The generality of ability factor structure in adulthood and old age was investigated. Data were analyzed for 198 young individuals (15-32 years), 156 younger old individuals (53-68 years), and 156 older old individuals (69-91). Variables were nine tests marking three ability factors. (Author/CTM)

In-depth interviews were used to investigate how life is experienced by persons at age 85 (N=129) and again at 92 (N=41). Seven patterns of adjustment ranging from self-realization to withdrawal emerged, and heterogeneity remained at follow-up with some changes in the characteristics of the categories and in coping strategies. (Author/EMK)

Identified types of moral problems faced by older adults (N=37). The most commonly reported moral problem involved family relationships. Younger subjects identified conflicts between personal behavior and the legal code, while a trend appeared for older subjects to be unable to identify a personal moral conflict. (Author/JAC)

Because social attitudes constitute a salient feature of the environment in which people grow old, the measurement of attitudes toward the aged has been of concern to gerontologists for many years. An instrument is needed to provide independent estimates of information about the aged from attitudes toward aged persons. Undergraduates (N=311)…

The developmental model of self-concept proposed by M. Lynch and M. Levy (1982) is extended through the entire adult life cycle. Self-concept is seen as a set of cognitive rules that have affective or cognitive consequences and that operate like the ego functions proposed by Freud. (SLD)

This encyclopedia contains 106 articles on adult development that were written by more than 75 specialists in such diverse fields as anthropology, communication, education, health sciences, history, and psychology. In a guide to related topics that is presented at the beginning of the encyclopedia, the 106 articles are grouped under the following…