Levinson's Adult Development Theory

There's a saying that goes, 'The only thing constant is change.' I bet Daniel Levinson would have
agreed with that. He was a psychologist who focused his time on investigating adult development,
and the changes in life that create it.
It was his belief that adults have a certain life structure, or pattern of life comprised of one's social
dealings, relationships, and work life. This life structure is continuously affected by various seasons
in life. The two reappearing seasons in life that Levinson stressed were the Stable Period, or a time
of consistency when a person makes crucial life choices, and the Transitional Period, or the end of
a certain life stage and beginning of a new one.
Levinson identified seven specific stages during adult development in his theory of the seasons of
life. These stages include Early Adult Transition (age 17-22), Entering the Adult World (22-
28), Age 30 Transition (28-33), Settling Down (33-40), Mid-Life Transition (40-45), Entering
Middle Adulthood(45-50), and Late Adulthood (60+).
Becoming An Adult
Meet Doris. Doris is 70 years old and has a long awaited visit today from her granddaughter, Becky.
Becky has just come home from college and has been sharing her new experiences with Doris. As
Becky shares what it's like to be away from home for the first time, Doris starts thinking of her own
memories from college. Even after Becky leaves, Doris continues day dreaming. She thinks about
college more and then moves on to thinking about the other seasons of her life.
According to Levinson, the time Doris left for college (17-22), was a key beginning stage in her adult
development. It is the first time when Doris separated from her parents and began to decrease her
emotional attachment to them. It was the first time she began planning out her adult life. Levinson
called this time one's Early Adult Transition.
Doris continues to think about the next part of her young life. When she was in her twenties (22-28),
she had her first set of years living and working in the adult world - working as a receptionist and
later as an office manager. Levinson called this stage Entering the Adult World and believed this
was the time for Doris to create her life structure. In that, he believed that young adults address four
major tasks during this time: forming a dream and preparing for it, forming an occupation, forming
mentor relationships, and forming love relationships, marriage, and family.
Levinson considered the dream to be one's vision, desires, and core plan for his or herself in this
world. This includes career and family. Doris recalls wondering often about when she would get
married and start a family. Then, when she was 26, she met her husband.
Introspection Stages
When Doris was in her 30s, she entered what Levinson called her Age 30 Transition. In this stage,
a significant change of life structure takes place. Often this happens as a result of a crisis or when
someone evaluates their present life and asks if it is what he or she wants it to be. It usually takes
place between the ages of 28 and 33. For Doris, she had always wanted to be an interior designer,
though she took other jobs. When she turned 32, she decided to go back to school to study interior
design.
Fast forward a few years, and Doris is now 35. She has established her role in her community and
her family and is progressing as an interior designer. According to Levinson, she is in a stage
of Settling Down. This typically happens between the ages of 33 and 40. As Doris turns 40, she
begins having another season of introspection, as she questions the direction of her own life. She
realizes her husband is thinking about the same kind of questions. He asks her how they can make
their lives more meaningful.
For some people, this season of Mid-Life Transition, between the ages of 40 and 45, can lead to
poor decisions, like spending too much money or leaving a marriage simply based on
dissatisfaction, and a drive to completely change their lives. In the case of Doris and her husband,
however, their mid-life transition simply led to moving to a new home out in the country and giving
more of their money away to charities.
Middle & Late Adulthood
Next up, Doris is 48. Levinson referred to this time, at ages 45-50, as Entering Middle Adulthood.
It was explained to be another time when a person commits to new tasks and alterations in his or
her life structure. For Doris, this was the time when her youngest son went off to college, and she
and her husband did more things in town, like taking dance classes.
Finally, Doris thinks about what a great life she has had. She smiles as she remembers her
achievements and now is able to make peace with her regrets. She is now in the last stage of adult
development, or what Levinson called Late Adulthood.
Lesson Summary
To review, psychologist Daniel Levinson believed that adults continue to develop as a result of a
series of transitions and stable periods. He identified seven stages of an adult's life, including Early
Adult Transition (age 17-22), Entering the Adult World (22-28), Age 30 Transition (28-
33), Settling Down(33-40), Mid-Life Transition (40-45), Entering Middle Adulthood (45-50),
and Late Adulthood (60+).