In middle adulthood, focusing on guiding the next generation and leaving a legacy corresponds to which developmental task?

• A. Generativity
• B. Integrity
• C. Isolation
• D. Autonomy

Answer: (A)

Generativity is the major psychosocial task of middle adulthood. It involves guiding the next generation, mentoring others, parenting, and contributing to society in a way that creates a lasting impact. When people feel they are passing on knowledge, skills, and values, and helping younger individuals become productive adults, they experience a sense of usefulness and purpose and often feel they have left a meaningful legacy. If these generative efforts are lacking, a person may drift into stagnation, feeling unproductive or disconnected from their community. The other options relate to different life stages or concepts: integrity is about reflecting on one’s life in later years with a sense of wholeness or despair, isolation pertains to issues of closeness and compatibility in earlier adult development, and autonomy describes independence that is more characteristic of earlier developmental phases.