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Adult Development and Aging: A Gay Perspective
Author(s) -
Kimmel Douglas C.
Publication year - 1978
Publication title -
journal of social issues
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.618
H-Index - 122
eISSN - 1540-4560
pISSN - 0022-4537
DOI - 10.1111/j.1540-4560.1978.tb02618.x
Subject(s) - perspective (graphical) , psychology , developmental psychology , coming out , gender studies , sociology , artificial intelligence , computer science
To provide a model for understanding gay adult development and aging, Levinson's developmental periods are applied to the existing data on older gays. In addition, an historical lifeline for a hypothetical gay person born in 1910 is presented to illustrate the relationship between developmental data and historical events. The lack of data on older lesbians and nonadvantaged males is noted. Stereotypes of lonely, depressed, sexually frustrated aging gay men are clearly not valid for the majority of respondents studied. However, there are particular needs of older gays, e.g., support during bereavement, assistance if physically disabled, and a reduction in stigmatization.