Normative personality change over 40 years was shown in 2 longitudinal cohorts with hierarchical linear modeling of California Psychological Inventory data obtained at multiple times between ages 21-75. Although themes of change and the paucity of differences attributable to gender and cohort largely supported findings of multiethnic cross-sectional samples, the authors also found much quadratic change and much individual variability. The form of quadratic change supported predictions about the influence of period of life and social climate as factors in change over the adult years: Scores on Dominance and Independence peaked in the middle age of both cohorts, and scores on Responsibility were lowest during peak years of the culture of individualism. The idea that personality change is most pronounced before age 30 and then reaches a plateau received no support.

Personality scores of female college seniors studied in 1958 or 1960, again when they were 27 years old, and again when they were 43 show significant mean changes and high stability coefficients on the California Psychological Inventory, Joffe-Naditch coping scales, Adjective Check List, and other measures. Changes in personality were largely consistent with theories of adult development. In these women, a major factor associated with change appears to be an increase in sex role specialization in their late 20s and a decrease in their later years that is accompanied by increases in confidence, dominance, and coping skills. The normative pattern of change was not confined to women on any one particular life path, but was most pronounced in women who actively engaged in some "social clock project."

The concept of social clock project structures a proposed framework for studies of lifespan development. This framework identifies personally and culturally salient need-press configurations through time, puts cohort variability in perspective, and locates trouble spots for prevention and intervention programs. We illustrate its use with findings from a longitudinal study of the early and middle adulthood of 132 women who graduated from college in 1958 and 1960, after a period of marked stability and before a period of social change. Marriage and vocational outlook in college, California Psychological Inventory scores, and the timing of subsequent life events are major sets of variables. We consider questions such as these: What personality qualities are antecedent to adherence, late adherence, and nonadherence to the feminine social clock (FSQ? What is involved in departing from the FSC through divorce? Is change in personality related to any particular phases of the FSC, such as motherhood? Answers to these and other questions show robust relevance of personality trait measures. Some implications for personality theory are illustrated.

Between their early 40s and early 50s, 101 alumnae in the Mills longitudinal study decreased in dependence and self-criticism and increased in confidence and decisiveness. They also increased in comfort and stability attained through adherence to personal and social standards, and they scored higher on measures of coping through intellectuality, logical analysis, tolerance of ambiguity, and substitution. Normative personality change on the California Psychological Inventory was not associated with menopausal status, empty nest status, or involvement in care for parents. Feelings about life corresponded to descriptions of middle age by stage and period theorists, including the idea of turmoil around age 40. Findings support the view that personality changes across middle age in normative ways. Change seems to be attributable to long-term trends or period effects rather than to discrete life events.

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