Motives in American men and women across the adult life span

The stability and change in four social motives (achievement, affiliation, fear of weakness, hope of power) over the adult life cycle were investigated in two surveys representative of the American population. One sample of 1,363 respondents was drawn in 1957; the other of 1,208 respondents, in 1976...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Developmental psychology 1984-11, Vol.20 (6), p.1142-1158
Main Authors: Veroff, Joseph, Reuman, David, Feld, Sheila
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Achievement Motivation
Adult Development
Affiliation Motivation
Biological and medical sciences
Differential and comparative psychology
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Human
Interpersonal Control
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Psychosocial Development
Social Behavior
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Summary:The stability and change in four social motives (achievement, affiliation, fear of weakness, hope of power) over the adult life cycle were investigated in two surveys representative of the American population. One sample of 1,363 respondents was drawn in 1957; the other of 1,208 respondents, in 1976. Motives were assessed by established procedures that coded thematic apperceptive content for motivational imagery. Some age differences in motives were evident in both samples: Women's achievement and affiliation motives decline in older ages; men's hope of power is distinctly high at mid-life. These major age effects were found to depend on work and family patterns. By and large, however, the strength of the motives is remarkably similar over different age groups. Year and education differences moderate some of these results. Although not robust, indications of some cohort stability in certain motives emerge.
ISSN:0012-1649
1939-0599
DOI:10.1037/0012-1649.20.6.1142