Academia.eduAcademia.edu

Expecting stress: Americans and the “midlife crisis”

Profile image of Elaine WethingtonElaine Wethington

2000, Motivation and Emotion

Abstract

Despite frequent debunking of the inevitability of the midlife crisis in the research literature (e.g., D. A. Chiriboga, 1997;, the term remains a media staple, implying that midlife is a time of stress and difficulties brought about by turning 40. A recent review of midlife crisis research (O. G. Brim, 1992) concluded that midlife is not universally stressful and estimated that roughly only 10% of American men might undergo a midlife crisis. This paper examines the disjunction between popular and researcher views of midlife and its "crisis." Using semistructured telephone survey techniques, this study of 724 participants explores the definitions that Americans hold of the "midlife crisis" and analyzes self-reports of midlife crises. Most Americans (over 90%) could provide a definition of the midlife crisis, and these definitions roughly coincide with the definitions used in psychological and psychoanalytic theories of the midlife crisis. Twenty-six percent of Americans reported that they had a midlife crisis. Qualitative analyses showed that Americans use a much wider definition of what constitutes a midlife crisis than that used by researchers. Despite the identification of this term with male personality development, women were as likely as men to report having had a midlife crisis. In addition, crises occurring well before age 40 and well after age 50 were frequently nominated as midlife crises. Most participants did not attribute their self-reported midlife crises to aging, but rather to major life events that posed a severe threat and challenge during a very broadly-defined period of "midlife."

Figures (5)
Table I. Beliefs A bout the Midlife Crisis, Percent Reported by Gender (PTP, N = 724)
Table I. Beliefs A bout the Midlife Crisis, Percent Reported by Gender (PTP, N = 724)
Fig. 1. Distribution of self-reported midlife crises, by gender and age at crisis. Wethington
Fig. 1. Distribution of self-reported midlife crises, by gender and age at crisis. Wethington
Fig. 2. Age differences in reported age at midlife crisis.
Fig. 2. Age differences in reported age at midlife crisis.
Figure 3 reports the percentage of men and women of each age group who believe that they experienced a midlife crisis, at ages 38 through 50, both inclusive. The age groups were chosen to capture Levinson’s stages of life schema (Levinson et al., 1978). Respondents under the age of 39 were not included, because they were not “eligible” for experiencing a midlife crisis. Overall 14.4% of respondents aged 39 and over reported having had a midlife crisis that met the investigator age criterion. The traditional view of the midlife crisis would predict that more men Fig. 3. Percent reporting midlife crisis that occurred between ages 38 and 50, by age and gender of respondent.
Figure 3 reports the percentage of men and women of each age group who believe that they experienced a midlife crisis, at ages 38 through 50, both inclusive. The age groups were chosen to capture Levinson’s stages of life schema (Levinson et al., 1978). Respondents under the age of 39 were not included, because they were not “eligible” for experiencing a midlife crisis. Overall 14.4% of respondents aged 39 and over reported having had a midlife crisis that met the investigator age criterion. The traditional view of the midlife crisis would predict that more men Fig. 3. Percent reporting midlife crisis that occurred between ages 38 and 50, by age and gender of respondent.
Table II. Recent Life Events, Recent Depression, and Risk of Reporting a Midlife Crisis, Respondents A ged 38-55, Logistic Regression (n = 324) Note. Constant = —2.65; x“ = 17.77. 4Male = 0, female = 1. At least some college = 1, all others = 0. “Probable episode of depression in the past = 1, all others = 0. dEvent occurred = 1, all others = 0. ®Events occurred = 1, all others = 0. Examples are health problems, legal difficulties, major financial losses, and crime victimization. kn < 05.
Table II. Recent Life Events, Recent Depression, and Risk of Reporting a Midlife Crisis, Respondents A ged 38-55, Logistic Regression (n = 324) Note. Constant = —2.65; x“ = 17.77. 4Male = 0, female = 1. At least some college = 1, all others = 0. “Probable episode of depression in the past = 1, all others = 0. dEvent occurred = 1, all others = 0. ®Events occurred = 1, all others = 0. Examples are health problems, legal difficulties, major financial losses, and crime victimization. kn < 05.

Key takeaways

  • Respondents were also asked five questions about the midlife crisis.
  • Among respondents who have reached the age of 50, 35.2% (34% of the men, 36.1% of the women) reported that they had experienced a midlife crisis.
  • Only a small number of respondents explicitly connected the midlife crisis to feelings of impending mortality or approaching death, as Jaques (1965) defined the crisis.
  • Overall 14.4% of respondents aged 39 and over reported having had a midlife crisis that met the investigator age criterion.
  • When describing their own crises, however, respondents applied the term midlife crisis to a variety of past, significant events and crises that occurred in the course of life, any time from age 30 to 70.

Related papers

Midlife Crisis: Proven Fact or Popular Fiction
Chris Gibson

The concept of a midlife crisis remains strong in the popular culture of the United States, but this popular concept is not supported in psychological research. Theorists such as Jung, Erikson, Levinson, and Jaques provided a theoretical foundation or research in support of the midlife crisis concept, but subsequent research repeatedly disproves this as a universal concept that applies primarily to the male gender in their forties, which is the caricature of midlife crises. The research does support that only a small percentage of Americans experience a midlife crisis, it is equally distributed between males and females, and it may happen anytime before forty or even into the sixties.

View PDFchevron_right
The Midlife Crisis- “Her” Experience
manini Srivastava

International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications (IJSRP), 2020

The study aims to determine difference between the Mental Health of middle aged Working and Non-Working Women, in India. The dimensions under investigation are-ANXIETY, DEPRESSION and STRESS. Instruments used for data collection are ADSS and a Semi-structured Interview Schedule. Working (n=10); Non-Working (n=10) women of ages (45-60) formed the sample. Analysis of Quantitative data used ttest and Qualitative data used Content Analysis. Results indicate difference only in DEPRESSION levels; Non-Working women experience Midlife Crisis relatively more.

View PDFchevron_right
Midlife Crisis in Men: Affective Organization of Personal Meanings
Piotr Oles

Human Relations, 1999

The purpose of this article is to explore the specific affective organization of personal meanings in midlife crisis in me n. Midlife crisis is de scribe d as a process of intensive transition of the se lf including the re interpre tation of time perspe ctive, reevaluation of life values and goals, confrontation with death as a personal e vent in the future, and planning of the second half of life. Pe rsonal me anings re fe rring to past, pre se nt, and future we re inve stigate d using a se lf-confrontation me thod that is se nsitive to the affe ctive prope rties of individual e xperiences. The intensity of midlife crisis was inve stigate d by means of a Midlife Crisis Scale in a sample of 104 men in Poland. Three groups, one high in midlife crisis (N = 27) , one me dium (N = 37) , and one low in midlife crisis (N = 40) were compared. It was found that the high crisis group had a lower le ve l of affect re ferring to self-e nhance me nt, a lower level of positive affect, and a highe r level of negative affect than both other groups. Moreover, time pe rspective played a differential role in the organization of the self: in an intragroup comparison of the most influential personal meanings, the high crisis group showed a highe r level of ne gative affect than positive affect for personal me anings re ferring to the future, but not for pe rsonal me anings referring to the past and the present. The rele vance of affective organization for midlife crisis is discussed.

View PDFchevron_right
Turning Points in the Lives of Midlife and Older Women
Rosemary Leonard

Australian Psychologist, 1999

he study explored the turning points in their lives reported by 60 married or previously married lower-T income midlife and older women (born 1931-1936, 1941-1 946 and 1951-1 956), and considered the importance of age and cohort effects. Following a life-review interview, respondents were asked to nominate the turning points in their lives. The turning points that were identified were classified as involving predominantly a role transition, an adversity, or an experience of personal growth.

View PDFchevron_right
A rational choice theory of midlife crises
Thomas Saving

This paper models the midlife crisis as a decision on whether and when to realize a life dream, incorporating the key components of three psychology theories of midlife crises. It explains why a crisis (dream realization) tends to occur in the midlife if it occurs at all. Other results include that one either realizes his dream fully or not at all, that a shorter life expectancy makes a midlife crisis more likely, and that “crazier†dreams tend to be postponed to a later time in life.

View PDFchevron_right

Related topics

  • Psychology
  • Cognitive Science
  • Motivation and Emotion in Sport
  • LIFE EVENT