The period of late adulthood, characterized as those 65 and older is a growing proportion of the population. As the baby boomer generation reaches this age, more and more research and resources are being dedicated to this stage of life. Erikson's eighth stage of integrity vs. despair occurs in this last stage of life. Integrity is used by Erikson as a way for the elderly to integrate their life, by reflecting on both successes and failures. Everyone has made mistakes, but the person who reaches integrity is able to see that his or her life was not wasted. The person who has nothing but nagging regrets and feels his or her life was wasted has reached despair. Butler agrees with Erikson that a life review is helpful; often, the person will uncover threads of meaning or God's purpose for his/ her life, as a review is conducted. The key process in resolving this crisis is introspection, as the elderly person delves deep within himself/ herself to evaluate his/ her strengths and weaknesses.

Contemporary society is primarily geared for the young; disengagement theory expresses the view that society wants the elderly to retire and get out of the way. Thankfully, this attitude is changing, and activity theory expresses the idea that the elderly should be allowed to remain as active as they wish, for as long as they wish. Mandatory (or compulsory) retirements are starting to be replaced with voluntary (or discretionary) decisions. Retirement also increases the time married couples have with each other, which helps precipitate adjustment. For many couples, both partners have a more egalitarian view of the roles of husband and wife; there is more androgyny in both sexes. However, as people age the percentage of those who are still married (rather than widowed or divorced) decreases.

There are different styles of grandparenting; the easiest adjustment is for grandparents to enjoy their new status and the grandchildren. Grandmothers tend to spend more time with, have more conflict with, and give more support to their grandchildren than grandfathers. Further, grandchildren in the West tend to spend more time with their mother's parents than their father's. When grandparents give support, it is often financial in nature; other forms include helping when grandkids are sick, babysitting, giving advice, and helping around the house. One of the most difficult tasks during grand parenting is deciding how much help to give.

Life satisfaction is predicted by health and income, and supported by an active lifestyle.