Different cultures have different attitudes toward menopause and the symptoms of menopause. This article discusses research on these attitudes and suggests that the way menopause is conceptualized is primarily a function of societal attitudes toward the roles and status of women, especially mature women. It also presents recommendations for social work research and practice with women in midlife.Menopause-the cessation of menses, or the final menstrual period-is a single event lasting less than a week, whereas the climacteric spans a 30-year continuum between the ages of 35 and 65.... The decade of perimenopause at the center of the climacteric includes all the phases of menopause: premenopause, menopause and postmenopause. (Notelovitz, 1993, p. 26) The most creative force in the world is the woman with postmenopausal zest. (attributed to Margaret Mead, quoted in Lock, 1993, p. xiv) Women's experiences with the climacteric period vary tremendously from culture to culture. The symptoms women typically experience during this period range from virtually none to severe. Japanese women's symptoms have been described as minimal (Lock, 1993) and those of Mayan women in Mexico as