Summary

With increasing numbers of people living to advanced ages, a better understanding is required of the nature and experience of aging in all its aspects. This concise book provides a detailed overview of the theories and research that explain adult development into old age. The classic accounts of theorists such as Jung and Erikson are considered, along with those of their present-day successors. The book focuses on theories of adjustment and loss, which dominate current gerontological research.
A feature of the book is the section devoted to the psychology of advanced old age, to life in states of physical and/or mental frailty, and to the survival of the self in these circumstances. This book will be of interest to undergraduate students taking courses in developmental psychology and the psychology of ageing and social gerontology as well as to postgraduate students in developmental psychology.