The Life Course as Developmental Theory

The pioneering longitudinal studies of child development (all launched in the 1920s and 1930s) were extended well beyond childhood. Indeed, they eventually followed their young study members up to the middle years and later life. In doing so, they generated issues that could not be addressed satisfa...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Child development 1998-02, Vol.69 (1), p.1-12
Main Author: Elder, Glen H.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult Development
Biological and medical sciences
Child
Child Behavior - psychology
Child Development
Child, Preschool
Childhood
Childhood mental disorders
Children
Context Effect
Developmental Psychology
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Great Depression
Historical perspectives
Humans
Individual Development
Life Change Events
Life Course
Lifetime
Longitudinal Studies
Military service
Psychology, Child
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Social environment
SRCD Presidential Address
Theories
Theory
Trajectories
Veterans
World wars
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Summary:The pioneering longitudinal studies of child development (all launched in the 1920s and 1930s) were extended well beyond childhood. Indeed, they eventually followed their young study members up to the middle years and later life. In doing so, they generated issues that could not be addressed satisfactorily by available theories. These include the recognition that individual lives are influenced by their ever-changing historical context, that the study of human lives calls for new ways of thinking about their pattern and dynamic, and that concepts of human development should apply to processes across the life span. Life course theory has evolved since the 1960s through programmatic efforts to address such issues.
ISSN:0009-3920
1467-8624
DOI:10.1111/j.1467-8624.1998.tb06128.x