Chapter 9

Lifespan Perspective

n Developmental changes happen throughout lifespan

n Interdisciplinary research required to fully understand human development

Erikson’s Theory of Psychosocial Development

n Individuals progress through eight psychosocial stages

n Each one is defined by a conflict involving the individual’s relationship with the social environment

n Each must be satisfactorily for health development to occur

n The stages are named for a series of “alternative basic attitudes”

n Adult personality foundations are laid in the four childhood stages

Erikson’s Theory of Psychosocial Development

n Trust vs. Mistrust (Birth-1 year)

• Depends on the degree and regularity of care, love, and affection they receive from the mother or primary caregiver

• Basic trust is the cornerstone of a healthy personality

n Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt (1-3 years)

• Children demonstrate independence by saying “No!”

• Physical and mental abilities develop

n Initiative vs. Guilt (3-6)

• Initiate activities, plan tasks, develop motor skills

n Industry vs. Inferiority (6-11)

• Children begin to enjoy and take pride in accomplishments

• Sense of inferiority develops if child rebuffed by parents and teachers

Erikson’s Theory

n Identity vs. Role Confusion (11-22)

• Identity crisis should lead teens to an idea of how they fit into the adult world

• A healthy identity leads to next stage

n Intimacy vs. Isolation (22-40)

• Leads to finding a life partner or acceptance of single life

n Generativity vs. Stagnation (40-65)

• Desire to guide the next generation via parenting, teaching, or mentoring

n Ego Integrity vs. Despair (65+)

• Acceptance of one’s life in preparation for facing death

n Identity Crisis

• Emotional turmoil as trying to establish personal identity

n 4 identity statues proposed by Marcia

• Identity Achievement

• Moratorium

• Foreclosure

• Identity diffusion

Erikson

Erikson’s Theory of Psychosocial Development

• Great deal of evidence supports assertion that a trusted caregiver in infancy is critical to later development

• Identity development process begins in adolescence but is not complete until well into adult years

n College helps form identity via experience

n Cognitive ability to engage in thinking necessary for development of identity may not occur until adult years

• Formal operational thinking evolves slowly during teen years

• Generativity has been found to increase in middle age

n More prominent in middle age than younger adult years

n It does not decline in old age

n Cited as an equally important concern for middle or late years of life

Adolescence

n Stage that begins at puberty and encompasses the period from the end of childhood to the beginning of adulthood

n Puberty

• A period of several years with rapid growth, physical changes culminating in sexual maturity

• Average Age of Puberty

n 10 years old for girls

• Ranges from 7 to 14 years of age

n 12 years old for boys

• Ranges from 9 to 16 years of age

• Begins with hormone surge followed by growth spurt

n Girls growth spurt between ages 10-13 years of age

n Boys growth spurt between ages 12-15 years of age

n Girls reach full height between ages 16-17

n Boys reach full height between ages 18-20

Adolescence

Timing of Puberty: Psychological Consequences

n Early Maturing Boys

• Taller and stronger than peers

• Advantage in sports

• Have positive body image

• Feel confident, secure, independent, and happy

• More successful academically

• More hostile and aggressive

• In poor families, tend to associate with deviant peers

n Early Maturing Girls

• Tower over peers

• Feel self-conscious about their developing body and size

• Likely to develop eating disorders

• Likely to have early sexual experiences and unwanted pregnancies

• Exposed to alcohol and drug use

• Late-maturing girls experience stress when they fail to develop with peers

n More likely to be taller and slimmer than early-maturing girls

Adolescence

n Secondary Sex Characteristics

• Physical characteristics not involved in reproduction that distinguish males from females

Adolescence

Puberty and Sexual Behavior

n Sexual desire awakens with puberty

n Sexual activity increases dramatically from grades 9 to 12

n Multiple sexual partners in high school is alarming statistic

• More likely to contract a sexually transmitted disease

Adolescence

Puberty and Sexual Behavior

n Teen pregnancy higher in U.S. than in any other developed country

• 50 births per year for every 1,000 teenage girls in the U.S.

n Most teen pregnancies:

• Are to unwed mothers

• Occur after the age of 16

n Less sexually active/experienced teens:

• Attend religious services frequently

• Live with both biological parents

• Have parents that are neither too permissive nor too strict in discipline and rules

• Have above-average academic achievement

• Are involved in sports

Adolescence

A Moral Dilemma

Kohlberg Levels of Moral Reasoning

n Preconventional

• Moral reasoning is based on the physical consequences of an act:

n Reasoning and actions governed by standards of others and not internalized standards

• Stage 1

n “Right” is whatever avoids punishment

• Stage 2

n Right is whatever is rewarded, benefits the individual, or results in a favor being returned

Kohlberg Levels of Moral Reasoning

n Conventional

• Individual has internalized standards of others

• Right and wrong are based on the internalized standards of others

n Right is whatever helps or is approved of by others

n Right is whatever is consistent with the laws of society

• Stage 3

n Called the “good boy-nice girl” orientation

n Good behavior is that which:

• Pleases others

• Helps others

• Is approved of by others

• Stage 4

n Orientation towards authority

n Right is:

• Doing one’s duty

• Respecting authority

• Maintaining the social order

Kohlberg Levels of Moral Reasoning

n Postconventional

• Individuals weigh moral alternatives

n Realize the law may conflict with basic human rights

• “Right” is whatever furthers basic human rights

• Requires ability to think at Piaget’s stage of formal operations

• Stage 5

n Believes the laws are formulated to protect both society and the individual

n Laws should be changed if they fail to do so

• Stage 6

n Ethical decisions based on universal principles

• Respect for human life, justice, equality, and dignity

n Believe following conscience may require violation of laws

Kohlberg Levels of Moral Reasoning

n Discussion of moral dilemmas does not reliably improve behavior

• Direct teaching of moral values is necessary

• General cognitive development strongly influences how children respond to moral teaching

• Young children’s ability to infer moral messages is strongly linked with reading comprehension skills

• Parents who read moral stories to children (Little Red Hen) should provide explicit information about the moral message and how it relates to the characters in the story

n Kohlberg’s stages of development occur in all cultures

n Gilligan asserts sexual bias

• Research did not include women, nor did it include mercy, compassion, love, or concern for others

• Content of moral reasoning differs between sexes but does not differ in the complexity of moral reasoning

n Others assert that moral reasoning is not the same as moral behavior

• People can be capable of making mature moral judgments yet fail to live morally

Early and Middle Adulthood

n Emerging Adulthood

• Period from late teens to early twenties

• Individual options explored prior to adult role commitment

n Physical Changes

• 20’s and 30’s

n Period of top physical condition

• Strength, reaction time, reproductive capacity, and manual dexterity are at their peak

• After the 30’s

n Slight decline in physical capabilities

• Mostly due to diet, exercise, and health habits

• Mid- to late-40’s

n Presbyopia

• Lenses of the eyes no longer react for near vision

n Reading glasses are needed

n Menopause

• Cessation of menstruation and reproductive capability

• Occurs between ages 45-55

• Testosterone diminishes in men from age 20-60

Early and Middle Adulthood

Intellectual Abilities

n Young Adults

• Outperform middle and older adults on speed or rote memory tests

n Middle- and Older Adults

• Outperform young adults in general information, vocabulary, reasoning ability, and social judgment

• Likely due to greater experiences and education

n Gaining knowledge and skills through adult years

n Verbal meaning

n Spatial orientation

n Inductive reasoning

n Number and word fluency

• Modest gains from young adulthood to mid-40s

• Decline did not occur until after age 60

• Modest declines until 80s

• Half showed no decline at age 81

• Perceptual speed only element to decline from mid 20s to 80s

Early and Middle Adulthood

College Attendance Impact

n Longer college attendance more likely capable of formal operations

• Influence on Social Development

n First opportunity meet different race/cultures

n Establish social networks that eventually replace parents as primary emotional support

n Empathy and moral reasoning capacity greater

• Gender, Race, and College Completion

n Women more likely than men to graduate

• Females use more effective study strategies

• Males more likely to cheat and engage binge drinking

n Economic pressures often force students from disadvantaged groups to leave school

n African American students that attend historically Black institutions:

• Gains in cognitive and social competence

• Stronger sense of racial identity

n American Indian Higher Education Consortium

• Network of institutions similar to historically Black institutions

Early and Middle Adulthood

Social Development

n A majority of adults marry and have children

• In 1960 median age of first marriage: 20 for females, 23 for males

• Today, median age of first marriage: 25 for females, 27 for males

n Majority delays parenthood until the 30s

• Adjustment into parenting one of the most challenging and rewarding parts of life

• New parents argue about child-rearing ideas and household chores

• Relationship satisfaction often declines after birth of first baby

• Higher satisfaction when couples agree to share child and household duties

n Child rearing central in lives of working women

• 18% of women in 1960s were employed

• 68% of women with children under age 6 work today

• 80% of women with school-aged children work today

• Women’s work patterns much less continuous than men

• Women less likely to pursue upper-level management positions

Lifestyle Patterns in Adulthood

n Singles

• Happiest have emotionally supportive relationship

• Cohabitation is 13% of all households

n Higher divorce rate

n Associated with emotionally negative, unsupportive communication and behavior during marriage

n Marriage

• Half adults believe marriage not prerequisite for parenting

• Age of first marriage risen over the past 5 decades

• 80% of adults will marry once

• Benefits

n Economic

n Physical and mental health

n Divorce

• Trend higher than 50 years ago but leveled off

n Falling since 1980

• Marriages between teenagers, nonreligious marriages with a pregnant bride, and those between children of divorced parents most likely to fail

• Doesn’t always solve problems

• Women have reduced standard of living

• Most end up married again

Lifestyle Patterns in Adulthood

n Parenthood

• Can cause stress and conflict in a marriage, but it is also immensely satisfying for most couples

• Marital satisfaction declines after 1^st birth

n Division of work largest problem

• Equitable sharing of chores result in marital satisfaction

n Important when both spouses work outside home

n 68% women with children are employed

Lifestyle Patterns in Adulthood

n Myths of Middle Age

• Mid-life crisis refuted

• Stress overload

n Balancing demands of work, home, family, and retirement

n Successful management leads to sense of competence

• Empty nest syndrome

n Parents appreciate reexamination of life and identity

n Reinke’s 6 Life Phases for Women

• No-children

• Start-a-family/preschool

• School-age

• Adolescent

• Launching

• Postparental

Later Adulthood

Stereotypes about Later Adulthood

Estimate the percentages of people older than age 65 in the United States who exhibit these indicators of well-being:

§ Live alone or with a spouse

§ Have an income above the poverty level

§ Interact with family at least once every two weeks

§ Need no help with daily activities

§ Need no assistive devices (e.g., cane, wheelchair)

§ Go out to eat at least once every two weeks

§ Attend religious services regularly

§ Are sexually active

Sources: FIFARS (2000, 2004); Gingell et al. (2003)

Later Adulthood

n Physical Changes

• Assumption that number of brain neurons declines is false

• Loss of cortex volume due to breakdown of myelin cover of axon

n Begins in early 30s

n Causes slowing of behavior

n Brain takes longer to process information

n Reaction time is slower

• Physical losses

n Become farsighted

n Increasingly impaired night vision

n Hearing loss in higher frequencies

n Joints become stiffer

n Bones lose calcium and become brittle

• Increased risk of fractures

• Physical exercise improves fitness levels of older adults

• Chronic conditions

n Hypertension (52% of women, 47% of men)

n Arthritis (39% of women 31% of men)

Later Adulthood

Cognitive Changes

• Older adults who keep mentally and physically active tend to retain their mental skills as long as their health is good

n Tests of vocabulary, comprehension, general information, and ability to solve problems is higher than in younger adults

n Take longer to learn a task but apply it as well as younger adults

n Crystallized Intelligence

• Aspects of intelligence including verbal ability and accumulated knowledge

• Tends to increase over the lifespan

n Fluid Intelligence

• Aspects of intelligence involving abstract reasoning and mental flexibility

• Peaks in early 20s and declines slowly with age

Later Adulthood

Cognitive Changes

n Memory

• Older people do as well as younger people on:

n Recognition tasks

n Recalling information in their areas of expertise

• Younger adults do better on tasks requiring:

n Processing speed in short term memory

n Recall of items with no particular meaning for them

n Good cognitive functioning helped by:

• Higher education level

• Complex work environment

• Long marriage to an intelligent spouse

• Higher income

• Leading intellectually stimulating and mentally active lives

• “Use it or lose it”

Later Adulthood

Alzheimer’s Disease

n Dementia

• State of mental deterioration characterized by

n Impaired memory and intellect

n Altered personality and behavior

n Most common form of Alzheimer’s Disease

• Afflicts

n 5-8% of adults over age 65

n 15-20% of adults over age 75

n 25-50% of those over 85

• Senility

n Caused by physical deterioration of the brain

• Cerebral arteriosclerosis (hardening of brain arteries)

• Chronic alcoholism

• Irreversible damage from small strokes

Later Adulthood

Alzheimer’s Disease

• An incurable form of dementia characterized by:

n Progressive deterioration of intellect and personality

n Widespread degeneration of brain cells

• At first, victims show:

n Gradual impairment in memory and reasoning

n Loss of efficiency in carrying out everyday tasks

n Difficulty finding way around in familiar locations

• As disorder progresses, patients:

n Become confused and irritable

n Wander away from home

n Become increasingly unable to take care of themselves

n Develop unintelligible speech

n Lose the ability to control bladder and bowel functioning

n May not respond to spoken words

n No longer recognize even spouse or children

Later Adulthood

Alzheimer’s Disease and Other Types of Dementia

n Alzheimer’s Disease

• Risk Factors

n Age

n Family history of Alzheimer’s Disease

• Delaying or Lessening Onset

n High IQ coupled with life long intellectual activity

n Anti-inflammatory drugs and antioxidant vitamin E

n Items presently in research studies

• Folic acid

• Antioxidants such as vitamin C

• Nicotine

Later Adulthood

Social Adjustment

n Retirement

• About 88% of older adults in U.S. are retired

• Most are happy to leave work and adjust to retirement

• 30% of retirees reported retirement stressful

n More likely to be in poor health and have financial problems

• Those who are reluctant to retire are:

n Better educated

n Hold high-status jobs with a good income

n Find fulfillment in their work

Later Adulthood

Social Adjustment

n Loss of a Spouse

• The most stressful event in a lifetime

• Physical effects include:

n Sleep disruptions and tiredness

n Anxiety

n Greater risk for health problems

n Higher mortality rate with in the first 6 months

• 44% of women and 14% of men alter living arrangements

• Only 5% of women and 9% of men live with relatives

• When living with relatives, life satisfaction is lower

• Ability to live alone is important factor in life satisfaction in U.S. and Europe

Later Adulthood

Successful Aging

n Maintaining one’s physical health, mental abilities, social competence, and overall satisfaction with life as one gets older

• Three components

– Good physical health

• Majority of older adults rate health as good and grade health on a curve

• 80% suffer from so me kind of chronic ailment

– Retention of cognitive abilities

– Engagement in social productive activities

Later Adulthood

Death and Dying

Death and Dying

n Critics of the Kubler-Ross Stages

• Deny the universality of the proposed stages and invariant sequence

• Each person is unique and reactions often do not conform to the rigid sequence of stages

n Terminally Ill

• Should dying patients be left with no choice?

n Dr. Jack Kevorkian brought attention to this question

• Hospice care

n Agencies that care for the needs of the dying more humanely and affordably than hospitals

n Use special facilities or the patient’s home

n Group therapy for patient and family

Death and Dying

n Decisions About Death

• Terminally illness or intractable pain leads some to welcome an end to suffering

• Living wills written to outline amount of care

• Hospice care guidelines

n Patient and family control decisions about care

n Pain managed to optimize remaining time

n Professionals available as needed 24/7

n Facilities less clinical, more home-like

n Family may work with hospice team as caregivers

n Counseling provided before and after death to help through grieving process

n Bereavement

• Period of grief following death

• Can linger long afterwards

• Outspoken grievers do not end grief more quickly

• Dual-process coping

n Periods of grieving and periods of relief

Death and Dying

n Grieving Process

• The period of bereavement that follows the death of a loved one

• Sometimes lingers long after the person has gone

• Those who suffer the most after death:

n Feel deepest pain

n Experience intense grief initially

n Weep inconsolably

n Do not get through bereavement faster than those others

• The grieving of male caregivers whose partners died of AIDS is very similar to that experienced by spouses

Remember:

Life is a terminal condition and should be treasured as a precious gift.