preadolescence psychosexual psycnet collinsdictionary.com salant osteoporosis unnoticeable menopause erikson retrospection generalities piagetian bronfenbrenner psychosocial antenatal bowlby vygotsky oxforddictionaries.com cognitively demetriou adulthood tranquil kohlberg midlife fetus toddler piaget puberty dsm embryogenesis
older adulthood is a time when growth is complete and body systems
Middle age - wikipedia Middle age For other uses , see Middle Ages ( disambiguation ) . Part of a series on Human growth and development Stages Human embryogenesis Fetus Infant Toddler Early childhood Child Preadolescence Adolescence Adult Middle age Old age Biological milestones Fertilization Childbirth Walking Language acquisition Puberty Menopause Ageing Death Development and psychology Pre - and perinatal Infant and child Adolescent Youth Young adult Adult Maturity Developmental stage theories Attachment Ecological Psychosocial Psychosexual development Moral Cognitive Cultural - historical Evolutionary Human body portal Middle age is the period of age beyond young adulthood but before the onset of old age . Contents ( hide ) 1 Definitions 2 Young adulthood 3 Middle adulthood 3.1 Physical characteristics 3.2 Cognitive characteristics 3.3 Social and personality characteristics 4 See also 5 References 6 External links Definitions According to the Oxford English Dictionary middle age is between 45 and 65 : `` The period between early adulthood and old age , usually considered as the years from about 45 to 65 . '' The US Census lists the category middle age from 45 to 65 . Merriam - Webster lists middle age from 45 to 64 , while prominent psychologist Erik Erikson saw it starting a little earlier and defines middle adulthood as between 40 and 65 . The Collins English Dictionary lists it between the ages of 40 and 60 , and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders -- the standard diagnostic manual of the American Psychiatric Association -- used to define middle age as 40 to 60 , but as of DSM - IV ( 1994 ) revised the definition upwards to 45 to 65 . Young adulthood Further information : Young adult ( psychology ) This time in the lifespan is considered to be the developmental stage of those who are between 18 years old and 40 years old . Recent developmental theories have recognized that development occurs across the entire life of a person as they experience changes cognitively , physically , socially , and in personality . Middle adulthood This time period in the life of a person can be referred to as middle age . This time span has been defined as the time between ages 45 to 65 years old . Many changes may occur between young adulthood and this stage . The body may slow down and the middle aged might become more sensitive to diet , substance abuse , stress , and rest . Chronic health problems can become an issue along with disability or disease . Approximately one centimeter of height may be lost per decade . Emotional responses and retrospection vary from person to person . Experiencing a sense of mortality , sadness , or loss is common at this age . Those in middle adulthood or middle age continue to develop relationships and adapt to the changes in relationships . Changes can be the interacting with growing and grown children and aging parents . Community involvement is fairly typical of this stage of adulthood , as well as continued career development . Physical characteristics Middle - aged adults may begin to show visible signs of aging . This process can be more rapid in women who have osteoporosis . Changes might occur in the nervous system . The ability to perform complex tasks remains intact . Women between 48 and 55 experience menopause , which ends natural fertility . Menopause can have many side effects , some welcome and some not so welcome . Men may also experience physical changes . Changes can occur to skin and other changes may include decline in physical fitness including a reduction in aerobic performance and a decrease in maximal heart rate . These measurements are generalities and people may exhibit these changes at different rates and times . The mortality rate can begin to increase from 45 and onwards , mainly due to health problems like heart problems , cancer , hypertension , and diabetes . Still , the majority of middle - aged people in industrialized nations can expect to live into old age . Cognitive characteristics Erik Erikson refers to this period of adulthood as the generatitivity - versus - stagnation stage . Persons in middle adulthood or middle age may have some cognitive loss . This loss usually remains unnoticeable because life experiences and strategies are developed to compensate for any decrease in mental abilities . Social and personality characteristics Marital satisfaction remains but other family relationships can be more difficult . Career satisfaction focuses more on inner satisfaction and contentedness and less on ambition and the desire to `` advance '' . Even so , career changes often can occur . Middle adulthood or middle age can be a time when a person re-examines their life by taking stock , and evaluating their accomplishments . Morality may change and become more conscious . The perception that those in this stage of development or life undergo a `` mid-life '' crisis is largely false . This period in life is usually satisfying , tranquil . Personality characteristics remain stable throughout this period . The relationships in middle adulthood may continue to evolve into connections that are stable . See also Youth Young adult ( psychology ) Old age Aging Midlife crisis References ^ Jump up to : `` PsycNET - Option to Buy '' . ^ Jump up to : `` Middle Age : definition of middle age in Oxford dictionary ( American English ) ( US ) '' . Oxforddictionaries.com . Retrieved 2016 - 06 - 15 . Jump up ^ `` Definition of MIDDLE AGE '' . Jump up ^ Middle age . CollinsDictionary.com . Collins English Dictionary -- Complete & Unabridged 11th Edition . Retrieved December 05 , 2012 . Jump up ^ Erik H. Erikson , Joan M. Erikson , The Life Cycle Completed : Extended Version ( W.W. Norton , 1998 ) , ^ Jump up to : `` Osteoporosis Tests and Diagnosis '' . ^ Jump up to : Gordon - Salant , Sandra ; Frisina , Robert D. ; Fay , Richard R. ; Popper , Arthur ( 3 May 2010 ) . `` The Aging Auditory System '' . Springer Science & Business Media -- via Google Books . ^ Jump up to : Stern , Theodore ( 2016 ) . Massachusetts General Hospital comprehensive clinical psychiatry . London : Elsevier . ISBN 978 - 0 - 323 - 29507 - 9 . Access provided by the University of Pittsburgh . Jump up ^ Bourgeois , F. John ; Gehrig , Paola A. ; Veljovich , Daniel S. ( 1 January 2005 ) . `` Obstetrics and Gynecology Recall '' . Lippincott Williams & Wilkins -- via Google Books . Jump up ^ `` Products - Data Briefs - Number 193 - March 2015 '' . External links Preceded by Young Adult Stages of human development Middle age Succeeded by Old age <Th_colspan="2"> hide Human biological and psychological development Before birth Embryo Fetus After birth Infant Toddler Early childhood Childhood Child Preadolescence Adolescence Adulthood Middle age Old age Definitions Minor Age of majority Events and phases Gestational age Prenatal development Birth Child development stages Cognitive development of infants Human development Adult development Puberty Ageing Senescence Death Developmental psychology Antenatal Positive youth development Young adult Positive adult development Maturity Theorists and theories Freud ( 1856 -- 1939 ) ( Psychosexual development ) Piaget ( 1896 -- 1980 ) ( Theory of cognitive development ) Vygotsky ( 1896 -- 1934 ) ( Cultural - historical psychology ) Erikson ( 1902 -- 1994 ) ( Psychosocial development ) Bowlby ( 1907 -- 1990 ) ( Attachment theory ) Bronfenbrenner ( 1917 -- 2005 ) ( Ecological systems theory ) Kohlberg ( 1927 -- 1987 ) ( Stages of moral development ) Commons ( b . 1939 ) , Fischer ( b . 1943 ) , Kegan ( b . 1946 ) , Demetriou ( b . 1950 ) , and others ( Neo-Piagetian theories of cognitive development ) Evolutionary developmental psychology NDL : 00573909 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Middle_age&oldid=843135871 '' Categories : Human development Middle age Hidden categories : Wikipedia pages semi-protected from banned users Wikipedia articles with NDL identifiers Talk View source Contents About Wikipedia فارسی Français 한국어 Հայերեն Kiswahili Nederlands 日本 語 Русский Simple English Suomi Svenska Українська 中文 5 more Edit links This page was last edited on 27 May 2018 , at 03 : 34 ( UTC ) . 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