The drivers of learning for mid-career workers with few initial qualifications from the Czech Republic, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Italy and Poland are examined. The focus in this article is upon the learning pathways and experience of the low-qualified drawn from empirical research which gathered and analysed the strategic career and…

In a remarkably prescient chapter, Bertram Cohler (1982) reimagined the problems and the potentialities of psychological development across the life course as a distinctively human challenge in life narration. This chapter situates Cohler's original vision within the intellectual and scientific matrix of the late 1970s, wherein psychologists…

The purpose of this study is to investigate the benefits of higher education in mid-life from the perspective of life course agency. Studies concerning the benefits of degree-oriented higher education have been mainly conducted using survey questionnaires and quantitative methods. In order to gain a more comprehensive picture, this qualitative…

Objective: Two studies examined the validity of using the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI) to assess growth following the transition to grandparenthood as an aid for social workers seeking to promote strengths-based interventions for this population. Method: In Study 1 (n = 210 grandparent/offspring pairs), first-time grandparents'…

Among the many life transitions that individuals must master throughout their lives, the transition to adulthood ranks very high in terms of importance, complexity and uniqueness. It involves the completion of education, and the assumption of new social roles and responsibilities, at a time when previous institutional structures that guided…

Describes the major features of mid-life transition and the associated mid-career crisis before outlining what can be done in organizations to meet the challenges of mid-life transition. (Author/IRT)

Many teachers and human service workers are 40-50 years of age and this paper explores the formative influences, and the developmental characteristics, of workers who are presently middle-aged. This leads onto an examination of the importance of relationships and work to mid-lifers. In the concluding section of the paper, there is some…

Argues that two major transitions in a teacher's professional development offer inherent possibilities for occupational growth--the tenth year, in which teachers opt for a classroom career, and the twentieth year, which marks a major alteration in attitudes towards students and towards the process of aging. (Author/WD)

Mid-life career changers experience a variety of emotions and harbor deep-seated fears about their abilities and marketability. Suggests counselors focus on clients' self-concept by challenging their fears and clarifying their desires. Counselor's open-ended questions can uncover deeper hopes, barriers, and intuitive ideation for personal…

The Aquilanti Integrated Model of Outplacement was developed from various aspects of existing grief and career theories. It comprises many practical elements that are present in the other models as well personal experience and knowledge of career counseling. It involves four phases: loss, grieving, and transition; personal development; job search;…

Although it may be so subtle that it is not noticed or sudden and life altering, adult development occurs in a cycle of four inherent processes: transaction, transition, transformation, and transcendence. These processes exist in a cycle characterized by growth and development. The processes can be defined as follows: (1) transaction--personal,…

Explores some of the possible distinctive traits of midlife suicides, which include: loss of spouse, years of heavy drinking, reaching the age of high depression risk, and occupational problems. Midlife suicides tend to be highest among white males, although female suicide rates peak in midlife. The paper concludes with a review of assessment and…

Draws on recent research on adult development for a conceptual base in examining personal and professional developmental potentials, tasks, and conflicts for college faculty in five categories: Age 30 Transition, Dual Career Couple, Midlife, Late-Entry, and Senior Retiring faculty. Three charts and an 80-item reference list are included. (JL)

Meeting the educational and personal development needs of adults in transition presents the greatest challenge to higher education. This article discusses a study to determine how adults in transition believe their educational programs to be helpful. (JOW)

The rapid growth in the number of older adult learners presents new challenges and opportunities for adult educators. These include facilitating the development of individuals as they make the transition to their later years and of American society as it struggles to reenvision aging.