Adult and Midlife Development

It is now well established that development takes place across much of adulthood. Rich theoretical conceptualizations and longitudinal cohort studies have laid the foundation for describing the dynamic changes that can occur throughout adult life and ever evolving empirical research continues to build on our understanding of adult development. This chapter describes biological and psychological changes in adulthood including risk and protective factors and presents an integrated model of adult development based on Erikson’s conceptualization of development. Challenges in studying adult development are discussed and implications for treatment and preventive interventions are explored throughout the chapter. Gaps in the literature are noted, in particular with regard to the experiences of different racial, ethnic, gender, and other groups not from the dominant culture.