Developmental models of adult life: myth or reality

This study investigates the existence of age related life stages and the presumed evolution of attitudes and perceptions in accordance with passages through these successive developmental plateaus. The research utilizes data from six national samples gathered as part of the General Social Survey between 1972 and 1977 by the National Opinion Research Center (N = 9120). Criteria suggested by developmental theorists and other social scientists are employed to examine respondents' life orientation and satisfaction. In most instances age is minimally related to attitudes in these areas while social class and to a lesser extent race and sex emerge as statistically significant and substantively important predictors of these dimensions. The results suggest the difficulties in identifying age related adult life phases through national surveys of attitudes and challenges the underlying assumptions for the existence of uniform age related stages.