Lives through the years revisited.

Williams and Wirths' distinctly sociological study of older adults provides a useful insight into the theory and methods of early interdisciplinary research on social aspects of adulthood and aging in the United States. The Kansas City Study of Adult Life, particularly the concept of disengagement developed there, figured prominently for two decades in theoretical discussions of development in later life. In this sociological presentation, Parsonian action theory is used to develop a framework for assessing the structured interaction of persons and social context, and the autonomy and persistence of life styles which provide a basis for predicting successful aging.