The mentoring relationship can enhance mentors' own psychosocial development and growth; proteges gain from the synergy that results. Organizational benefits include improved recruitment and induction, better staff planning, and increased communication. Society at large benefits from maximized human capacity, strengthened networks, and increased…

Development of knowledge occurs through participation in social practices throughout life. Knowledge is constructed through engagement in problem solving; knowledge has conceptual, procedural, and dispositional dimensions; and the nature of the problem and different social practices influence the type of knowledge that is constructed. (SK)

This summative chapter reviews the models and theories of adult development discussed in this issue. Adult educators are challenged to see what has been less visible, hear what has not been heard, and think creatively about the connection between development and learning. (SK)

Drawing on data from a normative sample of 205 children tracked into adulthood, this study examined the predictive links from 3 salient (friendship, academic, conduct) and 2 emerging (work, romantic) developmental tasks during the transition years around age 20 to adult adaptation 10 years later. Results (a) confirm the utility of salient…

How do the goals we once cherished but can no longer pursue relate to maturity? The authors asked adults who have experienced challenging life transitions to describe the life goals they once sought but no longer do and those goals that motivate their lives now. The authors conducted research which examines how adults' views of their lost and…

Objective: Recent evidence suggests that ADHD persists into adulthood, but the best means of diagnosis and the concordance of measures used to diagnose adult ADHD are unknown. Method: The current study explores the relationships of these measures in a sample of 69 mothers of children with ADHD. Results: This study determines the concordance of (a)…

Five external markers of adulthood, self-perceived adulthood at age 27, and identity achievement at ages 27, 36, and 42 were explored for 95 women and 94 men in a cohort of Finns born in 1959. Earlier transition to adulthood in family life (moving from the parental home, entering marriage or cohabitation, having a child) anticipated higher…

This paper presents a theoretical model showing how managerial adaptability develops from career variety over the span of the person's career. By building on the literature of career theory, adult learning and development, and career adjustment, we offer a new conceptualization of managerial adaptability by identifying its behavioral, cognitive,…

Considers strategies to improve problem solving, especially at stages where roadblocks are likely to occur and which may account for problems experienced with andragogy. Following a brief look at the implications of adult developmental theory for andragogy, this article examines "lateral thinking" as one way to increase the effectiveness…

Reports that adult development literature proposes various, often contradictory suppositions on the nature and process of adult development. Describes a multifaceted approach to the development of adults. Outlines implications for practice in higher education and directions for further research. (CH)

Provides a brief overview of the theoretical perspectives of the midlife stage of adult development, with selected implications for the disabled. Suggests a model for the midlife issues that usually have an impact on the individual and identifies implications for vocational rehabilitation intervention. (Author/BL)

Reviews adult life-cycle research, particularly the stages outlined in Levinson's "Seasons of a Man's Life," as a framework for anticipating transitional life plateaus and identifying obstacles to career development. (SK)

Research on young adult development provides important insights into the issues and tasks that distinguish this stage from other stages of the life span and that have significant implications for continuing education. (JOW)

This paper attempts to assess the extent to which Eduard Lindeman has created the framework of discourse and analysis predominant in adult education. Six contributions to the development of conceptual frameworks, philosophical imperatives, and substantive foci are identified. (Author/SSH)

Examined age differences in memory in 12 younger and 12 older adults who kept diaries of memory failures and use of memory aids. Results suggested that older adults experience more memory failures and are more upset, but deal with this problem by increased use of memory aids. (JAC)