12. The Social Clock in Middle Age

Chapters in this book

1. Frontmatter i
2. Contents v
3. Acknowledgments vii
4. Introduction and Overview 1
5. 1. How the Mills Study Came About 13
6. 2. Transforming into a Study of Women’s Adult Development 27
7. 3. Sustaining Fifty Years of the Mills Study 41
8. Part I. Early Adulthood
9. 4. The Roots of Creativity in Women 59
10. 5. The Social Clock Projects 72
11. 6. Marriage and Motherhood 86
12. 7. Illustrating Two Developmental Theories 100
13. 8. Loevinger’s Theory of Ego Development 113
14. Part II. Major Influences
15. 9. The Enormous Impact of Gender Expectations 129
16. 10. The Sweep of History: Individualism, Gay Liberation, the Counterculture 143
17. 11. The Astonishing Importance of Personality 156
18. Part III. Middle Age
19. 12. The Social Clock in Middle Age 173
20. 13. Ups and Downs in Middle Age 186
21. 14. Whatever Happened to Creativity in Women? 198
22. 15. Women’s Prime of Life 210
23. Part IV. Developmental Achievements
24. 16. The Centrality of Attachment 225
25. 17. Paths of Development: Three Conceptions of Positive Mental Health 237
26. 18. Wisdom 251
27. 19. Generativity and Individuation: Tasks of the Second Half of Life 266
28. Part V. The Crown Of Life
29. 20. Answering Four Questions about Creative Personality 281
30. 21. The Place of Purpose in Life in Women’s Positive Aging: Women with Low Purpose 294
31. 22. The Place of Purpose in Life in Women’s Positive Aging: Women with High Purpose 307
32. 23. Late Adulthood: The Third Age 320
33. Complete Published Work of the Mills Study 335
34. References 343
35. Index 353