DEVELOPMENTAL CRISIS IN EARLY ADULTHOOD: A ...

goal-directed sense, but there is a definite, non-random, direction to development –
towards more complex levels of internal equilibrium, and toward greater unity in
diversity.
New equilibrated phases of development manifest qualitatively new emergent
properties, the appearance of which cannot be predicted by the content or structure of
the previous stage, i.e. development leads to novelty and emergence. This is what led
theorists including Piaget (1967), Graves (1970), Levinson (1976), Loevinger (1976),
Kohlberg (1984) and Erikson (1968) to propose stage theories of human development,
for each stage reflects a qualitative change in overall mental development. Each new
phase is not a change in amount, but a change in kind; a “caterpillar-to-butterfly”
moment in the developing person. The new structures that emerge with a new stage
are more complex than before – they transcend and include prior stages, so that
developmental stages retain features of the prior ones and build on their foundation
(Graves, 1970). Lifespan developmental is therefore not a long plateau of steady
maturity, but is a series of alternating phases of stability and transition.
An influential theory that captures this oscillatory dynamic in adult
development is Levinson’s theory of adult life stages. The theory was based on
intensive qualitative studies of men (Levinson et al. 1978) and then women
(Levinson, 1996). It has been further validated by a variety of other researchers who
have used the Levinsonian framework to investigate a variety of lifespan
developmental issues (e.g. Bridges, 2004; Dunn & Merriam, 1995; Fagan & Ayers,
1983; Kittrell, 1998; Walker, 1983). Like all the development theorists considered in
this literature review, Levinson found that human development consisted of
qualitatively different stages of development punctuated by unstable transition
periods. The stable periods, called ‘seasons’ are for building and consolidating a ‘life
structure’, while the ‘transitions’ are for changing or replacing that structure. The two
twin pillars that hold a life structure stably in place are work and relationships. At all
points the life structure involves an integration of these two intertwining yet
independent factors. More focus on one generally means less focus on the other, so a
relative weight must be found and a balance must be struck at all times.
The main phases of the model are shown schematically in Figure 2. The phases are
shown as overlapping in the diagram because during transition phases both
termination of a prior structure and commencement of the new structure occur
concurrently.
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