Adulthood as a psychological period: personality development, crises of adulthood

Age crises occur not only in childhood, when the child grows up, learns to adapt to the world around him, and build relationships.
Adults also face them. But now these periods are no longer associated with growing up, but with analysis of the past and reassessment of values. During adulthood, there are only 9 such crises.

What it is?

Crises of adulthood in psychology are called natural transitional stages in human development . They are caused by changes in the psyche and behavior.

In practice, it looks like this: a person lives, sets goals, achieves or fails to achieve them, works, builds a family. And then at some point he analyzes what is happening to him, looks back and evaluates what has been achieved.

It can be very good and very bad. Regardless of it, the crisis is accompanied by a number of unpleasant symptoms . Even successful people become depressed and lose the meaning of life. What can we say about those who were never able to achieve any heights.

Many specialists have studied age-related crises. Carl Jung also spoke about those that occur in adulthood. He believed that each of the crisis periods is associated with the individuation of the individual. According to him, crises arise only when a person has the opportunity to independently choose his own path in life.

Daniel Levinson conducted an interesting study. The subjects were 40 men from the age group of 35-45 years. They were instructed to carefully observe themselves and their feelings in terms of emotions and feelings for several months. At the same time, the scientist studied the biographies of famous people, trying to find in them the transition to the stage of maturity. What did he manage to find out?

The life of every person consists of 4 stages:

• pre-adulthood - 0-22 years;
• early adulthood - 17-45 years;
• average adulthood - 40-65;
• late adulthood - 60 years and older.

Between them there are several transition periods, which are age-related crises.

are only 5 of them :

• to early adulthood - 17-22 years;
• transition of the 30th anniversary - 28-33 years;
• by middle adulthood - 40-45 years;
• transition of the 50th anniversary - 50-55 years;
• by late adulthood - 60-65 years.

But there were also scientists who established their data regarding what period of life a particular crisis occurs.

Why do we need crises?

If we consider a person’s life in adulthood as a path, then everyone will agree that this path cannot be absolutely straight. After all, maturity does not come overnight, and at first a person has neither experience nor wisdom. Therefore, he needs “stops” to think about what has already been passed, to comprehend the experience and realize its value... To check whether it is worth changing the direction and speed a little, because other desires, aspirations, opportunities have appeared... And most importantly, to search and find contains new resources and opportunities that necessarily accumulate in a person throughout life.

Crises are those very stops during which a person comprehends the part of the path he has traveled, affirms its significance, sometimes overestimates values, seeks and finds something new in himself, is surprised by this and moves on with life, happy and healthy.

But all this happens only when a person “allows himself” to have a crisis.

It turns out that it is very important to notice the “gate” of the crisis, enter and allow yourself to live behind them.

Therefore, let’s take a closer look at the psychology of crises.

In Russian psychology, the problem of crises has long been considered in the context of problems of development and periodization of childhood.

L.S. Vygotsky understood development as an internally determined, goal-oriented process that does not proceed uniformly, but contradictorily, through the emergence and resolution of internal conflicts. Therefore, he paid attention to transitional or critical periods, when, over short periods of time, changes occur in the child that are noticeable to others. According to L.S. Vygotsky, crisis, or critical period, is a time of qualitative positive changes, the result of which is the transition of the individual to a new, higher stage of development. The content of the crisis is the collapse of the existing social situation and the emergence of a new one. The main characteristics of crisis periods, according to L.S. Vygotsky can be called:

• the presence of sudden changes in short periods of time;
• the vagueness of the boundaries of the crisis, that is, the difficulty of determining the moments of its onset and end;
• conflicts with others and the child’s difficulty in educating, his/her falling out of the system of pedagogical influence;
• the presence of destruction in development, that is, “the processes of death and coagulation, disintegration and decomposition of what was formed at the previous stage come to the fore.”

Usually the provisions of L.S. Vygotsky’s ideas are also used to understand the patterns of adult development. However, it is noted that the crises of adults, in comparison with the crises of children, do not have such a strict attachment to age. They often mature gradually, but they can also arise suddenly - in the event of sudden changes in a person’s social situation.

In foreign psychology, the most common concept is E. Erikson. In his opinion, the essence of every crisis is the choice that a person must make. The choice is made between two alternative options for solving age-related development problems. The nature of the choice affects a person’s future life: its success or failure. Personal development occurs through crises and accompanying choices. Thus, a crisis, according to E. Erikson, means a conflict of opposing tendencies that arises as a result of achieving a certain level of psychological maturity and social demands placed on an individual. The crisis is not destructive. This is not a catastrophe, but a moment of change, a critical period of increased vulnerability and increased potential.

D. Levinson pays much attention to the role of crises. He notes that life consists of alternating periods of stability and periods of change. During the period of a stable state (usually 6-8 years), the various components of a person’s life (work, family, friendships, ideals) are in balance with each other. Moreover, one or two of them are central. The period of change occurs when a person, relatively satisfied with his life, suddenly sees it in a new light, that is, he understands that he overestimated some aspects and underestimated others. He may realize that he is not realizing his abilities and does not follow his ideals. A vague feeling appears: something wrong is going on. And only when a person understands that it is necessary to change something not in the social environment, but in himself, does he begin to build a new life on a real basis.

According to D. Levinson, both periods of change and times of stability are essential for development. But it is precisely the periods of change that present the difficulty, since with their arrival a person often tries to close his eyes to the fact that his life situation has become different, although he himself often feels unhappy at this moment, he may even exhibit corresponding psychosomatic symptoms. And only when a person not only does not refuse to think about his feelings, but also finds out how these feelings are related to his life situation, is it possible to make a decision about what to leave in the past and what to take with him into the future to continue further development.

The understanding of crisis as an organic part of the process of personal development is also present in the work of psychologists of the existential-humanistic and transpersonal directions: R. Assagioli, S. Groff, A. Maslow, K. Jung. They view the crisis in the aspect of human spiritual growth. According to S. Groff, crisis can be difficult and frightening, but it has enormous evolutionary and healing potential, opening the way to a fuller life. Correctly understood and considered as a difficult stage of natural development, a spiritual crisis can lead to spontaneous healing of various emotional and psychosomatic disorders, to favorable personality changes, and to the resolution of important life problems. Refusal of the spiritual path and the corresponding crisis development at the individual level leads to an impoverished, unhappy, unsatisfying lifestyle and an increase in emotional and psychosomatic problems. On a global scale, this may turn out to be a significant factor in a global crisis that threatens the development of humanity and all life on the planet.

Ann Yeomans identifies a crisis as a period of destruction, an interim period, and a period of creation. She pays special attention to people's attitude to the first stage of the crisis - the period of destruction. At this time, there is a breakdown in the vision of the world, the attitude towards oneself and towards others. People, according to E. Yeomans, do not pay due attention to this period and do not show respect for those who are at this stage. However, no true creation is possible without the destruction of the old, without the symbolic death of past experience. This can be confirmed by rites of passage from one age category to another (from childhood or adolescence to adulthood, for example). Rites of passage typically involve several sacraments, and one of them is the sacrament of death and rebirth. The symbolism of death was previously perceived as the highest initiation, as the beginning of a new spiritual existence. Unlike the ancients, our culture is built on the denial of death. But the breakdown, the withering away of some natural ways of seeing the world, knowing ourselves and relating to the environment is sometimes very similar to death. Perhaps the denial of death by the culture as a whole leads to periods of destruction being underestimated. E. Yeomans says: “We need to understand that little deaths are necessary, an integral part of life and inseparable from it.”

No less important is the so-called intermediate period, when old models no longer work and new ones have not yet been created. This is the stage when it’s time to start reassessing values ​​and raising questions that today do not yet have a solution. This is a difficult task for those who are accustomed to always finding ready-made answers and managing events.

The period of creation also has its pitfalls. A person can face two extremes: on the one hand, the desire to have a full guarantee of the success of his actions, which leads to passivity and inertia, on the other, the desire to achieve everything as quickly as possible.

A crisis period complicates movement and development, but at the same time opens up new opportunities and awakens internal reserves. What exactly the crisis will bring depends on the person himself.

One more important note needs to be made. Traditionally, a crisis is associated with one or another failure in life or negative experiences. Most often this is true. But a crisis situation can also be caused by a significant achievement in life, which qualitatively changes the state and evokes strong positive feelings. Failure to recognize the onset of a crisis during this period can lead to its aggravation and a change in experiences to negative ones. An example is such a joyful event as the birth of a child, which, in the absence of young parents understanding of the qualitative change in their own lives, often leads to complications in marital relations.

Existential experiences often appear in a broken person who has survived a crash, but, surprisingly, a similar state can arise at the pinnacle of success. In general, an existential breakdown and the corresponding reaction with the experience of meaninglessness is a symptom of the completion of any significant part of a person’s life program. As an illustration of this point, we can cite Lao Tzu’s statement that the victors after the war should be met by mourners, necessary for mourning the extremely valuable ideas of the completed work.

Symptoms

All crises have their own characteristics. But psychologists have identified a number of signs that belong to the number of symptoms:

• the desire to give up everything and go traveling;
• lack of pleasure from those activities that previously brought it;
• irritability;
• unmotivated aggression;
• feeling of helplessness, emptiness in the soul;
• the desire to feel free physically, for example, during a parachute jump, when driving a car quickly, etc.;
• insomnia or, conversely, drowsiness;
• deterioration of relationships with others;
• poor appetite;
• reluctance to do anything, to develop.

During a crisis, many people leave their families in search of new experiences. They also do impulsive things, such as risking their lives by engaging in dangerous sports. Another symptom is a change in image, often very radical.

According to experts,
men and women experience the crisis differently .
Its course is influenced by the characteristics of their psyche. Representatives of the fair sex are more emotional, therefore, with the appearance of age-related problems, they withdraw into themselves, have a hard time with the appearance of every little wrinkle, and limit communication with family and friends.

Men become aggressive. But at the same time, they practically do not show their emotions, in most cases they believe that nothing terrible is happening.

The difference is also that women are family-oriented, and men are career-oriented. If they don't get what they want, the desire to move on fades away.

Duration with gender characteristics

1. 
   In men .
   According to experts, for representatives of the stronger sex, early adulthood is more problematic and longer than for girls. This is due to the fact that a successful resolution of the crisis largely depends on the correctness of the chosen profession, on which male success directly depends.

   Read also:  How to restore energy: TOP of my ways to restore vitality in the body and emotions

   Therefore, if a young person experiences unfulfillment professionally, the duration of the crisis period can drag on from 20 to 25 years.

2. Among women . From the point of view of female psychology, the crisis of early adulthood is different from all others, and therefore does not have a clear chronology. For a woman, this is, first of all, a personal crisis, and only then an age crisis. Both the duration and its severity depend on the girl’s personal circumstances. Therefore, the time coverage can vary from 2 to 4 years.

What causes age-related difficulties?

In short, 3 groups of factors contribute to the development of age-related maturity crises:

1. Physiological. A person faces deterioration in physical health. Of course, at 18-30 years old this is not so noticeable.

   But then the symptoms will become brighter and brighter. As one gets older, one loses the ability to conduct everyday life and even take care of oneself.

2. Psychological . There is a revaluation of values. Moreover, it happens in every crisis period, regardless of age.
3. Social . A person asks questions about whether he has completed all the tasks assigned to him, whether he has built a career, started a family, etc. If the answer is no, depression cannot be avoided.

Other reasons and factors can provoke the onset of a crisis. All ages have their own.

Stages

Everyone experiences a crisis period in their own way. If a person is confident in himself, it will be easier for him to cope with difficulties. People who are unsure of themselves face all its manifestations.

Regardless of these features, the crisis occurs in several stages:

1. Revaluation . In this case, we are not talking about priorities, but about inner peace. A person reassesses his self. He gets used to changing roles, to transforming from an experienced specialist into a pensioner.
2. Awareness of frailty and dependence . This is the hardest thing to come to terms with. But if this happens, there will be relief.
3. Adoption . After a person understands that time still cannot be stopped and he will have to get used to his new self, the last stage of the crisis of adulthood will begin.

All stages as a whole can be called a complex psychosocial conflict, which can lead to the development of serious problems.

What are the standards by year?

All psychologists, as stated above, call their boundaries crisis periods. If we put this data together, the table of crises by year will look like this:

The essence of crisis periods in human life

Each crisis has its own characteristics, causes of development, symptoms. They also have their own tasks.

Early adulthood

G. Sheehy calls this crisis a separation from parental roots; it comes first among all crises. The main task of the period is to realize the need to set goals, make plans for the future, and choose a professional activity. This period at a young age is associated with finding oneself, possibly getting married and having children.

Most often, a crisis of early adulthood arises due to the fact that
a person is constantly faced with a choice :

1. Friends;
2. Job;
3. future, etc.

In addition, there is pressure from all sides from public opinion, which indicates when it is time to start a family, have children, or build a house.

appears in:

1. uncertainty;
2. isolation;
3. excessive anxiety.

Most guys try to do several things at once and end up never finishing anything. In girls, self-esteem decreases, self-doubt appears, and a feeling of inner emptiness appears.

Read more here.

25 years

Develops at a moment when reality does not coincide with how a person imagined his life . For example, it is not possible to find a job that satisfies all needs or build a personal life. Here you can add a reluctance to take responsibility, lack of confidence in one’s abilities, and doubts about the correctness of one’s life path.

The symptoms of this crisis period are:

1. comparing yourself with more successful acquaintances and strangers;
2. an obsessive desire to change something in yourself and your life;
3. uncontrolled struggle for an ideal body (constant diets, grueling workouts in the gym) and overall appearance (plastic surgery, etc.).

Full article about the difficult period at the link.

30 years

As in the previous case, it develops due to the fact that a person is dissatisfied with his life. He looks back on the years he has lived and realizes that, in fact, he did not achieve anything that was planned. Or vice versa: he built a career and a family, gave birth to children and now does not know where to go next.

The main manifestations of this period:

• complete apathy;
• preoccupation with appearance;
• insomnia;
• comparing yourself to other people.

Also, many, trying to overcome surging emotions, commit impulsive and strange actions.

They may suddenly quit and go traveling, leave their family, or radically change their appearance.

Read more about the crisis of 30 years.

Middle aged

This crisis can confidently be called multifaceted, since it affects almost all areas of life, from family to professional activity. All of them are subject to careful analysis. A person reconsiders values ​​and priorities , compares achievements with previously drawn up plans.

The main symptoms of this period are anxiety, irritability, frequent mood swings, loss of strength, and pessimism. It seems that there is no future, life passes, and nothing good happens in it.

Full information about midlife crisis here.

50 years

Until about this age, people live a full life. They go to work, have fun, raise children. But at some point old age and disappointment lie ahead This awareness drives them into depression, followed by a crisis.

The companions of this period are considered to be:

1. lack of vital energy;
2. apathy;
3. a gloomy look into the future;
4. loss of interest in life.

Most people at this age simply go with the flow, dutifully awaiting retirement.

For more information about the crisis of 50 years, see the article at the link.

Maturity

Also called presenile or geriatric crisis. The reason for its occurrence is the transformation from a person leading an active lifestyle into a pensioner with no prospects and a small pension.

This period is accompanied:

• boredom and despondency;
• narrowing the circle of contacts;
• rapid deterioration of health.

Plus, the elderly person understands that every year it becomes more and more difficult for him to cope with everyday affairs. But he doesn’t want to ask his family and friends for help, so as not to become a burden to them.

More information here.

Old age

Occurs due to a radical change in the situation in the life of an elderly person. Absolutely everything changes, from his social circle to his state of health. He rethinks everything that happened to him in the past, analyzes his achievements, and tries to remember happy moments.

Late senile

Usually associated with preparation for death.
People no longer plan anything and hardly think about the future. They simply accept life as it is, go with the flow, without even trying to change anything.

At the age of 80-89, a person faces serious health problems . Often these are incurable diseases or irreversible age-related changes in the body's functioning. Naturally, all this causes apathy, despondency and sadness.

Longevity

It’s probably not worth talking about health here. Although there are old people who feel more than healthy. But this is very rare. Most of them are no longer able to cope with household chores and personal care, placing these responsibilities on the shoulders of children or other relatives.

Symptoms of a longevity crisis are considered to be fatigue and sometimes pride and selfishness , which appear due to the fact that we managed to live for so many years.

Read more about the old age crisis here.

Existential

Not tied to a specific age period. But it has the same nature as other crises. The main reason for its development is the revaluation of values. And, according to psychologists, an existential crisis can be provoked by one of the crises of adulthood.

Its symptoms :

• sleep problems;
• frequent comparison of oneself with more successful people;
• frequent mood changes;
• the desire to give up everything and leave, etc.

It seems to a person that no one appreciates him. He no longer dreams, increasingly fears the future and because of this returns to the past, remembering good moments.

Read more about existential crisis at the link.

Psychology tips and practices for overcoming

To successfully overcome the early crisis of adulthood, you need, first of all, to identify possible dangerous “pitfalls” and pay attention to the cause of your discomfort.

For guys

The tips are as follows:

1. Accept the crisis with dignity. Do not try to run away from questions that will help you successfully complete personal identification. Try to answer the question “who am I” in order to learn how to control your own destiny.
2. Understand that any crisis is not evil at all. Yes, they change life, introducing disharmony and negativity into it. But in the same way, it can turn into a kind of springboard for achieving new successes. Go towards new horizons without fear - the black streak ends sooner or later. Or stay within existing capabilities that are sure to help meet new needs.
3. Find a creative way to realize your energy potential. Turn to creativity, interesting hobbies, and activities unusual for your lifestyle. This will promote the processes of creation and help avoid the destruction of personality.
4. Identify your own life principles, “symbols of faith” that will help you stay afloat in any life troubles.

For girls

For women there are the following tips:

1. 
   Try to get out of parental care.
   First of all, try to eliminate the main sources of dependence on mom and dad.

   You should also break away from other close relatives who have a direct influence on you.

2. If you experience a feeling of “disorientation in space,” take a deep breath and think carefully about your current situation in life. Use a planner to make a list of current goals and tasks - this will help calm you down. The main thing is to remember that the beginning of realization and changes in yourself is already a big step.
3. Don’t think that your sister has something better than you or that your friend has achieved more. Each person is individual. Why not develop your own unique style and lifestyle. Engage, develop, get to know yourself through new sources of inspiration.
4. Realize that you are an adult, independent girl who has every right to be responsible for her actions, has the same rights and responsibilities as everyone else.
5. If the main reason for your discomfort during a crisis is the lack of a permanent life partner, begin persistent preparation for a relationship and official marriage. Perhaps you are not yet spiritually ready for such a serious step, so fate is giving you a chance to fix everything.
6. If the reason for dissatisfaction with life is professional problems, improve your skills and qualifications in your chosen specialization.

Why is it important to know and understand the essence of difficulties?

As stated above, each crisis is associated with certain difficulties, with changes in the emotional and psychological state.

And how a person copes with them depends not only on his future life, but also on how he will survive subsequent periods of crisis.

After all, every time he develops skills and abilities that help him fight their manifestations.

And one moment. The faster a person realizes what he is faced with, the faster the fight against the crisis will begin. If you leave everything to chance, it can drag on for years, although usually with the right approach it goes away in a few months.

Impact of events on the course of the crisis stage

The development of a crisis is provoked by such life phenomena as:

• factor of material and financial stability;
• lack of time for rest and “me time”;
• troubles in family relationships;
• dissatisfaction with social status;
• lack of family affection;
• problems in interaction with the opposite sex;
• abnormal study or work conditions.

A stable internal desire for self-improvement brings this period closer due to the fact that a person’s physical and psychological ages do not coincide.

In addition, factors provoking a crisis include deteriorating health conditions, political instability in the country, a sharp change in the usual lifestyle, social pressure and increased demands and expectations.

Errors

There are 4 key mistakes:

• The most important It’s a mistake to ignore the symptoms of a crisis.

  Because of this, it can last for many years, during which the life of not only the person himself, but also those around him will worsen.

  He may lose his job, friends, etc.

• The second mistake is impulsive, thoughtless actions. Most often it is committed during a midlife crisis. And if the hair dyed orange grows back, then finding a good job and bringing the family back will be extremely problematic.
• The third mistake, like the second, is typical for middle-aged people. Unable to cope with the surging emotions and difficulties, a person begins to abuse alcohol, and sometimes even take drugs. But the situation only gets worse from this.
• And one more mistake . It is usually allowed by older people. We are talking about loneliness, when a person is left alone with his far from pleasant feelings and emotions. On the one hand, I don’t want to burden others with my experiences. On the other hand, a heart-to-heart conversation with one of your family and friends always calms you down, gives you strength and encourages you to move on.

Causes

According to Erik Erikson, an American psychologist, a crisis period is a consequence of a mismatch between expectations from life and reality. A person looks back, analyzes the past and realizes that he missed a lot. But even if life was bright and eventful, experiences cannot be avoided, since people always tend to strive for some unattainable ideals.

Other factors and reasons that provoke the onset of a maturity crisis include :

1. Retirement. Sometimes a person himself agrees to this step. But this does not mean that he is completely ready for it.
2. Change of social status. We have to get used to the fact that a valuable employee will now be an ordinary pensioner.
3. An active lifestyle gives way to “Groundhog Day.” Life becomes boring and monotonous.
4. A person does not understand what to do next, because his life will no longer be the same as before.
5. The circle of contacts is narrowing. Even if the opportunity to work remains, it becomes difficult to find a common language with colleagues, especially younger ones.
6. Due to constant stress, overall health deteriorates.

Another reason for the onset of the crisis is dependence on family and friends. A small pension and poor health no longer allow us to live as before. And it seems like I don’t want to be a burden, to burden others, but there’s really no way out.