The Adult in Society
Chapter 7
Pgs. 148-171
Early and Middle Adulthood
 What
is Daniel Levinson’s theory of adult male
development?
 What are the stages of adult female development?
 Psychologists Daniel Levinson and his colleagues
at Yale University researched the lives of men in
order to establish the stages of a man’s life.
Adult Male Develpment
Forty men between the
ages of 35-45 were
studied.
 They came from four
broad occupational
categories.

10 businessmen
 10 hourly workers
 10 biology professors
 10 writers


The interviews focused on
such issues as
Education
 Work
 Leisure
 Politics
 Friends
 Relationships with family

Life Structure

Levinson and his colleagues established each man’s life
structure.


They concluded that there were three basic eras of
adulthood for men.


Life Structure: the combination of statuses, roles, activities,
goals, values, beliefs, and life circumstances that characterize an
individual.
Early adulthood, middle adulthood, late adulthood
Each era began with a transitional period and was
followed by alternating stable and transitional periods.
Transitional and Stable Periods
Transitional periods last
from four to five years and
stable periods last from six
to eight years.
 Levinson places greatest
stress on the first five
periods of adulthood.

Early adult transition
 Entering the adult world
 The age 30 transition
 The settling down period
 The midlife transition

Early Adult Transition
Occurs at ages 17-22 and is the bridge between
adolescence and adulthood.
 The first task is leaving home both physically and
psychologically.
 This occurs for most when they go to college or take a full
time job and move out of their parent’s home.

College students often received financial support
 Others may continue to live with their parents as a “boarder”
while working full time to save money.

Entering the Adult World

Occurs at ages 23-27 and the individual takes on two
contradictory tasks.
1. He is expected to explore a variety of relationships and career
opportunities but must avoid strong commitments that will make
it difficult for him to take advantage of new opportunities.
 2. He is expected to become a responsible member of society
and to form a stable life structure.
This period is also characterized by the dream of adult
accomplishment.
Almost always phrased in terms of occupational goals
Ex. Becoming a famous writer

The Age 30 Transition
 Occurs
at ages 28-32 and is a difficult period.
 Men look back at choices that have been made up
to this point.
 Divorce is common in this stage.
 Levinson considered this period crucial to future
development because it often is characterized by
shifts in direction.
Novice Phase
 Levinson
referred to the first three periods of the
early adulthood era as the Novice Phase.
 Novice
Phase: the time when men prepare for entry into
the adult world.
 The major task during this phase is to make a place for
themselves in the adult world to construct a life
structure that fits them and works in the adult world.
The Settling Down Period
 Occurs
at ages 33-39 and often referred to as
“making it” in the adult world.
 Men must establish themselves in society usually
by advancing in their chosen occupations.
 Individuals form true commitments to things such
as work, family, leisure, friendship, community or
whatever is most important in their lives.
The Settling Down Period
Near the end of this period, men come to realize how
much they are relying on others as role models for
guidance.
 They begin a conscious effort to establish their own
identities. Levinson referred to this as Becoming One’s
Own Man (B.O.O.M.)
 This involves separating oneself from a mentor.

Mentor: is someone who fosters an individual’s development by
believing in the person, sharing the person’s dreams, and helping
the person achieve those dreams.
 Usually an older person in the world of work with more
experience.

Middle Adulthood
Midlife Transition
 The first stage in middle
adulthood and is the
transition between early
and middle adulthood.
 Occurs at ages 40-44.
 Similar to the age 30
transition in that it is about
self examination.




Individuals question their life
structures.
They also take stock of their
likelihood of achieving the
dreams from their 20’s.
In most cases they come to
realize that their earlier dreams
are beyond fulfillment and
begin to set new goals and
dreams.
Midlife Transition
 For
80% of the subjects in the study, the midlife
transition was a period of moderate to severe crisis.
 Both internal and external conflict occur at this
stage.
 Many men work through this crisis by becoming a
mentor.
 For many who get through this stage it can be very
rewarding and a creative experience.
Adult Female Development



Levinson suggested that his
findings would be the same for
women.
He conducted another study to
test his theory with 45 women.
They came from three broad
categories



Homemakers
College professors
Corporate Executives



He concluded that men and
women go through the same
stages but they differ in terms
of of their social roles and
identities.
Some people argued that the
differences he noted exist
because the development is
different for men and women.
Irene Frieze and Esther Sales
did work to support this
argument.
Phase 1: Leaving the Family
Women’s entry involves leaving home, making a
psychological break from parents, and developing a life
plan.
 For many women the emphasis is less on career and more
on marriage.
 Marriage is often considered the more important step.
 Marriage over career is one factor that distinguished
female development from male development during
adulthood.

Phase II: Entering the Adult World
The average age at first marriage in the U.S. has been
rising since the 1960’s.
 Today it is 25.1 for women and 26.8 for men.
 Still many women get married and have children in their
early 20’s.
 Motherhood and career are dual roles that can add strain
on a woman.
 About 59 percent of new mothers who were in the work
force before will return to work before their children reach
one year of age.

Phase II cont.

Women’s job advancement
possibilities become
limited when they remain
out of the labor force
while their children are
young.

This break in employment
is another factor that
distinguishes female
development from male
development during
adulthood.
Phase III: Entering the Adult World
Again
Once their children reach school age, many mothers return
to work.
 Women most of who are in their 30’s find themselves in a
situation similar to that of men in their 20’s



Fewer obligations at home mean they can actively pursue their
career goals.
Women develop a commitment to their jobs at about the
same time men are beginning to question theirs.
In conclusion
American attitudes on
marriage and gender
continue to change.
 More and more Americans
are simply not getting
married
 Women are delaying
parenting as well.

The number of women in
full time executive,
administrative, and
managerial positions –
typical career positions is
increasing.
 In nearly 1/3 of all
working couples, the wife
earns more than the
husband does.
