Historically, human development has focused primarily on describing, explaining, and predicting changes in early childhood. However, recent research efforts have been extended beyond childhood into adulthood as the definition of development has become more inclusive than merely the physiological changes that occur in early life. Yet adulthood encompasses a wide range of ages, starting from 18 and ending at death. Consequently, many researchers study adult development in general age brackets: young adulthood (18–40 years), middle adulthood (40–65 years), and late adulthood (65 years and above), with these distinctions determined by societal landmarks such as graduation from high school and retirement age.
It is widely recognized that development can occur not just in biological processes, but in multiple domains of functioning, including physiological, cognitive, psychological, and social. Nevertheless, the complexity of adult development lies in the observation that changes in these...
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Gideon, C.A. (2008). Adult Development. In: Loue, S.J., Sajatovic, M. (eds) Encyclopedia of Aging and Public Health. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-33754-8_15
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-33754-8_15
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