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Studying Adult

Development and Aging Chapter

Chapter Outline

1.1. Perspectives on Adult Development and Aging. . . . 3 Learning

1
Discovering Development Myths and Stereotypes About Aging
The Life-Span Perspective Objectives
Characteristics of the Older Adult Population
After studying this chapter,
1.2. Issues in Studying Adult Development you will be able to…
and Aging. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
The Forces of Development 1.1. Describe the life-span
Interrelations Among the Forces: Developmental Influences perspective and the
Cultural, Ethnic, Racial, Biological Sex, Gender, and Socioeconomic characteristics of the
Factors adult population.
Controversies Lenses Matter
1.2. Identify the basic forces of
The Meaning of Age
human development and
Core Issues in Development the concept of age.
Real People: Pope Francis Sets Many New Examples
1.3. Describe the scientific
1.3. Research Methods in Adult Development
and Aging. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 methods used to conduct
Measurement in Adult Development and Aging Research research in adult
development and aging.
General Designs for Research
Designs for Studying Development
How Do We Know? Conflicts Between Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal
Data
Tools for Doing and Archiving Developmental Research
Integrating Findings from Different Studies
Conducting Research Ethically
Social Policy Implications Moving from Lab to Life

In Review
Integrating Concepts in Development
Key Terms

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Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
When the finish line came into view, Sister Madonna Emmy Award, a Grammy Award, an Academy Award,
Buder, S.F.C.C. (who is a Catholic nun) knew her and a Tony Award. And Rolling Stones singer Mick Jagger
prayers had been answered. She would complete the still wowed audiences in his late 70s. Older adulthood is
Ironman triathlon competition—widely considered certainly not what it was once thought to be.
one of the most difficult athletic feats that encompasses Sister Madonna Buder, John Lewis, and the Dalai
a grueling combination of a 2.4-mile swim, 110-mile Lama are great examples of how older adults are push-
bike ride, and a 26.2 mile run (a marathon), all done ing and redefining boundaries. They demonstrate that
in one day—and set a world record in the process. adults are capable of doing things thought unimag-
Her record? Sister Madonna was 82 years old, the oldest inable or inappropriate not very long ago. They also
person ever to complete an Ironman competition illustrate how the normal changes people experience
within the 17-hour time limit. Even at age 90, Sister as they age vary across individuals and why we need to
Madonna continued to compete in regular triathlons rethink common stereotypes about age.
(she finished third as the oldest competitor at age 89 There is also an entire generation actively redefin-
in the USA Triathlon national championships in the ing what growing older really means. The baby-boom
85+ category). generation, consisting of people born between 1946
Sister Madonna is only one of many older adults who and 1964, are on average the healthiest and most active
have shattered our stereotypes of older adults and what generation to reach old age in history. They are not
they are capable of accomplishing. Consider that Jorge content with playing traditional roles assigned to older
Mario Bergoglio was 76 when he became Pope Francis. adults and are doing their best to change the way older
Janet Yellen became U.S. Secretary of the Treasury at adults are perceived and treated.
74. The 14th Dalai Lama still inspired people in his In this chapter, we examine a seemingly simple
80s. John Lewis continued to work for social justice after question: Who are older people? We will discover that
turning 80. Anthony Hopkins won an Oscar for acting the answer is more complicated than you might think.
at 83. Whoopi Goldberg, still acting and entertaining We also consider the ways in which gerontologists study
as she nears age 70, is one of 16 entertainers to win an adults and how adults develop.
Alex Wong/Getty Images News/Getty Images

Dpa Picture Alliance/Alamy Stock Photo

Kyodo News/Getty Images

Even in his 80s, Dalai Lama still inspires. John Lewis was a role model Sister Madonna Buder, S.F.C.C.,
throughout his life. competed in triathlons at age 90.

1.1 Perspectives on Adult aging reflects both the total lived individual experiences
people have as well as common experiences that define
Development and Aging the contexts in which we live, such that the story of
aging in one that has certain things in common across
Key Questions us all as well as our unique journey.
• What is gerontology? How does ageism relate to Despite the fact that much has changed about the
stereotypes of aging? image of a typical older adult since the mid-1900s,
• What is the life-span perspective?
many myths about older people persist. These myths
of aging lead to negative stereotypes of older people,
• What are the characteristics of the older adult
which may result in ageism, a form of discrimination
population?
against older adults based on their age. Ageism has
• How are they likely to change?
its foundations in myths and beliefs people take for
granted, as well as in intergenerational relations (Nelson,
Roberto’s great-grandmother Maria is 89 years old.
2016a, b; North & Fiske, 2012, 2016). It may be as
Maria tells Roberto that when she was a young
girl in El Paso, there were very few older women blatant as believing that all older people should get out
in either her family or the neighborhood. Roberto of the way for younger generations, are likely senile and
knows there are many older people, mostly are incapable of making decisions about their lives, and
women, in his own neighborhood, and wonders probably contribute little to society. It may occur when
when and why this changed over her lifetime. people show microaggressions toward older adults when
they are impatient with older adults in a grocery store
Before you read any more, take a minute and think checkout line. Or it may be as subtle as dismissing an
about your own grandparents or great-grandparents. older person’s physical complaints with the question,
How would you and other people describe them? “What do you expect for someone your age?” As you
Do you want to be like them when you are their age? will learn by doing the activities in the Discovering
Would you trade places with them now? Development feature, such stereotypes surround us.
There is one thing we all have in common—we are
all headed toward older adulthood. How do you want
to be thought of and treated when you get there? Do
you look forward to becoming old, or are you afraid
Discovering Development
about what may lie ahead? Most of us want to enjoy a Myths and Stereotypes About Aging
long life like Maria’s but don’t think much about grow-
ing old in our daily lives. We are surrounded by misconceptions of older
Reading this book will give you the basic facts about adults. We may have encountered cartoons
growing older. You will learn how to organize these facts or video segments making jokes about older
adults whose memories are poor or whose
by putting them into two contexts: the b iopsychosocial physical abilities have declined. Most damaging
framework and the life-span approach. By the time you are the ideas portrayed in the media that older
are finished, you should have a new, different way of adults are incapable of leading productive lives
thinking about aging. and making a difference. For example, many
You already enjoy a major advantage compared greeting cards portray older people as having
little memory, no teeth, and no desire for sex.
with Maria. She and other people her age did not
To discover something about adult development
have the opportunity as students to learn much about and aging, try to find several examples of myths
what is typical and what is not typical about aging. or stereotypes about growing older. Explore
Until the late 20th century, very little information was content on YouTube and other social media
available about old age, which people generally thought sites, advertisements, articles in popular blogs,
to be characterized mainly by decline. Gerontology, greeting cards, television shows, movies, and
music. Gather as many examples as you can,
the scientific study of aging from maturity through
and then fact check them against the research
old age, has changed our understanding of aging and on the topic discussed in this text. By the end
the aging process. As you can imagine from reading of the course, consider how many myths and
about famous older adults at the beginning of the chap- stereotypes you can show to be busted.
ter, and as you will encounter throughout this book,

This book rebuts these erroneous ideas, but et al., 2006), who identified four key features of the
it does not replace them with idealized views of life-span perspective:
adulthood and old age. Rather, it paints an accurate
1. Multidirectionality. Development involves both
picture of what it means to grow old today, recognizing
growth and decline; as people grow in one area,
that development across adulthood brings growth and
they may lose in another and at different rates.
opportunities as well as loss and decline, and that the
For example, people’s vocabulary ability tends to
process of aging reflects the same systemic aspects of
increase throughout life, but reaction time tends
society that we find in other aspects of life. To begin,
to slow down.
we consider the life-span perspective, which helps
2. Plasticity. One’s capacity is not predetermined
place adult development and aging into the context of
or set in concrete. Many skills can be trained or
the whole human experience. Afterward, we consider
improved with practice, even in late life. There
the fundamental developmental forces, contro-
are limits to the degree of potential improvement,
versies, and models that form the foundation for
however, as described in later chapters.
studying adult development and aging. In particular,
3. Historical context. Each of us develops within a
we examine the biological, psychological, sociocultural,
particular set of circumstances determined by the
and life-cycle forces, and the nature–nurture and
historical time in which we are born, the culture
continuity–discontinuity controversies. We consider
in which we grow up, and the opportunities and
some basic definitions of age, making it clear that age
structural barriers we encounter. Maria’s experiences
is a truly complicated concept. Finally, by examining
were shaped by living in the 20th century in a
various research methods, we learn how the information
Chicano neighborhood in southwest Texas.
presented in this book was obtained.
4. Multiple causation. How people develop results
from a wide variety of forces, which we consider
The Life-Span Perspective later in this chapter. You will come to understand
Imagine trying to understand, without knowing any- that development is shaped by biological,
thing about their life, what your best adult friend is psychological, sociocultural, and life-cycle forces.
like. We cannot understand adults’ experiences with- The life-span perspective emphasizes that human devel-
out appreciating what came before in childhood, opment takes a lifetime to complete. It sets the stage for
adolescence, and the portion of adulthood they have understanding the many influences we experience and
experienced thus far. Placing adulthood in this broader points out that no one part of life is any more or less
context is what the life-span perspective is all about. important than another.
The life-span perspective divides human develop- Basing their framing of the process of aging on
ment into two phases: an early phase (childhood these principles, Baltes and colleagues (2006) argue that
and adolescence) and a later phase (young adult- life-span development consists of the dynamic interac-
hood, middle age, and old age). The early phase is tions among growth, maintenance, and loss regulation.
characterized by rapid age-related increases in people’s In their view, four factors are critical:
size and abilities. During the later phase, changes in
1. As people grow older, they show an age-related
size are slow, but abilities, perspectives, knowledge,
reduction in the amount and quality of
and other characteristics continue to develop as people
biologically based resources.
continue adapting to the environment (Baltes et al.,
2. There is an age-related increase in the amount
2006).
and quality of culture needed to generate
Viewed from the life-span perspective, adult devel-
continuously higher growth. Usually this results
opment and aging are complex phenomena that cannot
in a net slowing of growth as people age.
be understood within the scope of a single disciplinary
3. People show an age-related decline in the
approach. Moreover, aging is a lifelong process, so
efficiency with which they use cultural resources.
understanding how the experiences we had prior to this
4. There is a lack of cultural, “old-age-friendly”
moment will shape those we have yet to have requires
support structures.
input from a wide variety of perspectives.
One of the most important perspectives on life- Taken together, these four factors create the need to
span development is that of Paul Baltes (1987; Baltes shift more and more resources to maintain function and

deal with biologically related losses as we grow older, most economically advantaged and least economically
leaving fewer resources to be devoted to continued advantaged countries around the world. Let’s consider the
growth. This shift holds true regardless of the circum- most economically advantaged countries first (they’re the
stances of one’s life. What does matter a great deal is pyramids down the left side); we’ll use the United States as
whether a person has access to the support structures an example. Notice the shape of the population pyramid
and processes that can help mitigate these changes. As in 1950 in the top panel. In the middle of the 20th
we see throughout this book, this intersection of the century, there were fewer people over age 60 than under
shift in internal resources with the external realities of age 60, so the pyramid tapers toward the top. Compare
systemic factors in society paves very different paths for this to projections for 2050; a dramatic change will occur
those who have access and those who do not. This fact in the number of people over 65.
has profound implications for experiencing aging and These changes are also happening in less economi-
for pointing out different ways to age successfully. cally advantaged countries (the pyramids down the right
These views led to Baltes and colleagues’ (2006) side). The figures for both 1950 and 2015 resemble
proposing the model of selective optimization with pyramids when you look at both the male and female
compensation (SOC) to account for the developmen- halves together because there are substantially fewer
tal process experienced in adult development and aging. older adults than younger people. But by 2050,
Their model posits that as people age, they naturally the number of older adults even in these countries will
begin to focus on fewer areas in order to devote more have increased dramatically, substantially changing the
of their resources to compensating for any losses they shape of the figure.
may have experienced. For example, a professional Because the fertility rate in the United States has
musician may play a smaller repertoire of pieces more dropped from a post–World War II high of 3.6 children
expressively than the broader collection of pieces they per woman in 1960 to a low of 1.8 in 2020 (Statista, 2021),
previously played with more emphasis on technical skill the average age of Americans will continue to rise. By 2030,
(e.g., speed and dexterity). We will encounter the SOC all of the baby boomers (people born between 1946 and
model often throughout the text as a possible explana- 1964) will have reached at least age 65, meaning that 1 in
tion for the behaviors we observe in adult development 5 Americans will be 65 or older; by 2061, this ratio will
and aging. increase to 1 in every 4 when members of the millennial
generation (those born between 1981 and 1996) will have
Characteristics of the Older Adult reached age 65 (Population Reference Bureau, 2020).
Population The sheer number of older Americans will
Did you ever stop to think about how many older adults place enormous pressure on federal income support
you encounter in your day-to-day life? Did you ever systems (especially Social Security), health care (especially
wonder whether your great-grandparents had the same Medicare, Medicaid, and long-term care), and other
experience? Actually, you are privileged—there have human services. (We explore the future financing of
never been as many older adults alive as there are now, Social Security and Medicare in Chapter 14.) The growing
so you encounter many more older people than your strain on social service systems will intensify because the
great-grandparents (or even your parents) did when they most rapidly growing segment of the U.S. population
were entering adulthood. The proportion of older adults is the group of people over age 85. The number of
in the population of developed countries has increased such people in the United States will increase nearly
tremendously, mainly due to better health care since 500% between 2000 and 2050, compared with about
the early 1900s (e.g., the elimination or prevention of a 50% increase in the number of 20- to 29-year-olds
previously fatal acute diseases, especially during childhood; during the same period. Individuals over age 85
the discovery of antibiotics and antiviral medications; generally need more assistance with the tasks they have
better treatment for chronic diseases) and to lowering the to accomplish in daily living than do people under 85.
mortality rate during childbirth. (We’ll consider how this To meet the increasing need for support, substantially
relates to how long we live in Chapter 4.) more people who have skills in working with older
People who study population trends, called adults are needed. These changing ratios will also be
demographers, use a graphic technique called a felt in political debates over which age group deserves more
population pyramid to illustrate these changes. federal support, creating a potential for intergenerational
Figure 1.1 presents typical population pyramids for the conflict over resources.

Male DEVELOPED COUNTRIES–1950 Female Male DEVELOPING COUNTRIES–1950 Female

100+ 100+
95–99 95–99
90–94 90–94
85–89 85–89
80–84 80–84
75–79 75–79
70–74 70–74
65–69 65–69
60–64 60–64
55–59 55–59
50–54 50–54
45–49 45–49
40–44 40–44
35–39 35–39
30–34 30–34
25–29 25–29
20–24 20–24
15–19 15–19
10–14 10–14
5–9 5–9
0–4 0–4
50 40 30 20 10 0 0 10 20 30 40 50 50 40 30 20 10 0 0 10 20 30 40 50

Male DEVELOPED COUNTRIES–2000 Female Male DEVELOPING COUNTRIES–2000 Female

100+ 100+
95–99 95–99
90–94 90–94
85–89 85–89
80–84 80–84
75–79 75–79
70–74 70–74
65–69 65–69
60–64 60–64
55–59 55–59
50–54 50–54
45–49 45–49
40–44 40–44
35–39 35–39
30–34 30–34
25–29 25–29
20–24 20–24
15–19 15–19
10–14 10–14
5–9 5–9
0–4 0–4
60 50 40 30 20 10 0 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 0 10 20 30 40 50

Male DEVELOPED COUNTRIES–2050 Female Male DEVELOPING COUNTRIES–2050 Female

100+ 100+
95–99 95–99
90–94 90–94
85–89 85–89
80–84 80–84
75–79 75–79
70–74 70–74
65–69 65–69
60–64 60–64
55–59 55–59
50–54 50–54
45–49 45–49
40–44 40–44
35–39 35–39
30–34 30–34
25–29 25–29
20–24 20–24
15–19 15–19
10–14 10–14
5–9 5–9
0–4 0–4
10 8 6 4 2 0 0 2 4 6 8 10 50 40 30 20 10 0 0 10 20 30 40 50

Figure 1.1 Population pyramids for developed and developing countries 1950–2050.
Sources: U.S. Data: For 1950, https://www.census.gov/dataviz/visualizations/055/. Data for 2020 and 2050, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys
/popproj/tables/2017/2017-summary-tables/np2017-t2.xlsx. International data: For 1950, https://images.populationpyramid.net/capture/?selector=%23pyramid
-share-container&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.populationpyramid.net%2Fworld%2F1950%2F%3Fshare%3Dtrue. For 2020, https://images.populationpyramid
.net/capture/?selector=%23pyramid-share-container&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.populationpyramid.net%2Fworld%2F2020%2F%3Fshare%3Dtrue.
For 2050, https://images.populationpyramid.net/capture/?selector=%23pyramid-share-container&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.populationpyramid
.net%2Fworld%2F2050%2F%3Fshare%3Dtrue.

The Diversity of Older Adults in the United Global Trends. Internationally, the number of older
States. The characteristics of the older adult pop- adults is also growing rapidly and is expected to more
ulation in the United States are also changing than double by 2050 (United Nations, 2020). As in
rapidly—it is becoming increasingly diverse. In terms the United States, older women outnumber older men,
of racial and ethnic group percentages of the over-65 and this difference increases with advanced age. These
population, non-Hispanic White individuals com- rapid global changes are due mostly to improved health
prise about 77%, non-Hispanic Black or African care overall, lower rates of death among people who
Americans about 9%, non-Hispanic Asians about give birth, and lower infant mortality. (These points
4.5%, non-Hispanic American Indians and Alaska will be explored in more detail in Chapter 4.) Nearly all
Natives about 0.5%, non-Hispanic Native Hawaiians countries are facing the need to adapt social policies to
and Other Pacific Islanders about 0.1%, and Hispanic incorporate these changing demographics and resulting
or Latino/as about 8%, with “some other race” or “two societal needs, especially for housing and social support.
or more races” about 1% combined. Future trends will Economically powerful countries around the world,
be that people of color will continue to increase in such as China, are trying to cope with increased num-
numbers and the non-Hispanic White group will bers of older adults that strain the country’s resources.
continue to decrease. As you can conclude from the By 2025, China expects to have more than 300 million
population pyramids, older women outnumber older people over age 65. China is already addressing issues
men overall (Census Bureau, 2020e). related to providing services and living arrangements
Older adults in the future will be better edu- for the increasing number of older adults, as the historic
cated, too. By 2030, it is estimated that 85% will custom of children caring for aging parents confronts the
have a high-school diploma and about 75% will have reality of China’s former one-child policy and changing
a postsecondary credential (Census Bureau, 2021a). lifestyles of younger generations (Xu, 2020).
Better-educated people tend to live longer—mostly China and the United States are not alone in fac-
because they have higher incomes, which give them ing increased numbers of older adults. As reported in
better access to good health care and a chance to fol- Figure 1.2, the percentage of older adults in major
low healthier lifestyles (e.g., have access to and afford geographic regions has changed since 1950 and will
healthier food choices). include many more older adults over the next few decades
(United Nations, 2019). All of these regions will need to
deal with an increased demand for services to older adults
and, in some cases, competing demands with children and
younger and middle-aged adults for limited resources.
The global general aging of the population is due
mainly to two factors: a declining birth rate in many coun-
tries, often related to increases in opportunities for women
(such as education and careers), and especially to more
people living longer (which we examine in Chapter 4).
The COVID Caveat. The population trends we have
just considered are based on data collected mostly
before the full impact of the COVID-19 pandemic
Blend Images - John Lund/Sam Diephuis/Getty Images

became clear. For example, data collection on the 2020

Federal Census ended before some of the most transmis-
sible and deadly variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus (the
one that causes COVID-19) emerged. As time passes,
it becomes clear that the pandemic affected many
things, from average longevity, which declined for most
groups, to Social Security, which had a full year drop
in its underlying trust fund balance. The long-term
effects of the pandemic on global population trends and
This Latina older woman represents the changing face of the specific needs such as health care will continue to
older adults in the United States. emerge. As a result, countries will need to be flexible in

Africa
60,000

50,000

40,000

30,000

20,000

10,000

0
1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040 2050
Asia
300,000

250,000

200,000

150,000

100,000

50,000

0
1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040 2050
Europe
60,000

50,000

40,000

30,000

20,000

10,000

0
1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040 2050

65–69 70–74 75–79 80–84 85–89 90–94 95–99 100+

Figure 1.2 The proportion of older adults (65 years and older) is increasing globally and will continue to do so.
Source: United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs Population Dynamics. World population prospects 2019. https://population.un.org/wpp/
DataQuery/

Latin America and the Caribbean

45,000

40,000

35,000

30,000

25,000

20,000

15,000

10,000

5,000

0
1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040 2050
Northern America
25,000

20,000

15,000

10,000

5,000

0
1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040 2050

Oceania
3000

2500

2000

1500

1000

500

0
1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040 2050

65–69 70–74 75–79 80–84 85–89 90–94 95–99 100+

Figure 1.2 (continued)

their projections and ensure they will have the resources Like many grandparents, Levar wonders what
necessary to deal with these potential long-term issues. the future holds for his granddaughter. The questions
We will encounter the broad impact of the COVID- Levar considers are interesting in their own right,
19 pandemic and its differential effects on differing but they are important for another reason: They get
groups of people throughout the rest of the text. It will to the heart of general issues of human development
be apparent by the time you reach Chapter 14 that few that have intrigued philosophers and scientists for
events have had an equivalent impact on global aging. centuries. You have probably asked these or similar
questions yourself. How do some people manage to
remain thin, whereas other people seem to gain weight
Adult Development in Action more easily? Why do some people remain very active
and mentally well into later life? How does growing
If you were a staff member for your congressional up in a Spanish-speaking culture affect one’s views of
representative, what would you advise with family caregiving? Answering these questions requires
respect to economic and social policy given the us to consider the various forces that shape us as we
demographic changes in the U.S. population? mature. Developmentalists place special emphasis on
four forces: biological, psychological, sociocultural,
and life cycle. These forces direct our development much
as an artist’s hands direct the course of a painting or
Review Questions sculpture.
Following from the forces that shape adult devel-
1.1 Perspectives on Adult Development and Aging opment and aging are questions such as, What is the
• What are the premises of the life-span relative importance of genetics and environment on
perspective? people’s behavior? Do people change gradually, or do
• How are population demographics changing around they change more abruptly? Do all people change
the world, and what difference does it make? in the same way? These questions reflect controversies
that historically underlie the study of human
development (Newman & Newman, 2016): the
1.2 Issues in Studying Adult nature–nurture controversy, the change–stability
controversy, the continuity–discontinuity controversy,
Development and Aging and the universal versus context-specific development
controversy.
Key Questions Having a firm grasp on the forces and controver-
sies of development is important because it provides
• What four main forces shape development?
a context for understanding why researchers and
• What are normative age-graded influences, normative
theorists believe certain things about aging or why some
history-graded influences, and nonnormative influences?
topics have been researched a great deal and others have
• How do cultural, ethnic, and racial factors influence aging? been hardly studied at all. For example, someone who
• What is the meaning of age? believes that a decline in intellectual ability is an innate
• What are the nature–nurture, stability–change, and inevitable part of aging is unlikely to search for
continuity–discontinuity, and universal versus intervention techniques to raise performance. Similarly,
context-specific development controversies? someone who believes that personality characteristics
change across adulthood would be likely to search for
Levar Johnson smiled broadly as he held his life transitions.
newborn granddaughter for the first time. So many
thoughts rushed into his mind. He could only imagine
the kinds of things Devonna would experience
growing up. He hoped that she would have a The Forces of Development
good neighborhood in which to play and explore
Gray hair, remembering, personality, friendship
her world. He hoped that she inherited the family
genes for good health. He wondered how Devonna’s networks, activity levels—Why do adults differ so
life growing up as Black girl/woman in the United much on these and other things? The answer lies in
States would be different from his experiences. understanding the basic forces that shape us and how

they interact. Developmentalists typically consider four of these forces. Even identical twins growing up in the
interactive forces (shown in Figure 1.3): same family eventually have their own unique friends,
partners, occupations, and so on because they each
1. Biological forces include all genetic and
experience the combination of forces differently.
health-related factors that affect development.
To understand why all these forces are important,
Examples of biological forces such as genetics
imagine that we want to know how people feel about
strongly influence certain physiological processes
forgetting. We would need to consider biological factors,
including menopause, facial wrinkling, and
such as whether the forgetting was caused by an underlying
changes in the major organ systems.
disease. We would want to know about such psycholog-
2. Psychological forces include all internal
ical factors as what the person’s memory ability has been
perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and personality
throughout their life and about their beliefs about what
factors that affect development. Collectively,
happens to memory with increasing age. We would need
psychological forces such as cognitive abilities and
to know about sociocultural factors, such as the influence
personality shape the characteristics we notice about
of social stereotypes about forgetting on actual memory
people that make them individuals.
performance, whether they had access to good medical
3. Sociocultural forces include interpersonal,
care and healthy food, or were under the continual stress
societal, cultural, and ethnic factors that affect
of structural inequities. Finally, we would need to know
development. Sociocultural forces such as financial
about the age of the person and other historical timing
assets, structural racism, and other society-wide factors
issues surrounding when a forgetting experience occurs.
provide the overall contexts in which we develop.
Focusing on only one (or even two or three) of the forces
4. Life-cycle forces reflect differences in how the same
would provide an incomplete understanding of how the
event or combination of biological, psychological,
person feels. The biopsychosocial framework, along with
and sociocultural forces affects people at different
life-cycle forces, will provide a way to understand all the
points in their lives. Life-cycle forces provide the
developmental outcomes you will encounter in this text.
role of timing that affects the impact of events and
circumstances experienced during one’s life. Interrelations Among the Forces:
One useful way to organize the biological, psychological, Developmental Influences
and sociocultural forces on human development is All the forces combine to create people’s unique sets
with the biopsychosocial framework. Together with of developmental experiences. One way to explore
life-cycle forces, the biopsychosocial framework provides these combinations is to consider the degree to which
a complete overview of the shapers of human develop- they are common or are unique to people of specific
ment. Each of us is a product of a unique combination ages. An important concept in this approach is cohort.

Biological forces

Life-
Sociocultural forces cycle
forces

Psychological forces

Figure 1.3 The biopsychosocial framework shows that human development results from
interacting forces.

A cohort is a group of people born at the same point Nonnormative influences are random or rare
in time or within a specific time span. For example, events that may be important for a specific individual
everyone born in 1995 would be the 1995 cohort; sim- but are not experienced by most people. These may be
ilarly, those born between 1981 and 1996 represent the favorable events, such as winning the lottery or an election,
millennium cohort (or millennium generation). Based or unfavorable ones, such as an accident or layoff. The
on this notion of cohort, Baltes (1987; Baltes et al., relative unpredictability of when these events occur
2006) identifies three sets of influences that interact to makes them different and can increase their effects on the
produce developmental change over the life span: individual. Such events can change one’s life overnight.
normative age-graded influences, normative history-graded Life-cycle forces are especially key in understanding the
influences, and nonnormative influences. importance of normative age-graded, normative
Normative age-graded influences are experiences history-graded, and nonnormative influences. For example,
caused by biological, psychological, and sociocultural history-graded influences may produce generational
forces that occur to most people of a particular age. differences and conflict; parents’ and grandparents’
Some of these, such as puberty, menarche, and meno- experiences as young adults in the 1960s and 1970s (before
pause, are mainly biologically driven, although they can be AIDS, smartphones, and global terrorism) may have little
influenced by certain other factors as well. These norma- in common with the complex issues faced by today’s young
tive biological events usually indicate a major change in a adults. In turn, these interactions have important impli-
person’s life; for example, menopause is an indicator that a cations for understanding differences that appear to be
person can no longer bear children without medical inter- age-related. That is, differences may be explained in terms
vention. Normative psychological events include focusing of different life experiences (normative history-graded
on certain concerns at different points in adulthood, such influences) rather than as an integral part of aging itself
as a young adult’s concern with establishing themselves (normative age-graded influences). We will return to this
as independent. Other normative age-graded influences issue when we discuss age, cohort, and time-of-measurement
involve sociocultural forces, such as the average age when effects in research on adult development and aging in this
first marriage occurs or when a person becomes eligible chapter, and also throughout the text as we unpack the
for Social Security payments. Normative age-graded meaning of each person’s unique set of life experiences.
influences typically correspond to major time-marked or
age-marked events, which are often ritualized. For example,
many emerging adults in the United States formally Cultural, Ethnic, Racial, Biological Sex,
celebrate turning 21 as the official transition to adulthood, Gender, and Socioeconomic Factors
and getting married, having a child, and other events are Several aspects of sociocultural forces are important to
typically surrounded with much celebration. These events consider more closely. People do not grow up and live
provide the most convenient way to judge where we in a vacuum. Rather, they do so in specific contexts that
are on our social clock, an implicit marker of major life enrich and define them in many core ways.
milestones and when they are supposed to be achieved. Culture, ethnicity, race, biological sex, gender,
Normative history-graded influences are events and socioeconomic factors jointly provide status, social
that most people in a specific culture experience at settings, opportunities (or their systematic blockage), and
the same time. These events may be biologically caused other frameworks for personal experiences for people of
(such as the COVID-19 pandemic), psychological all ages, and they influence and are influenced by biolog-
(such as being subjected to particular stereotypes), or ical, psychological, and life-cycle developmental forces.
sociocultural (such as systemic discrimination). Normative Together, culture, ethnicity, race, and gender form the
history-graded influences often give a generation its bases for extremely important framings for understand-
unique identity, such as the baby-boom generation (born ing why people have the life experiences they do, and why
between 1946 and 1964), generation X (born between these experiences vary so widely from person to person.
1965 and 1980), the millennial generation (born between Culture can be defined as shared value orientations,
1981 and 1996), and generation Z (born between 1997 norms, beliefs, and customary habits and ways of liv-
and 2012). Normative history-graded influences can have ing. Culture provides the worldview of a society in that
a profound effect across all generations. For example, it gives it the basic explanations about the meanings
the attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, and goals of everyday life (Matsumoto & Juang, 2017).
2001, and the COVID-19 pandemic had profound Culture is such a powerful influence because it usually
effects on people alive at the time. connects to biological forces through family lineage,

which is often the way in which members of a partic- the financial assets a person has, and that is then used
ular culture are defined. Psychologically, culture shapes to categorize people into various “classes,” such as mid-
people’s core beliefs; in some cases, this can result in dle or upper class. These terms are then used as proxy,
ethnocentrism, or the belief that one’s own culture is or stand-in, labels that reflect the kinds and amounts of
superior to others. Being socialized as a child within a other resources (such as consumer goods, health care,
culture usually has a more profound effect on a person jobs, etc.) that a person purchases, uses, or occupies.
than when one adopts a culture later in life, resulting in The sociocultural forces of culture, ethnicity,
significant life-cycle timing effects. Culture is extremely race, gender, and socioeconomic factors are complex
important in gerontology because how people define and interact with each other. An important construct
basic concepts such as person, age, and life course varies a in this regard is intersectionality. Intersectionality
great deal across cultures. refers to experiences that reflect combinations of
Equally important is the concept of ethnicity, which race, ethnicity, gender, ability, or sexual orientation.
is an individual and collective sense of identity based on For example, Black women often point to their lived
historical and cultural group membership and related experiences as representing more than the sum of being
behaviors and beliefs (Matsumoto & Juang, 2017). a Black person and being a woman. Instead, their
Compared with culture, ethnic group identities have experiences are unique to being both Black and a woman
both solid and fluid properties, reflecting the fact that (Collins & Bilge, 2020). Similarly, the intersection
there are both unchanging and situation-specific aspects of race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic factors results in
to ethnic identity, resulting in somewhat fluid definitions persons of color being less likely to occupy the very top
of ethnic membership and heritage (Jaspal, 2015; Jaspal socioeconomic classes.
& Cinnirella, 2012). Ethnic identity is first influenced by Sociocultural forces provide the basis for the
biology through one’s parents. How that identity evolves aspects of diversity that are often used to define us.
over one’s life depends on the unique interplay of psycho- Understanding the impact of diversity is particularly
logical, other sociocultural, and life-cycle factors, as we important in the United States, one of the most cultur-
will discover throughout the text. ally diverse countries. Hundreds of different languages
Race matters. Aging in the United States is are spoken, and in many states, no single racial or
not the same experience for White individuals and ethnic group constitutes a majority of the population.
persons of color. Nearly every aspect of aging that we The many customs of people from different cultures offer
will examine differs as a function of race. We will discover insights into the broad spectrum of the human experi-
in Chapter 4 how racial disparities in health care and ence and attest to the diversity of the U.S. population.
access to healthy food options, for instance, lower Barriers created by the use of various demographic
average longevity and affect health. The results of categories such as culture, ethnicity, race, and gender
systematic race-based disparities and discrimination are often confronted by social movements created to
play out in long-term effects from access to education eliminate those barriers and effect change. The rapid
and certain types of occupations, to the average wealth rise of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement is an
(and what wealth provides) that these disparities create. example of how centuries of systemic discriminatory
Similarly, gender plays a crucial role not only treatment of Black individuals can become a global
in self-identification but also in the opportunities movement for justice. Although BLM began in 2013, it
(or lack thereof ) that are the result of different stereo- became a unifying global movement in 2020 following
types and behaviors toward different genders. As the murder of George Floyd. As a result, BLM became a
cultures come to terms with gender identities beyond potent example of a sociocultural force that has already
the traditional binary categories of women and men, influenced human behavior and development.
rifts have appeared reflected in disparate treatment and One way that the influence of culture, ethnicity, race,
laws barring certain types of activities based on gender gender, and socioeconomic factors affect us in our lives is
identities. In future chapters, we will explore how reflected in passionate arguments about how to refer to
gender influences such things as employment (and people with certain characteristics and histories. There
employment law), interpersonal relationships, health, is a song in the musical Hamilton—“Who Lives, Who
thinking, and numerous other topics. Dies, Who Tells Your Story”—that reminds us that the
Socioeconomic factors play another major role in lens through which even our own story is told depends
determining the level of resources to which a person has on who is doing the telling and what they themselves
access. Socioeconomic factors most often have to do with have experienced. The lenses we use in telling the story

Monkeybusinessimages/iStock/Getty Images
Each of these adults experiences the developmental process differently due to
differences in culture, ethnicity, race, gender, and socioeconomic factors.

of adult development and aging are not all equivalent; explores this notion in more detail. We will need to keep
for example, there is a youth-preferred lens used quite in mind that different lenses result in different stories as
a lot in marketing cosmetics. The Controversies feature we proceed through this book.

Controversies
Lenses Matter

By the early 2020s, several social movements who are pregnant—as “pregnant women” or as
regarding individual rights, freedom, and dignity “pregnant persons” (Lewis, 2021). Those who strive
had not only emerged but had several major to be inclusive of all individuals (that is, nonbinary
public and legal “wins” from their point of view. individuals or trans men who are pregnant) urge
These movements included LGBTQIA+ rights the use of the term “pregnant persons.” In contrast,
(e.g., same-sex marriage, inclusion of personal those who aim to emphasize the historical fact of
pronouns on one’s videochat namebar, increased oppression of women, often through rape, barring
availability of gender-neutral restrooms), the BLM from the workplace due to pregnancy, and the
movement (discussed in the text), and so on. like, prefer “pregnant women” to drive home the
Other movements also flourished, with members gender-based subjugation targeting women (and
holding very different views (e.g., white not some generic “people”). Lewis (2021) adds that
supremacist groups, trans-exclusionary groups). this distinction also underlies debates regarding
Black Lives Matter as opposed to “All” Lives Matter,
Ostensibly, debates among these groups reflect
with the deliberate point being made regarding
deeply held positions on “culture wars” issues.
historical issues between police and the Black
For example, this is the case with groups
community, even though non-Black individuals are
holding very different positions on the issue of
also shot and killed by police.
transgender rights in which one group supports
rights based on the gender claimed by the person The key point in these debates is not an absolute
and another group supports rights based on the judgment about who is “right” and who is
gender assigned at birth. “wrong.” As the song in Hamilton reminds us,
and as we will discover in Chapter 7 in our
Occasionally, different lenses get applied to the
discussion of cognitive development across
telling of the story even within groups that are
adulthood, there are multiple ways of approaching
usually on the same side of an issue. One example
issues, and whether one of them is “correct”
of this is how different forces relating to gender and
in an absolute sense may depend on the lens
the lenses of history are applied to the situation
through which the issue is viewed.
of how one describes the group of individuals

Although the U.S. population is changing rap- we do not know for sure. It may be a unique combination
idly, much of the research we describe in this text was of genetics, optimal environment, access to resources,
conducted on mostly middle- and upper-middle class flexibility in dealing with life situations, a strong sense
White Americans. Accordingly, we must be careful not of personal control, and maybe a bit of luck. For our
to assume that findings from this group necessarily apply present discussion, the main point to keep in mind is
to people in other groups. Indeed, we desperately need that everyone’s experience of growing old is somewhat
more research that includes diverse groups. Perhaps as a different. Although many people develop arthritis, how
result of taking this course, you will help fill this need by each person learns to cope is unique.
becoming a developmental researcher yourself. When most of us think about age, we usually think
of how long we have been around since our birth; this
The Meaning of Age way of defining age is known as chronological age.
When you are asked the question “How old are you?” Chronological age is a shorthand way to index time
what crosses your mind? Is it the number of years and organize events and data by using a commonly
since the day of your birth? Is it how old you feel at understood standard: calendar time. Chronological
that time? Is it defined more in terms of where you are age is not the only shorthand index variable used in
biologically, psychologically, or socially than in terms adult development and aging. Gender, biological sex,
of calendar time? You may not have thought about it, race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status are others.
but age is not a simple construct (and in the case of the No index variable itself actually causes behavior.
!Kung people living in the Kalahari Desert in southwest This point is often forgotten when age is the index
Africa, it has no meaning at all). variable, perhaps because it is so familiar to us and so
Likewise, aging is not a single process. Rather, it widely used. However, age (or time) does not directly
consists of at least three distinct processes: primary, cause things to happen, either. Iron left out in the rain
secondary, and tertiary aging (Birren & Cunningham, will rust, but rust is not caused by time. Rather, rust is a
1985). Primary aging is normative, disease-free time-dependent process involving oxidation in which time
de v e lopm en t d u ri n g ad u l th o o d . Changes in is a measure of the rate at which rust is created. Similarly,
biological, psychological, sociocultural, or life-cycle human behavior is affected by experiences that occur with
processes in primary aging are an inevitable part of the passage of time, not by time itself. What we study
the developmental process; examples include meno- in adult development and aging is the result of time- or
pause, decline in reaction time, and the loss of family age-dependent processes, not the result of age (time) itself.
and friends. Much of the information in this book Whereas chronological age represents your age in
represents primary aging. Secondary aging is devel- elapsed time, perceived age refers to the age you think of
opmental changes that are related to disease, yourself as. The saying “You’re only as old as you feel”
lifestyle, and other environmentally induced changes captures perceived age. Still another way of describing
that are not inevitable (e.g., pollution). The progres- age is in terms of biological age, assessed by measuring
sive loss of intellectual abilities due to Alzheimer’s the functioning of the various vital, or life-limiting,
disease and related forms of dementia, or that organ systems, such as the cardiovascular system.
are caused by systemic disparities in access to core Psychological age refers to the functional level of the
human services, are examples of secondary aging. psychological abilities people use to adapt to changing
Finally, tertiary aging is the rapid losses that occur environmental demands. These abilities include memory,
shortly before death. An example of tertiary aging intelligence, feelings, motivation, and other skills that
is a phenomenon known as terminal drop, in which foster and maintain self-esteem and personal control.
intellectual abilities show a marked decline in the last Finally, sociocultural age refers to the specific set
few months or years before death. of roles individuals adopt in relation to other members
Everyone does not grow old in the same way. of the society and culture to which they belong. Socio-
Whereas most people tend to show similar patterns of cultural age is judged on the basis of many behaviors
aging that reflect the typical, or normative, changes with and habits, such as style of dress, customs, language,
age, other people show highly successful aging in which and interpersonal style. Sociocultural age is especially
few signs of change occur. For example, although most important in understanding many of the family and
people tend to get chronic diseases as they get older, some work roles we adopt. When to get married, have
people never do. What makes people who age without children, make career moves, retire, and so on often
ever experiencing chronic disease different? At this point, are influenced by what we think our sociocultural age

Image Source/Photodisc/Getty Images

The “age” of these individuals depends on whether you are focusing on chronological, psychological, or
sociocultural definitions.

is. Such decisions also play a role in determining our change. The distinguishing features among emerging
self-esteem and other aspects of personality. Many of adulthood, established adulthood, and middle age are
the most damaging stereotypes about aging (e.g., that described in Table 1.1.
older people should not have sex) are based on faulty In sum, a person’s age turns out to be quite com-
assumptions about sociocultural age. plex. Think about yourself. You probably have days when
A good example of the complexities of age are the even though the calendar says you’re a certain age, your
concepts of emerging adulthood, established adulthood, exploits the day before resulted in your feeling much
and middle adulthood. Some human developmentalists younger at the time and much older the next morning—
view the period from the late teens to the mid- to late 20s or perhaps the other way around. How “old” anyone is
as distinctive. They refer to it as emerging adulthood, can (and does) change from one moment to the next. A
a period when individuals are not adolescents but great example of these points can be found in the life of
are not yet fully adults (Arnett, 2015, 2016; Arnett & Pope Francis, as discussed in the Real People feature.
Mitra, 2020). Five personal characteristics are especially
prominent (Arnett, 2015; Arnett & Mitra, 2020): identity Core Issues in Development
explorations, instability, self-focus, feeling in-between, and Is it your genes or experiences that determine how
a sense of possibilities/optimism. It is also a time when intelligent you are? If a young adult person is outgo-
certain biological and physiological developmental trends ing, does this mean they will be outgoing in later life? If
peak and brain development continues in different ways. people change, is it more gradual or sporadic? Is aging
Similarly, theorists and researchers are coming to the same around the world? These and similar questions
understand that emerging adulthood gives way to a have occupied some of the greatest thinkers throughout
separate developmental period prior to reaching middle history. Four main issues occupy most of the discus-
age. Established adulthood is the period between sion: nature versus nurture, stability versus change,
roughly ages 30 and 45 when life is most intense, continuity versus discontinuity, and universal versus
demanding, and perhaps rewarding (Mehta et al., context-specific development. Because each of these
2020). Established adulthood is generally marked by a issues cuts across the topics we discuss in this book, let’s
growing commitment to a chosen career path, a specific consider each briefly.
form of intimate relationships, and family formation.
Middle adulthood is different still, a time when The Nature–Nurture Issue. Think for a minute about a
many people are at the peak of their careers, children particular characteristic that you and several people in your
are leaving home, parents are aging, and one’s priorities family have. Why is this trait so prevalent? Is it because

Table 1.1 Distinctive Features of Emerging Adulthood, Established Adulthood, and Midlife

Educational Opportunities Country SES Contextual Factors Political Climate Culture Neighborhood

Ethnicity Birth Assigned Gender Category Nationality Individual Factors Gender Identity Sexual Orientation Race

Domain Emerging Adulthood Established Adulthood Midlife

Romantic Transient into long term Long term committed Long term committed
Relationships Divorce/Separation — second relationship — long term — committed —

Internalized cultural beliefs/values

Career Information gathering about careers Committing to field Seniority in field
Occupational experimentation Building expertise Acquired expertise
Religious beliefs

Frequent job changes Increasing responsibility Mentoring next generation

Greater occupational stability
Caregiving/ Child free Decision making about Older children
Family Living independently from parents childbearing Birth of first child Helping to mentor and support
Living parents who may still be Young children at home adult children’s independence
providing emotional or Aging parents who may require care Caring for aging parents or
instrumental support adjusting to loss of
deceased parents
Traits/personality characteristics

Physical Risky behaviors Reduction in risky behaviors Higher risk of heart disease
Unhealthy eating Healthy eating and cancer
Unstable sleep patterns Unstable sleep patterns for new Higher risk of obesity

Immigrant status
High energy parents
Strong immunity Strong immunity
Overall high self-rated health Overall high self-rated health
Declines in metabolism
Cognitive Acquiring broad knowledge base Narrowing of knowledge base Domain specific deep
High fluid intelligence Developing expertise knowledge
Fast processing speed Declines in processing speed Expertise
Developing crystalized intelligence Increasing crystalized intelligence Continued declines in
Problem solving Problem finding processing speed
Increasing crystalized
intelligence Problem
anticipation
Development of wisdom
Well being Lower positive affect Higher positive affect

Other individual characteristics

Other contextual factors

HISTORICAL PERIOD
Source: Mehta, C. M., Arnett, J. J., Palmer, C. G., & Nelson, L. J. (2020). Established adulthood: A new conception of ages 30 to 45. American Psychologist,
75, 431–444. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000600, Table 1, p. 436

you inherited the trait from your parents? Or is it because cause of a particular aspect of development. The goal was
of where and how you and other members of your to be able to say, for example, that intelligence was due to
family were brought up? Answers to these questions heredity or that personality was due to experience. Today,
illustrate different positions on the nature–nurture however, we know that virtually no features of life-span
issue, which involves the degree to which genetic development are due exclusively to either heredity or envi-
or hereditary influences (nature) and experiential or ronment. Instead, development is always shaped by both:
environmental influences (nurture) determine the Nature and nurture are mutually interactive influences.
kind of person you are. For example, it is known that some forms of
Scientists once hoped to answer these questions by Alzheimer’s disease are genetically linked. However,
identifying either heredity or environment as the only whether one develops Alzheimer’s disease, and possibly

Real People
Pope Francis Sets Many New Examples

History was made on March 13, 2013. For the

first time since the year 741, when Pope Gregory
II from Syria died, the Roman Catholic Church
elected a non-European as its leader. Jorge Mario
Bergoglio, who took the name of Pope Francis,
became the first South American (he is from
Argentina) and first Jesuit to be elected pope.
He was 76 years old. It is likely that the Catholic

MikeDotta/Shutterstock.com
Church will never be the same.
Pope Francis set out immediately to change the
dynamic of the role of the pope. In doing so, he
also showed that he held deep personal values
and could not be stereotyped based on his age.
For example, he refused to wear the traditional red Pope Francis
shoes or to live in the posh Vatican apartment. He
used his long-lived experience to focus on what he
saw as essential central traits for a leader: mercy, adequate wages and living conditions for all.
humility, and compassion. He also defied our He embraced all religions and has emphasized
stereotypes of an older person—he was always on the the need to treat all people with respect.
go, full of energy, with a very sharp wit and intellect.
Pope Francis redefined what it means to be a
Pope Francis set out quickly to establish his church leader. He also redefined what it means
values as central to the way people should live, to be an older adult through his upending of
especially in terms of sustainability in response centuries of tradition, relentless schedule, and
to climate change, and in the need to provide activity in service of others.

even how the disease progresses, may be influenced by degree to which people remain the same over time.
the environment. Specifically, an environmental trigger Stability at some basic level is essential for us (and others)
may be needed for the disease to occur. Moreover, to recognize that one is the same individual as time goes
evidence indicates that providing a supportive environment on. But we also like to believe that our characteristics are
for people with Alzheimer’s disease improves their perfor- not set in concrete, that we can change ourselves if we
mance on cognitive tasks (De Witt-Hoblit et al., 2016). so desire. (Imagine not being able to do anything to rid
To understand a person’s future we must simulta- yourself of some habit that annoys others.)
neously consider their inborn, hereditary characteristics Although there is little controversy about whether
and the environment in which they live. Both children change in some ways from birth through age 18,
factors must be considered together to yield an adequate there is much controversy about whether people continue
account of why people behave the way they do. To to change across adulthood. Much of the controversy over
explain a person’s behavior and discover where to focus stability and change across adulthood stems from how
intervention, we must consider the unique interaction specific characteristics are defined and measured. How
for that person between nature and nurture. much we remain the same and how much we change, then,
turns out to be a difficult issue to resolve in an objective
The Stability–Change Issue. Ask yourself the way. For many gerontologists, whether stability or change
following question: Are you pretty much the same as is the rule depends on what personal aspect is being consid-
you were 10 years ago, or are you different? How so? ered and what theoretical perspective one is adopting. For
Depending on what aspects of yourself you considered, example, we will find out in Chapter 9 that this distinction
you may have concluded that you are pretty much the underlies what we conclude regarding personality.
same (perhaps in terms of food preferences) or that you
are different (perhaps in some physical feature such as The Continuity–Discontinuity Controversy. The
hair color). The stability–change issue concerns the third major issue in developmental psychology is a derivative

of the stability–change controversy. The continuity– fixed but can be learned or improved with practice.
discontinuity controversy concerns whether a particu- For example, people can learn ways to help them-
lar developmental phenomenon represents a smooth selves remember information, which in turn may help
progression over time (continuity) or a series of abrupt them deal with declining short-term memory ability
shifts (discontinuity). Continuity approaches usually focus with age. Although plasticity can be demonstrated in
on the amount of a characteristic a person has, whereas many arenas, there are limits to the degree of potential
discontinuity approaches usually focus on the kinds of improvement, as we will discover in later chapters.
characteristics a person has. Of course, on a day-to-day
basis, behaviors often look nearly identical, or continuous. T h e U n i v e r s a l Ve r s u s C o n t e x t - S p e c i f i c
But when viewed over the course of many months or years, Development Controversy. The universal versus
the same behaviors may have changed dramatically, context-specific development controversy concerns
reflecting discontinuous change. Throughout this book, whether there is just one path of development or sev-
you will find examples of developmental changes that eral. Consider the !Kung people, who live in the Kalahari
appear to be more on the continuities side and ones that Desert in southwest Africa (Bonvillain, 2021; Lee et al.,
appear to be more on the discontinuities side. 2002). If you were to ask an older !Kung, “How old are
An example of continuity is discussed in Chapter 6: you?” you would quickly learn that the question has no
reaction time. As people grow older, the speed with meaning. !Kung also do not keep track of the number of
which they can respond slows down. But in Chapter 7 years they have been alive, the number of children they
you will read about an example of discontinuity: How have, or how often they move. To the !Kung, age per se
people approach problems, especially ones with com- is unimportant; when asked to describe people who are
plex and ambiguous features, undergoes fundamental “younger” or “older,” they give the names of specific peo-
shifts from young adulthood through middle age. ple. Social roles among the !Kung also do not differ by
Within the discontinuity view lies the issue of how age; for example, women in their 20s and 60s tradition-
adaptable people are in situations as they age. Baltes ally tend gardens, draw water from wells, and take care of
and colleagues (1998; Baltes et al., 1999) use the term children; men traditionally hunt.
plasticity to describe this in relation to people’s capac- Life among !Kung adults contrasts sharply with
ity. Plasticity refers to the belief that capacity is not life among adults in the United States, where age

Akg-Images/Jürgen Sorges

Members of the !Kung experience development in ways very different from the ways most
Americans do.

matters a great deal and prescribed social roles differ

accordingly. Can one theory explain development in • What is intersectionality?
both groups? Maybe. Some theorists argue that such • In what ways can age be defined? What are the
differences are more apparent than real, and that advantages and disadvantages of each definition?
development worldwide reflects one basic process • What is the stability–change issue? What is the
for everyone. According to this view, differences in continuity–discontinuity issue? What kinds of
development are simply variations on a fundamental theories derive from each view?
developmental process, much as Hershey, Chocolopolis, • What is the universal versus context-specific
Lore’s, and Godiva chocolates are all products of the development issue, and how does it relate to
same basic manufacturing process. sociocultural forces?
The opposing view is that differences among peo-
ple may not be just variations on a theme. Advocates
of this view argue that adult development and aging
are inextricably intertwined with the context in which
1.3 Research Methods in Adult
they occur. A person’s development is a product of Development and Aging
complex interactions with the environment, and these
interactions are not fundamentally the same in all envi- Key Questions
ronments. Each environment has its own set of unique • What approaches do scientists use to measure behavior
procedures that shape development. in adult development and aging research?
The view adopted in this book is that adult develop-
• What are the general designs for doing research?
ment and aging must be understood within the contexts in
• What specific designs are unique to adult development
which they occur. In some cases, this means that contexts
and aging research?
are sufficiently similar that general trends can be identified.
In others, such as the !Kung and in U.S. societies, these • What are some tools for doing and archiving
developmental research?
differences prevent many general statements. In Levar’s
case with his granddaughter, it may be a blend of the two. • What are some ways to integrate findings from different
studies?
• What ethical procedures must researchers follow?
Adult Development in Action
Leah and Sarah are both 75 years old and are in
How would understanding the forces and issues fairly good health. They want their memory to
that shape human development help you be a remain sharp, so they both use various memory
better healthcare worker at a neighborhood clinic aids: Leah tries to think of images in her mind
in a very diverse neighborhood? to remember her grocery list, whereas Sarah
writes them down. Leah and Sarah got into
a discussion recently about which technique
works better.

You might be asking yourself why you need to know

Review Questions about research methods when you could just search the
web on the topic and find out all sorts of things about it.
1.2 Issues in Studying Adult Development and Aging
Here’s why—there is good research and bad research and
• What are the four basic forces in human
development?
everything in between. A web search does not help you
tell the difference. The only way to differentiate good
• What are the major characteristics of normative
versus poor research is by knowing the principles of good
age-graded, normative history-graded, and
nonnormative influences?
research that result in trustworthy information.
Just as in any profession, gerontology has certain
• How do nature and nurture interact?
tools of the trade that are used to ensure good research.
• What are the impacts of culture, ethnicity, race,
That’s what we will be considering in this section—the
biological sex, gender, and socioeconomic factors
tools that gerontologists have used for decades in dis-
on development?
covering the secrets of adult development and aging.

So, suppose Leah and Sarah know that you’re Systematic Observation. As the name implies,
taking a course in adult development and aging, and systematic observation involves watching people and
they ask you to settle the matter. You know research carefully recording what they say or do. Two forms
could show whose approach is better under what of systematic observation are common. In naturalistic
circumstances, but how? Gerontologists must make observation, people are observed as they behave sponta-
several key decisions as they prepare to study any topic. neously in some real-life situation. For example, Leah and
They need to decide how to measure the topic of Sarah could be observed in the grocery store purchasing
interest, they must design the study, they must choose their items as a way to test how well they remember.
a way to study development, and they must respect the Two types of systematic observations are structured
rights of the people who will participate in the study. observations and naturalistic observations. Structured
What makes the study of adult development and observations differ from naturalistic observations in that
aging different from other areas of social science is the researcher creates a specific, often artificial setting
the need to consider multiple influences on behavior. that is particularly likely to elicit the behavior of interest.
Explanations of development entail consideration of all Structured observations are especially useful for study-
the forces we listed earlier. This makes research on adult ing behaviors that are difficult to observe naturally (that
development and aging more difficult, if for no other is, in the normal course of people’s routines and expe-
reason than it involves examining more variables. riences). For example, how people react to emergencies
is hard to study naturally because emergencies generally
Measurement in Adult Development and are rare and unpredictable events. For a structured obser-
Aging Research vation study, a researcher could stage an emergency and
Researchers typically begin by deciding how to measure watch how people react. However, whether the behaviors
the topic of interest. For example, the first step toward observed in staged situations are the same as would
resolving Leah and Sarah’s discussion about remember- happen naturally often is hard to determine, making it dif-
ing grocery items would be to decide how to measure ficult to generalize from staged settings to the real world.
remembering. Gerontologists usually use one of three
approaches: observing systematically, using tasks to Sampling Behavior with Tasks. When investigators
sample behavior, and asking people for self-reports. In can’t observe a behavior directly, another popular alter-
addition, researchers need to be concerned with how native is to create tasks that are thought to sample the
representative the participants in the study are of the behavior of interest. For example, one way to test older
larger group of people in question. adults’ memory is to give them a grocery list to learn
Regardless of the kind of method chosen, research- and remember, often in a laboratory setting, rather than
ers must show it is both reliable and valid. The reliability testing them in the grocery store by looking at their
of a measure is the extent to which it provides a shopping carts. This approach is popular with geronto-
consistent index of the behavior or topic of interest. logical researchers because it is so convenient. The main
A measure of memory is reliable to the extent that it question with this approach is its validity: Does the task
gives a consistent estimate of performance each time provide a realistic sample of the behavior of interest?
you administer it. All measures used in gerontological For example, asking people to learn grocery lists would
research must be shown to be reliable, or they cannot be have good validity to the extent it matched the kinds of
used. The validity of a measure is the extent to which lists they actually use.
it measures what researchers think it measures. For
example, a measure of memory is valid only if it can be Self-Reports. The last approach, self-reports, is a
shown to actually measure memory (and not vocabu- special case of using tasks to sample people’s behavior.
lary ability, for example). Validity often is established by Self-reports are simply people’s answers to ques-
showing that the measure in question is closely related tions about the topic of interest. When questions are
to another measure known to be valid. Because it is posed in written form, it is a questionnaire or survey;
possible to have a measure that is reliable but not valid when they are posed verbally, it is an interview. Either
(a ruler is a reliable measure of length but not a valid way, questions are created that probe different aspects
measure of memory), researchers must ensure that mea- of the topic of interest. For example, if you think imag-
sures are both reliable and valid. ery and lists are common ways people use to remember

grocery items, you could devise a questionnaire and Gerontologists rely on primary designs in planning
administer it to several people to find out. their work: experimental studies, correlational studies,
Although self-reports are very convenient and provide and case studies. The specific design chosen for research
information on the topic of interest, they are not always depends in large part on the questions the researchers
good measures of people’s behavior, because they are are trying to address.
inaccurate. Why? People may not remember accurately
Experiments. To find out whether Leah’s or Sarah’s
what they did in the past, or they may simply report
approach to remembering works better, we could gather
what they think the researcher wants them to say.
representative samples of older adults and try the fol-
Representative Sampling. Researchers usually are lowing. We could randomly assign the participants
interested in broad groups of people called populations. into three groups: those who are taught to use imag-
Examples of populations are all the students taking a course ery, those who are taught to use lists, and those who are
on adult development and aging or all Asian American not taught to use anything. After giving all the groups
widows. Since accessing the whole population is usually time to learn the new technique (where appropriate),
difficult, the vast majority of studies are based on only we could test each group on a new grocery list to see
a sample of people, which is a subset of the population. who does better.
Researchers must be careful, though, to ensure that What we have done is an example of an
their sample is truly representative (i.e., has the same experiment, which involves manipulating a key
characteristics) of the population of interest. An unrep- factor that the researcher believes is responsible
resentative sample can result in invalid research. For for a particular behavior and randomly assigning
example, what would you think of a study of middle-aged participants to the experimental and control groups. In
parents if you learned that the sample consisted entirely our case, the key variable being manipulated (termed
of heterosexual two-parent households? You would, quite the independent variable) is the instructions for how
correctly, decide that this sample is not representative of to study. In a study of memory, a typical behavior that
all middle-aged parents and question whether its results is observed (termed the dependent variable) is the
apply to single middle-aged parents, for instance. amount of information actually remembered.
As you read on, you’ll soon discover that most of More generally, in an experiment the researcher is
the research we consider in this text has been conducted most interested in identifying differences between groups
on middle-class, well-educated White Americans. of people. One group, the experimental group, receives
That’s because historically, people of color were largely the manipulation, in this case training on a memory
not included in developmental research, and in some strategy; another group, the control group, does not.
fields (e.g., medical research) were sometimes included This sets up a situation in which the presence and/or
unethically. Are these nondiverse samples representative type or amount of the key variable of interest differs
of all people in the United States? In the world? No. across groups. In addition, the investigator exerts precise
Be careful not to assume that findings from this group control over all important aspects of the study, including
apply to people of other groups. In addition, some choosing the variable of interest, how it will be included
developmental issues have not been studied in all racial in the study, the setting of the study, and the participants.
and ethnic groups and cultures. For example, the U.S. Because the key variable is systematically manipulated
government does not always report statistics for all in an experiment (e.g., some participants experience
racial and ethnic groups on every conceivable topic. it, some do not), researchers can infer cause-and-effect
To change this, some U.S. government agencies, such relations about that variable. In our example, we can
as the National I nstitutes of Health, require samples conclude that type of memory strategy instruction (how
to be representative. Thus, in the future we may gain a people study) causes better or worse performance on a
broader understanding of aging. memory test. Discovering such cause-and-effect relations
is important if we are to understand the underlying
General Designs for Research processes of adult development and aging.
Having selected the way we want to measure the topic Finally, we must note that age cannot be an inde-
of interest, researchers must embed this measure in a pendent variable, because we cannot manipulate it and
research design that yields useful, relevant results. because, as we noted earlier, time per se does not cause

anything. At best, we can find and discuss age-related used a great deal. In fact, most developmental research
effects of an independent variable on the behavior is correlational at some level because age cannot be
represented by the dependent variables. manipulated within an individual, and many variables
of interest cannot be manipulated for ethical reasons.
Correlational Studies. Given that true experiments Ultimately, this means that although we can describe a
cannot be done to understand the effects of time- great many developmental phenomena and talk about
dependent developmental processes per se, what do how they interrelate, we cannot explain very many of
scientists do to gain insights into how things change over them.
time? The best way is to examine how different aspects of
people’s behavior vary in relation to each other, accom- Case Studies. Sometimes researchers cannot obtain
plished by using a correlational study. In a correlational measures directly from multiple people and are able
study, investigators examine relations between only to study one or very few of them carefully. Situ-
variables as they exist naturally in the world. In the ations in which researchers may be able to study
simplest correlational study, a researcher measures two a single individual or very few individuals in great
variables, and then sees how they are related. detail constitute a case study. This technique is espe-
Suppose we wanted to know whether the amount cially useful when researchers want to investigate rare
of time spent studying a grocery list such as one that phenomena, such as people who have new or extremely
Sarah might create was related to how many items peo- rare diseases, or people with extremely high skill levels
ple remember at the store. To find out, the researcher in some area. Identifying new diseases, for example,
would measure two things for each person in the study: often begins with a case study of one individual who
the length of study time and the number of items pur- has a pattern of symptoms that differs from any known
chased correctly. disorder. Case studies are also valuable for opening
The results of a correlational study usually are mea- new areas of research, which can be followed by larger
sured by computing a correlation coefficient, abbre- studies using other methods (e.g., experiments). However,
viated r. Correlations can range from –1.0 to 1.0, their primary limitation is figuring out whether the
reflecting three different types of relations between information gleaned from one or very few individual(s)
study time and number of groceries remembered. holds for others as well.

1. When r = 0, the two variables are unrelated: study Designs for Studying Development
time has no relation to remembering groceries.
Once the general design is chosen, most gerontologists
2. When r > 0, the variables are positively related: as
must decide how to measure possible changes or age
study time increases (or decreases), the number
differences that emerge as people develop. For example,
of grocery items remembered also increases (or
if we want to know how people continue (or fail) to use
decreases).
imagery or lists in remembering grocery items as they
3. When r < 0, the variables are inversely related:
get older, we will want to use a design that is particularly
when study time increases (or decreases), the
sensitive to developmental differences. Such designs are
number of groceries remembered decreases (or
based on three key building blocks: age effects, cohort
increases).
effects, and time of measurement effects. Once we have
Correlational studies do not give definitive infor- considered these, we will examine the specific designs
mation about cause and effect; for example, the for studying development.
correlation between study time and the number of
groceries remembered does not mean that one variable Age, Cohort, and Time of Measurement. Every
caused the other, regardless of how large the relation study of adult development and aging is built on the
was. However, correlational studies do provide important combination of three building blocks: age effects, cohort
information about the strength of the relation between effects, and time of measurement effects (Cavanaugh &
variables, which is reflected in the absolute value of the Whitbourne, 2003).
correlation coefficient. Moreover, because developmen- Age effects reflect differences caused by under-
tal researchers are interested in how variables are related lying processes, such as biological, psychological, or
to other factors besides age that are difficult, if not sociocultural changes that are time related. Although
impossible, to manipulate, correlational techniques are usually represented in research by chronological age,

age effects are inherent changes within the person and separate the three effects. This has not been easy, because
are not caused by the passage of time per se but are all three influences are interrelated. If one is interested
time-related. in studying 40-year-olds, one must necessarily select
Cohort effects are differences caused by experi- the cohort that was born 40 years ago. In this case age
ences and circumstances unique to the generation and cohort are confounded, because one cannot know
to which one belongs. In general, cohort effects whether the behaviors observed occur because the par-
correspond to the normative history-graded influences ticipants are 40 years old or because of the specific life
discussed earlier. However, defining a cohort may not experiences they have had as a result of being born in
be easy. Cohorts can be specific, as in all people born a particular historical year. In general, confounding is
in one particular year, or general, such as the millennial any situation in which one cannot determine which
cohort. As described earlier, each generation is exposed of two or more effects is responsible for the behav-
to different sets of historical and personal events (such iors being observed. Confounding among pairs of the
as World War II, tablet computers, social justice move- three effects we are considering here is the most serious
ments, or pandemics). Later in this section we consider problem in adult development and aging research.
evidence of how profound cohort effects can be. What distinguishes developmental researchers
Time-of-measurement effects reflect differences from their colleagues in other areas of psychology is a
stemming from sociocultural, environmental, histori- fundamental interest in understanding how people
cal, or other events at the time the data are obtained change. Developmental researchers must look at the
from the participants. For example, data about wage ways in which people differ across time. Doing so
increases given in a particular year may be influenced by n ecessarily requires that researchers understand the
the economic conditions of that year. If the economy is in distinction between age change and age difference. An
a serious recession, pay increases probably would be small. age change occurs in an individual’s behavior over time.
In contrast, if the economy is booming, pay increases Leah’s or Sarah’s memory performance at age 75 may
could be large. Clearly, whether a study is conducted be different than it was at age 40. To discover an age
during a recession or a boom affects what is learned change, one must examine the same person (in this
about pay changes. In short, the point in time in which case, Leah or Sarah) at more than one point in time.
a researcher decides to do research could lead them to An age difference is obtained when at least two different
different conclusions about the phenomenon being studied. people of different ages are compared. Leah and Sarah
The three building-block effects (age, cohort, and may not remember the same number of grocery items
time of measurement) can be represented in a single as a different person of age 40 does. Even though we
chart, such as the one in Table 1.2. Cohort is represented may be able to document substantial age differences, we
by the years in the first column, time of measurement is cannot assume they imply an age change. We do not
represented by the years across the top, and age is repre- know whether Leah or Sarah has changed since they
sented by the numbers in the individual cells in the table. were 40 (because we did not follow them over time), and
Note that age can be computed by subtracting the cohort of course we do not know whether the 40-year-old will
year from the time of measurement year. be any different at age 75. In some cases, age differences
In conducting adult development and aging reflect age changes; in other cases, they do not.
research, investigators have attempted to identify and If what we really want to understand in devel-
opmental research is age change (what happens as
people grow older), we should design our research with
Table 1.2 Three Basic Building Blocks of this goal in mind to the extent it is possible. How-
Developmental Research Time of Measurement ever, different research questions necessitate different
Cohort 2020 2030 2040 2050 research designs. As we will explore next, settling for
1970 50 60 70 80 understanding age differences rather than identifying
1980 40 50 60 70 age changes may be necessary because that is the best
1990 30 40 50 60 we can do under the circumstances. We next consider the
2000 20 30 40 50 most common ways in which researchers gather data
Cohort is represented by the years in the first column, time of measurement
about age differences and age changes: cross-sectional,
by the years across the top, and age by the values in the cells. longitudinal, time lag, and sequential designs.

Table 1.3 Cross-Sectional Design be conducted more quickly and inexpensively than
research using other designs.
Time of Measurement
In addition, one particular variation of cross-
Cohort 2020 2030 2040 2050
sectional designs is used the most: the extreme age
1970 50 60 70 80
groups design. Suppose you want to investigate whether
1980 40 50 60 70 people’s ability to remember items at the grocery store
1990 30 40 50 60 differs with age. Your first impulse may be to gather
2000 20 30 40 50 a group of younger adults and compare their perfor-
Cohort is represented by the years in the first column, time of measurement mance with that of a group of older adults. Typically,
by the years across the top, and age by the values in the cells. such studies compare samples obtained in convenient
ways; younger adults usually are college students, and
older adults often are volunteers from senior centers or
Cross-Sectional Designs. Suppose we design a other organizations.
study to compare a group of 40-year-old people with Although the extreme age groups design is very
a group of 75-year-old people (including Leah and common (most of the studies cited in this book used
Sarah) on remembering items from a grocery list. This this design), it has several problems (Hertzog &
approach would be known as a cross-sectional study Dixon, 1996). Three concerns are key. First, the sam-
because we have taken a cross-section, or time-slice, ples, as convenient as they are to obtain, are rarely
of different groups of people of different ages. In a racially and ethnically representative of the whole
cross-sectional study, developmental differences population, so we must be careful not to read too
are identified by testing people of different ages at much into the results; findings from studies using
the same time. Any single column, such as the one extreme age groups may not generalize to people
highlighted in bold red font in Table 1.3, represents a other than ones like those who participated. Second,
cross-sectional design. age should be treated as a continuous variable, not
Cross-sectional research has several weaknesses. as a category (“young” and “old”). Viewing age as a
Because people are tested at only one point in their continuous variable allows researchers to gain a bet-
development, we learn nothing about the continuity ter understanding of how age relates to any observed
of development. Consequently, we cannot tell whether age differences. Finally, extreme age group designs
someone born in 1970 who remembers grocery items assume the measures used mean the same thing to
well at age 50 (in 2020) is still able to do so at age 80 both age groups. They often do not. Measures may
(in 2050), because the person would be tested at age tap somewhat different constructs, so the reliability
50 or 80, but not both. Cross-sectional studies also and validity of each measure should be checked in
are affected by cohort effects, meaning that differences each age group.
between age groups (cohorts) may result as easily from Despite the problems with cross-sectional designs
environmental factors as from developmental processes. in general and with extreme age groups designs in par-
Why? Cross-sectional studies assume that when the ticular, such studies can provide useful information if
older participants were younger, they resembled the used carefully. Most importantly, they can point out
people in the younger age groups who actually par- issues that may provide fruitful avenues for subsequent
ticipate in the study. This isn’t always true, of course, longitudinal or sequential studies, in which case we can
which makes it difficult to know how to explain age uncover information about age changes.
differences found in a cross-sectional study. In short,
age and cohort effects are confounded in cross-sectional Longitudinal Designs. As noted in the previous
research. section, one way to explore age changes is to follow
Despite the confounding of age and cohort and people and measure the same behaviors over time. When
the limitation of being able to identify only age a researcher wants to do that, they use a longitudinal
differences, cross-sectional designs dominate the design. In a longitudinal study, the same individu-
research literature in gerontology. Why? The reason als are observed or tested repeatedly at different
is a pragmatic one: because all the measurements are points in their lives. As the name implies, a longitudi-
obtained at one time, cross-sectional research can nal study involves a lengthwise (over time) account of

Table 1.4 Longitudinal Design repeated assessments of what you are learning and
may have the opportunity to pull all that learning
Time of Measurement
together at the end of the course in a project or com-
Cohort 2020 2030 2040 2050
prehensive exam.
1970 50 60 70 80
If age changes are found in longitudinal studies, can
1980 40 50 60 70 we say why they occurred? Because only one cohort is
1990 30 40 50 60 studied, cohort effects are eliminated as an explanation
2000 20 30 40 50 of change. However, the other two potential explana-
Cohort is represented by the years in the first column, time of measurement tions, age and time of measurement, are confounded. For
by the years across the top, and age by the values in the cells.
example, suppose we wanted to follow the 1990 cohort
over time. If we wanted to test these individuals when
development and is the most direct way to watch and they were 30 years old, we would have had to do so in
measure growth. A longitudinal design is represented by 2020. Consequently, any changes we identify could result
any horizontal row, such as the one highlighted in bold from changes in underlying processes or factors related
red font in Table 1.4. A major advantage of longitudinal to the time we choose to conduct our measurement. For
designs is that age changes are identified because we are instance, if we conducted a longitudinal study of salary
studying the same people over time. growth, the amount of salary change in any comparison
Usually, the repeated testing of longitudinal studies could stem from real change in the skills and worth of
extends over years, but not always. In a microgenetic the person to the company or from the economic condi-
study, a special type of longitudinal design, partic- tions of the times, namely, the COVID-19 pandemic. In
ipants are tested repeatedly over a span of days or a longitudinal study we cannot tell which of these factors
weeks, typically with the aim of observing change is more important in understanding the outcomes for the
directly as it occurs. For example, researchers might participants in the study.
test people every week during a training program Longitudinal studies present three additional chal-
in how to use social media, for instance, starting on lenges. First, if the research measure requires some type
the first day of the course and continuing until a few of performance by the participants, we may have the
weeks after the end of formal instruction. Microge- potential issue of practice effects. Practice effects result
netic studies are particularly useful when investigators from the fact that performance may improve over time
have hypotheses about a specific period when devel- simply because people are tested over and over again
opmental change should occur, or in order to inten- with the same measures. If people improve over the
sively document a behavior over time (Flynn et al., course of the study, we won’t know whether it as a gen-
2006). uine improvement or just due to their growing familiar-
Microgenetic studies are particularly useful in ity with the assessments.
tracking change as a result of intervention. For exam- Second, we may have a challenge with partici-
ple, adults could be given a health assessment on pant dropout because it is difficult to keep a group
physiological indicators and diet. A series of educa- of research participants intact over the course of a
tional sessions about how to improve health through longitudinal study. Participants may relocate, lose
exercise and eating habits could be introduced interest, become unavailable for some other reason
including additional assessments, followed by a (e.g., health), or die. Participant dropout can result in
posttest to find out how well the participants learned two different outcomes. We can end up with positive
and remembered the information a few weeks later. selective survival if the participants at the end of the
The microgenetic method would look in detail at study tend to be the ones who were initially higher
the performance of those who learned and improved on some variable (e.g., the surviving participants are
after training compared to those who did not, and the ones who were the healthiest at the beginning of
search for differences in the pattern of findings in the the study). In contrast, we could have negative selective
assessments given during the program. This would survival if the participants at the conclusion of
provide a vivid portrait of change over the period of the study were initially lower on an important vari-
the intervention. If you think about it, this course is able (e.g., the surviving participants may have been
an example of a microgenetic study, as you are given those who performed least well). Either way, the group

of participants at the end of the study do not reflect Table 1.5 Sequential Design
the characteristics of the entire group that began the
Time of Measurement
study, making any conclusions very risky.
Cohort 2020 2030 2040 2050
The third challenge with longitudinal designs is
that our ability to apply the results to other groups is 1970 50 60 70 80

limited. The difficulty is that only one cohort is fol- 1980 40 50 60 70

lowed. Whether the pattern of results that is observed 1990 30 40 50 60
in one cohort can be generalized to another cohort is 2000 20 30 40 50
questionable. Thus, researchers using longitudinal Cohort is represented by the years in the first column, time of measurement
designs run the risk of uncovering a developmental by the years across the top, and age by the values in the cells.

process that is unique to that cohort. For instance, a

longitudinal study of using computers in daily life that sectional designs include the same age ranges; however,
included members of generation X (born between 1965 the participants are different in each wave of testing. For
and 1980) may not discover findings of much use to example, we might compare performances on personal-
understanding how members of Gen Z (born between ity tests for people between ages 30 and 40 in 2020 and
1997 and 2012) use computers. then repeat the study in 2030 with a different group of
Because longitudinal designs that extend over years people aged 30 and 40.
necessarily take more time and usually are very expen- Table 1.5 also depicts the longitudinal sequen-
sive, they have not been used very often. Microgenetic tial design. A longitudinal sequential design consists
studies, due to the typically shorter duration, are of two or more longitudinal designs that represent
easier to conduct, so we have more of them. However, two or more cohorts. Each longitudinal design in the
researchers recognize that we badly need to follow sequence begins with the same age range and follows
individuals over long periods of time to further our people for the same length of time. For example, we
understanding of the aging process, and some funding may want to begin a longitudinal study of intellectual
sources (e.g., the National Institutes of Health) invest development with a group of 40-year-olds in 2020
in larger scale longitudinal research. We will encounter using the 1980 cohort. We would then follow this
some of these throughout the book. cohort for a period of years. In 2030, we would begin
a second longitudinal study on 40-year-olds, using the
Sequential Designs. Thus far, we have considered 1990 cohort, and follow them for the same length of
two developmental designs, each of which has chal- time as we follow the first cohort. This design helps
lenges involving the confounding of two of the three clarify whether the longitudinal effects found in a sin-
building block effects. These confounds are age and gle longitudinal study are cohort-specific or are more
cohort in cross-sectional designs, and age and time of general findings.
measurement in longitudinal designs. These confounds Although sequential designs are powerful and
create difficulties in interpreting behavioral differ- provide by far the richest source of information
ences between and within individuals. Some of these about developmental issues, few researchers use them,
interpretive dilemmas can be alleviated by using more because they are extremely costly. Trying to follow
complex designs called sequential designs, which are many people over long periods of time, generating
shown in Table 1.5. Keep in mind, though, that sequential new samples, and conducting complex data analyses
designs do not cure the confounding problems in are expensive and time consuming. Clearly, this type
the three basic designs, but they do provide ways to of commitment to one project is not possible for most
home in on better understanding of age change and researchers.
age difference. The How Do We Know? feature provides one of
Sequential designs represent different combi- the best examples of a complex sequential study. The
nations of cross-sectional or longitudinal studies. In Seattle Longitudinal Study is one of the most compre-
Table 1.5, a cross-sequential design consists of two or hensive investigations of human aging ever conducted
more cross-sectional studies conducted at two or more and has included over 6,000 participants. The feature
times of measurement; an example is noted in the cells introduces the study here; we will return to various
highlighted in bold red font. These multiple cross- aspects of the findings in later chapters.

How Do We Know?
Conflicts Between Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Data

Who was the investigator, and what was the What was the design of the study? To provide
aim of the study? In the 1950s, little information a thorough view of intellectual change over
was available concerning longitudinal changes in time, Schaie invented a new type of design—the
adults’ intellectual abilities. What there was showed sequential design. Participants were tested every
a developmental pattern of relative stability or seven years. Like most longitudinal studies,
slight decline, quite different from the picture of Schaie’s sequential study encountered selectivity
substantial across-the-board decline obtained in effects—that is, people who return over the years
cross-sectional studies. To provide a more thorough for retesting tend to do better initially than those
picture of intellectual change, K. Warner Schaie who fail to return (in other words, those who
began the Seattle Longitudinal Study in 1956. Over don’t perform well initially tend to drop out of
the years, a host of other colleagues joined Schaie the study). However, an advantage of Schaie’s
in conducting the study. The Seattle Longitudinal sequential design is that by bringing in new
Study is widely regarded as one of the most groups of participants, he was able to estimate
extensive investigations in gerontology of how the importance of selection effects, a major
adults develop and change across adulthood. improvement over previous research.
How did the investigator measure the topic of Were there ethical concerns with the study?
interest? Schaie used standardized tests of primary The most serious issue in any study in which
mental abilities to assess a wide range of abilities participants are followed over time is confidentiality.
such as logical reasoning and spatial ability. Because people’s names must be retained for future
contact, the researchers were very careful about
Who were the participants in the study?
keeping personal information secure.
Over the course of the study, more than 5,000
individuals have been tested at eight testing What were the results? Among the many
cycles (1956, 1963, 1970, 1977, 1984, 1991, 1998, important findings from the study are
and 2005). The participants were representative differential changes in abilities over time and
of the upper 75% of the socioeconomic spectrum cohort effects. Figure 1.4 indicates that scores
and were recruited through a very large health on tests of primary mental abilities (discussed
maintenance organization in Seattle. Extensions in Chapter 7) improve gradually until the late
of the study include longitudinal data on 30s or early 40s. Small declines begin in the
second-generation family members and on the 50s, increase as people age into their 60s, and
grandchildren of some of the original participants. become increasingly large in the 70s (Schaie &
Over 6,000 adults have participated in total. Zanjani, 2006).

60 Verbal meaning
Spatial orientation
Inductive reasoning
55
Number
Word fluency
Mean T-Scores

35
25 32 39 46 53 60 67 74 81 88
Age (years)

Figure 1.4 Longitudinal changes in intellectual functions from age 25 to 88.

Source: From “Intellectual Development Across Adulthood” by K. Warner Schaie and Faika A. K. Zanjani, in Handbook
of Adult Development and Learning, ed. C. Hoare, p. 102. Copyright © 2006 by Oxford University Press.

(Continued)

Cohort differences were also found. Figure 1.5 structure of intellectual abilities, can be used
indicates that on some skills, such as inductive across different ages. Additionally, Schaie (1994)
reasoning ability, but not others, more recently identified several variables that appear to reduce
born younger and middle-aged cohorts performed the risk of cognitive decline in old age:
better than cohorts born earlier. An example
of the latter is that older cohorts outperformed • Absence of cardiovascular and other chronic
younger ones on number skills (Schaie & diseases
Zanjani, 2006). These cohort effects probably • Living in favorable environmental conditions
reflect differences in educational experiences; (such as good housing)
younger groups’ education emphasized figuring
things out on one’s own, whereas older groups’ • Remaining cognitively active through reading
education emphasized rote learning. Additionally, and lifelong learning
older groups (those born earlier) did not have
• Having a flexible personality style in middle age
calculators or computers, so they had to do
mathematical problems by hand. • Being married to a person with high cognitive
status
Schaie uncovered many individual differences
as well; some people showed developmental • Being satisfied with one’s life achievements in
patterns closely approximating the overall trends, middle age
but others showed unusual patterns. For example,
some individuals showed steady declines in most What did the investigator conclude? Three
abilities beginning in their 40s and 50s; others points are clear. First, intellectual development
showed declines in some abilities but not others; during adulthood is marked by a gradual leveling
but some people showed little change in most off of gains, followed by a period of relative
abilities over a 14-year period. Such individual stability, and then a time of gradual decline in
variation in developmental patterns means that most abilities. Second, these trends vary from
average trends, like those depicted in the figures, one cohort to another. Third, individual patterns of
must be interpreted cautiously; they reflect group change vary considerably from person to person.
averages and do not represent the patterns shown Overall, Schaie and colleagues’ findings indicate that
by each person in the group. intellectual development in adulthood is influenced
Another key finding is that how intellectual by a wide variety of health, environmental,
abilities are organized in people does not change personality, and relationship factors. By attending
over time (Schaie et al., 1998). This finding is to these influences throughout adulthood, we can
important because it means that the tests, at least stack the deck in favor of maintaining good
which presuppose a particular organizational intellectual functioning in late life.

15 Verbal meaning
Spatial orientation
Cumulative Mean T-Score Differences

Inductive reasoning
Number
10
Word fluency
Intellectual ability

–5
1889 1896 1903 1907 1910 1917 1924 1931 1938 1945 1952 1959 1966 1973
Cohort (year of birth)

Figure 1.5 Cohort differences in intellectual functions from birth cohorts between 1889 and 1973.
Source: From “Intellectual Development Across Adulthood” by K. Warner Schaie and Faika A. K. Zanjani, in Handbook of Adult
Development and Learning, ed. C. Hoare, p. 106. Copyright © 2006 by Oxford University Press.

Tools for Doing and Archiving Integrating Findings from Different

Developmental Research Studies
Designing and conducting good developmental research Several times in the past few pages, we’ve emphasized
has been helped by the availability of a range of online the value of using different methods to study the same
tools for measurement, data collection, data analysis, phenomenon and pooling results in data archives. The
and data archiving. You may already be familiar with advantage is that conclusions are most convincing when
some of these if you have, for instance, responded to the results are consistent regardless of method.
online surveys. Meta-analysis allows researchers to synthe-
Several online platforms have been created that size the results of many quantitative studies to
allow researchers to conduct entire studies online, estimate actual relations between variables (Schmidt
complete with remote data collection; among the most & Hunter, 2015; Sharpe & Poets, 2020). In conducting
popular in psychology are E-Prime, PsychoPy, and a meta-analysis, investigators find all studies published
PsyToolkit. These platforms provide libraries of common on a topic over a substantial period of time (e.g., 10 to
research studies that are customizable for different types 20 years) and then record and analyze the results and
of data collection strategies, including neuroscience important methodological variables.
and physiological measurements. The usefulness of meta-analysis is illustrated in a
Because smartphones and webcams are so widely study by Kojima and colleagues (2016). After identify-
available, apps have been developed to turn these ing 5,145 potential studies on the association between
devices into research tools. For instance, apps have frailty and the quality of life of older adults living in the
been developed to help older adults remember to take community, only four studies could be included because
medication and to record whether they do. Such data of a lack of comparable measures of quality of life. This
collection tools have provided more insights into aspects meta-analysis showed that people classified as frail or as
of human development. likely to soon become frail had significantly lower
Similarly, several tools exist for the creation of mental health and quality of life scores. The meta-analysis
self-report measures. The most well-known of these is also pointed out the challenges in comparing findings
SurveyMonkey, a platform that enables researchers to from different studies because researchers do not use
build and present surveys and questionnaires. These the same measures to assess constructs such as frailty or
platforms are sufficiently flexible to permit different quality of life.
sets of questions to be presented depending on how Meta-analysis is a particularly powerful tool because
respondents answer key questions. For example, if the it allows scientists to determine whether a finding gen-
survey is a measure of the kinds of knowledge people eralizes across many studies. As Kojima and colleagues’
have about COVID-19, different follow-up questions (2016) research showed, meta-analysis also reveals the
could be presented depending on whether the respon- challenges of comparing different methods in examin-
dent indicates they do or do not have friends who were ing the underlying developmental relations. The failure
hospitalized with complications caused by COVID-19. of researchers to use the same measures and assessments
Once researchers have completed their studies, makes it extremely difficult to compare results, thereby
online options also exist for placing the data into creating a major barrier to understanding the processes
data archives. These archives range from the fairly underlying adult development and aging.
specific (e.g., the audio/video data archive Databrary.
org) to those containing much broader datasets (e.g., Conducting Research Ethically
Registry of Research Data Repositories, re3data.org). As researchers select a good research design, they must
Increasingly, researchers are choosing to deposit their determine whether the proposed methods protect the
data into these archives so that other researchers will rights of people who participate. To verify that research
have access to original data so they can continue to projects incorporate these protections, local panels
build on the results from earlier work. (We’ll learn more of experts and community representatives, called the
about this in the next section.) Institutional Review Board, evaluate proposed studies
Overall, tech tools and data archives have increased before any data are collected. Only with the approval of
our ability to piece together the puzzle of human this panel can scientists begin their study. If the review
development in far more sophisticated and complete ways. panel objects to some aspects of the proposed study,

Amy Etra/PhotoEdit
Informed consent is a necessary aspect of any research effort in human development.

then the researcher must revise those aspects and pres- have conditions that affect intellectual
ent them anew for the panel’s approval. functioning (e.g., dementia, severe head injury),
To guide review panels, professional organizations the situation is more complex. To ensure that
the rights of such adults are protected, another
(e.g., the American Psychological Association) and responsible adult (e.g., spouse/partner, adult
government agencies (e.g., U.S. Department of Health and child caregiver) must provide assent in addition
Human Services, National Institutes of Health; European to the consent provided by the participant.
Union Ethics Policy under the Horizons 2020 legislation) • Avoid deception; if participants must be deceived,
have codes of ethical conduct that specify the rights of provide a thorough explanation of the true nature
research participants as well as procedures to protect of the experiment as soon as possible. Providing
these participants. The following essential guidelines are complete information about a study in advance
included in all of these codes: sometimes biases or distorts a person’s responses.
Consequently, investigators may provide
• Minimize risks to research participants. Use participants with partial information about the
methods that have the least potential for causing study or even mislead them about its true purpose.
harm or stress for research participants. During As soon as it is feasible—typically, just after the
the research, monitor the procedures to ensure experiment—any false information that was given
avoidance of any unforeseen stress or harm. to research participants must be corrected and the
• Describe the research to potential participants reasons for the deception must be provided.
so that they can determine whether they want • Results should be anonymous or confidential.
to participate. Prospective participants must be Research results should be anonymous, which
told the purpose of the project, what they will means that people’s data cannot be linked to their
be asked to do, whether there are any risks or name. When anonymity is not possible, research
potential harm or any benefits they may receive, results should be confidential, which means that
that they are free to discontinue participation the identity of participants is known only to the
at any time without penalty, and that, after they investigator(s) conducting the study.
have participated, the project will be described.
After the study has been explained, each Conducting research ethically is an obligation of every
participant signs a document stating that they investigator. If you conduct a project, you should sub-
understand what they will do in the study. When mit your procedures for review. If you are a participant
participants are children or adolescents, a parent,
a legal guardian, or another responsible person
in someone else’s project, make sure you are given com-
must provide consent. When adult participants plete information and read it thoroughly.

Adult Development in Action • What is a correlational design? What information

does it provide?
If you were responsible for making grants at your • What is a case study? What information does it
local United Way organization, how might you provide?
determine through research whether the programs • What are age, cohort, and time-of-measurement
you fund actually have the outcomes they effects? How and why are they important for
claim?
developmental research?
• What is a cross-sectional design? What are its
advantages and disadvantages?

Review Questions • What is a longitudinal design? What are its

advantages and disadvantages?
1.3 Research Methods • What differences are there between cross-sectional
• What are the reliability and validity of a measure? and longitudinal designs in terms of uncovering
• What are the three main approaches scientists use age differences and age changes?
to measure behavior in adult development and • What are sequential designs? What different
aging research? What are the strengths and types are there? What are their advantages and
weaknesses of each? disadvantages?
• How do we know whether a sample is • What are the limitations of the extreme age groups
representative? design?
• What is an experiment? What information does it • What steps must researchers take to protect the
provide? rights of participants?

Social Policy Implications

Moving from Lab to Life

Creating sound social policy requires good Consequently, policy makers are paying a lot
information. Elected officials and others who more attention to research on older adults
create policy rely on research findings to provide for clues on how to respond. For example,
the basis for policy. In terms of social policies research such as the Seattle Longitudinal Study
affecting adults, the data obtained through the use described in the How Do We Know? feature had
of the research designs discussed earlier is critical. a major impact on the elimination of nearly
all mandatory retirement rules in the United
The most important social policy implication from
States in the 1980s. Research on older workers
this chapter is the rapidly changing demographics
influenced decisions in corporations to hire
of the United States’ and the world’s populations. In
older adults, who are highly reliable employees.
most countries, the population is aging overall. That
The buying power of older adults has resulted
means changes are necessary in the kinds of social
in major advertising campaigns for everything
support, health, and income support programs
from calcium replacement medications to adult
countries design. With millions more older adults
diapers to treatments for erectile dysfunction to
needing specialized care, we can no longer focus
vacations for active older adults.
only on providing child care for families; rather, any
form of support program will have to address the In each of the remaining chapters, we will be
need for care of older adult parents, for instance, as highlighting a particular social policy and how
well. This is why elected officials the world over are it relates to research. By making these ties, you
putting more emphasis on issues of importance to will be able to understand better how research
older adults and their families. findings can be applied to address social issues.

In Review explaining or describing major concepts, theories,

Instead of a chapter summary, we’ve provided some researchers, studies, and controversies or unanswered
ideas for how you can review and reflect upon your own questions covered in the chapter. Consider organizing
learning. One suggestion is for you to create a summary your summary in paragraphs, with one paragraph (or

more) for each of the modules in the chapter. Based on are easier than tests that require you to recall information
your reading of Chapter 1, you should be able to write (short answer and essay questions).
a paragraph about the life-span perspective and how the In the end, only you can create a set of study
world’s population is changing with regard to age. In a techniques that works best for you. The more you can
second paragraph, you should be able to describe the focus on learning how to learn, the better you will master
major forces that shape human development and how the material and go on to be better prepared for future
they interact; the influences of gender, culture, ethnicity, situations that require you to master new information.
and race; and how all of this plays out in the core issues
in adult development and aging. Finally, you should be Integrating Concepts in
able to take an issue in adult development and aging,
such as the ability to do two things at once, and design Development
various types of research projects that address that issue. • Analyze each of the four major controversies in
In addition to writing summary paragraphs, some development in terms of the four developmental
types of information are best summarized in a table or forces. What real-world examples can you think
chart. For example, you could build a table of the major of that are examples of each combination of
forces in development or the different types of develop- controversy and force?
ment research designs. Each row would be a different • Using yourself as an example, figure out your
force or research design, and each column would reflect age using chronological, perceived, biological,
a characteristic of it, such as the definition, pros/cons, psychological, and sociocultural definitions. How
do they differ? Why?
and so forth. This approach might help you visualize
the concepts better than a paragraph. • Using the Leah and Sarah vignette as an
You might be thinking to yourself that you already example, design cross-sectional, longitudinal,
and sequential studies of two different styles of
have Review Questions and Integrating Concepts in caring for people with Alzheimer’s disease. What
Development, and perhaps more, to complete, so why will you learn from each of the studies?
bother with a summary? It turns out that the more you
check what you’ve learned, the better you will remember
it! We also know from research that the study techniques Key Terms
that work best are the ones you actually use, so always age effects One of the three fundamental effects examined
start with the technique or method that you like most, in developmental research, along with cohort and
and add other techniques if you have the time. Some time-of-measurement effects, which reflects the influence
people find that switching techniques along the way of time-dependent processes on development. 23
works as well; reviewing your notes may work well for ageism The untrue assumption that chronological age
weekly quizzes, and more formal reviews might work is the main determinant of human characteristics
better for major exams if you have any of those in your and that one age is better than another. 3
course. Remember that making notes isn’t the only way biological forces One of four basic forces of development
to reflect what you’ve learned. You could make a short that includes all genetic and health-related factors. 11
video of your verbal explanation of a concept or section biopsychosocial framework Way of organizing the
of the chapter. Or you could make a graphic summary biological, psychological, and sociocultural forces on
(in the style of a graphic novel). The point is to be as human development. 11
creative as possible in figuring out the study techniques case study An intensive investigation of individual
that work best for you. people. 23
There’s an important point about study techniques— cohort A group of people born at the same point in
the easiest ones don’t always result in the best learning. time or within a specific time span. 12
Try several, with the goal of identifying the one(s) that cohort effects One of the three basic influences
result in the best retention of the material. Learning can examined in developmental research, along with
be enjoyable, but it’s also hard work. Your performance age and time-of-measurement effects, which reflects
will be better in the long run when you put in the time differences caused by experiences and circumstances
to learn along the way. Also, tailor your approaches based unique to the historical time in which one lives. 24
on the type(s) of tests and exams you will encounter in confounding Any situation in which one cannot
the course. Tests that require you to recognize the determine which of two or more effects is
correct answer (multiple choice and true/false questions) responsible for the behaviors being observed. 24

continuity–discontinuity controversy The debate over nonnormative influences Random events that are
whether a particular developmental phenomenon important to an individual but do not happen to
represents smooth progression over time (continuity) most people. 12
or a series of abrupt shifts (discontinuity). 19 normative age-graded influences Experiences
correlational study An investigation in which the strength caused by biological, psychological, and
of association between variables is examined. 23 sociocultural forces that are closely related to a
cross-sectional study A developmental research person’s age. 12
design in which people of different ages and cohorts normative history-graded influences Events that
are observed at one time of measurement to obtain most people in a specific culture experience at the
information about age differences. 25 same time. 12
demographers People who study population trends. 5 plasticity The belief that capacity is not fixed, but can
dependent variable Behaviors or outcomes measured be learned or improved with practice. 19
in an experiment. 22 population pyramid Graphic technique for illustrating
emerging adulthood Period between late teens population trends. 5
and mid- to late 20s when individuals are not primary aging Normative, disease-free development
adolescents but are not yet fully adults. 16 during adulthood. 15
established adulthood Period between roughly ages psychological forces One of the four basic forces of
30 and 45 when life is most intense, demanding, development that includes all internal perceptual,
and perhaps rewarding. 16 cognitive, emotional, and personality factors. 11
experiment A study in which participants are randomly reliability The ability of a measure to produce the same
assigned to experimental and control groups and in value when used repeatedly to measure the identical
which an independent variable is manipulated to phenomenon over time. 21
observe its effects on a dependent variable so that secondary aging Developmental changes that are
cause-and-effect relations can be established. 22 related to disease, lifestyle, and other environmental
gerontology The study of aging from maturity changes that are not inevitable. 15
through old age. 3 self-reports People’s answers to questions about a topic
independent variable The variable manipulated in an of interest. 21
experiment. 22 sequential designs Types of developmental research
intersectionality Refers to experiences that reflect designs involving combinations of cross-sectional
combinations of race, ethnicity, biological sex, and longitudinal designs. 27
gender, ability, or sexual orientation. 13 sociocultural forces One of the four basic forces of
life-cycle forces One of the four basic forces of development that include interpersonal, societal,
development that reflects differences in how cultural, and ethnic factors. 11
the same event or combination of biological, stability–change issue A debate over the degree to
psychological, and sociocultural forces affects people which people remain the same over time as opposed
at different points in their lives. 11 to being different. 18
life-span perspective A view of the human life span systematic observation A type of measurement
that divides it into two phases: childhood/ involving watching people and carefully recording
adolescence and young/middle/late adulthood. 4 what they say or do. 21
longitudinal study A developmental research design tertiary aging Rapid losses occurring shortly before
that measures one cohort over two or more times of death. 15
measurement to examine age changes. 25 time-of-measurement effects One of the three
meta-analysis A tool that allows researchers to fundamental effects examined in developmental
synthesize the results of many studies to estimate research, along with age and cohort effects,
relations between variables. 30 which result from the time at which the data are
microgenetic study A special type of longitudinal collected. 24
design in which participants are tested repeatedly Universal versus context-specific development
over a span of days or weeks, typically with the controversy A debate over whether there is a single
aim of observing change directly as it occurs. 26 pathway of development, or several. 19
nature–nurture issue A debate over the relative influence Validity The degree to which an instrument measures
of genetics and the environment on development. 17 what it is supposed to measure. 21

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Chapter 1

Uploaded by

Chapter 1

Uploaded by

Studying Adult

Development and Aging Chapter

1.1. Perspectives on Adult Development and Aging. . . . 3 Learning

Dpa Picture Alliance/Alamy Stock Photo

Male DEVELOPED COUNTRIES–1950 Female Male DEVELOPING COUNTRIES–1950 Female

Male DEVELOPED COUNTRIES–2000 Female Male DEVELOPING COUNTRIES–2000 Female

Male DEVELOPED COUNTRIES–2050 Female Male DEVELOPING COUNTRIES–2050 Female

became clear. For example, data collection on the 2020

65–69 70–74 75–79 80–84 85–89 90–94 95–99 100+

Latin America and the Caribbean

65–69 70–74 75–79 80–84 85–89 90–94 95–99 100+

Figure 1.2 (continued)

Image Source/Photodisc/Getty Images

Domain Emerging Adulthood Established Adulthood Midlife

Internalized cultural beliefs/values

Frequent job changes Increasing responsibility Mentoring next generation

Other individual characteristics

Other contextual factors

History was made on March 13, 2013. For the

matters a great deal and prescribed social roles differ

You might be asking yourself why you need to know

limited. The difficulty is that only one cohort is fol- 1980 40 50 60 70

process that is unique to that cohort. For instance, a

Figure 1.4 Longitudinal changes in intellectual functions from age 25 to 88.

Tools for Doing and Archiving Integrating Findings from Different

Adult Development in Action • What is a correlational design? What information

Review Questions • What is a longitudinal design? What are its

Social Policy Implications

In Review explaining or describing major concepts, theories,

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