ABSTRACT
As young adults mature, they are socialized into and acquire a number of important life roles, including worker, partner, parent and caregiver, and community member. Several important theories of adult development have sought to explain the developmental tasks that adults must confront and accomplish in order to lead emotionally satisfying lives characterized by healthy relationships, productive work, a sense ofego integrity, and personal fulfillment. These theories also attempt to explain how personality evolves through adulthood. Most prominent are the writings of Erik Erikson (968) and Daniel Levinson (e.g., Levinson, Darrow, Klein, Levinson, & McKee, 1978; Levinson & Levinson, 1996). As yet, however, no one has proposed a comprehensive theory of adult development, in large part because of the complexity and variability of adult life.
