verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies.Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Feedback
Thank you for your feedback
Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.
External Websites
- University of Hawaiʻi Pressbooks - Middle Age
- University of Minnesota Libraries - Early and Middle Adulthood: Building Effective Lives
- Portland State University - Middle Adulthood: Generativity, Intelligence, Personality
- Medicine LibreTexts - Middle Age
- National Center for Biotechnology Information - PubMed Central - The Problems and Concerns of Middle Age
- Maricopa Community Colleges Pressbooks - Lifespan Development - Middle Adulthood
- BCcampus Open Publishing - Early and Middle Adulthood: Building Effective Lives
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies.Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Feedback
Thank you for your feedback
Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.
External Websites
- University of Hawaiʻi Pressbooks - Middle Age
- University of Minnesota Libraries - Early and Middle Adulthood: Building Effective Lives
- Portland State University - Middle Adulthood: Generativity, Intelligence, Personality
- Medicine LibreTexts - Middle Age
- National Center for Biotechnology Information - PubMed Central - The Problems and Concerns of Middle Age
- Maricopa Community Colleges Pressbooks - Lifespan Development - Middle Adulthood
- BCcampus Open Publishing - Early and Middle Adulthood: Building Effective Lives
Written and fact-checked by
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Last Updated: •Article History
Category: Science & Tech
- Related Topics:
- aging
- human body
- adulthood
- maturation
middle age, period of human adulthood that immediately precedes the onset of old age. Though the age period that defines middle age is somewhat arbitrary, differing greatly from person to person, it is generally defined as being between the ages of 40 and 60. The physiological and psychological changes experienced by a middle-aged person centre on the gradual decline of physical abilities and the awareness of mortality. In middle age, the relative potencies of past, present, and future are altered as the individual increasingly directs effort to the process of reminiscence and recollection of the past, rather than anticipation of the future. If approached constructively, middle age can prepare an individual for a satisfying and productive old age. See also psychological development.
