too simple…

This book on the culture and processes of adult learning contains 16 papers organized into sections on power, purpose, and outcomes; adulthood and learning; and learners' experience and facilitating learning. The following papers are included: "'Really Useful Knowledge', 1790-1850" (Johnson); "Feminist Challenges to Curriculum…

In this book, 16 authors from Europe, Africa, and the United States reflect on the transformations that are currently taking place in the field of adult and continuing education. The 12 chapters are "Reconciling the Irreconcilable? Adult and Continuing Education Between Personal Development, Corporate Concerns, and Public Responsibility"…

Among 8 French and 36 English papers are the following: "Confronting the Self in Research" (Baskett); "Learning Processes as They Occur in Groups" (Becker, Hill); "La pensee critique a-t-elle un sexe?" (Bedard, Ouellette); "The Effect of Literacy on Income and Duration of Employment" (Blunt); "Graduate…

This document synthesizes the findings of an invitational policy consultation at which 27 invited participants from England, Wales, and Scotland examined the special career guidance needs of third-age adults (adults age 45 or older) and strategies for meeting those needs. First, the special career- and employment-related problems faced by…