The midlife transition: crisis or chimera.
The construct of the midlife crisis is examined on definitional, developmental, psychoanalytic, and existential dimensions, and the literature reviewed. The DSM-III-R criteria for Adjustment Disorder appear to subsume the midlife crisis paradigm, and only a small percentage of people high in neuroticism are prone to developmental crises. It is argued that the crisis model is a contemporary social construct that has outlived its usefulness.
Kruger
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University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.
D000275:Adjustment Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D000328:Adult; D001293:Attitude to Death; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007063:Identity Crisis; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011574:Psychoanalytic Theory