Adaptive Aspects of Social Cognitive Functioning in Adulthood: Age–Related Goal and Knowledge Influences

The study of development from the lifespan perspective focuses on the adaptive aspects of human behavior. It is argued that a social cognitive perspective may be useful in examining and understanding adaptive aspects of behavior in everyday contexts across adulthood. Research conducted by Hess and colleagues has provided support for this assertion, demonstrating that age in adulthood is associated with increased selectivity in engagement of cognitive resources and the development of expert social knowledge. Both of these processes can be viewed as adaptive outcomes associated with changing circumstances and experience associated with age. Implications of this research for both the study of aging and of social cognition are discussed.