Although becoming a grandmother represents an important transition in a woman's life, it has received scant research attention. This study used the model of growth developed by Schaefer and Moos in an attempt to identify personal and environmental resources that may contribute to a first-time maternal grandmother's mental health and her…

Mainstream leadership theories and the literature on women's leadership recognize the importance of relationships, intimacy, identity, and nonlinear development patterns in women's lives. However, mainstream theories are less likely to acknowledge leaders' need to understand personal identity issues and use different language to describe important…

Examined effect of widowhood on ego identity and psychological functioning among 83 widows. Found group scored significantly higher than national norms on structured measure of self-esteem. Twenty-five percent of respondents reported positive changes after widowhood, 39% reported mixed effects, and 30% reported only negative changes. Data fit…

Theories and models of adult development over the life span provide one of the foundational pieces for gaining a clearer understandings of learning in adulthood. Only recently have adult educators spoken more forcefully about the lack of integrated research on adult women. The purpose of this monograph is to describe those missing female voices as…

A literature review uncovered three themes on women's psychosocial development: diverse and nonlinear patterns, importance of intimacy and identity, and centrality of relationships and connectedness to others. The review assessed the applicability of existing developmental models to women and identified alternative designs and methods needed to…