Ch 16. Socioemotional Development in Middle Adulthood

Question 1

Seasons of Life (Levinson)

Answer 1

A theory is comprised of seven sequence-like stages. Each stage is shaped by an event or action that leads into the next stage.

Question 2

Early Adult Transition (Age 17-22)

Answer 2

This is the stage in which a person leaves adolescence and begins to make choices about adult life. These include choosing to go to college or enter the workforce, choosing to enter a serious relationship, and choosing to leave home.

Question 3

Entering the Adult World (Age 22-28)

Answer 3

This is the stage in which a person makes more concrete decisions regarding their occupation, friendships, values, and lifestyles.

Question 4

Age 30 Transitions (Age 28-33)

Answer 4

In this stage, there are often lifestyle changes that could be mild or more severe. For example, marriage or having children impact one’s lifestyle, and these changes have differing consequences on how a person develops depending on how they embrace the event.

Question 5

Settling Down (Age 33-40)

Answer 5

In this stage, one often begins to establish a routine, makes progress on goals for the future, and begins behaving like an adult. People in this stage are often parents or have more responsibilities.

Question 6

Mid-Life Transition (Age 40-45)

Answer 6

This time period is sometimes one of crisis. A person begins to evaluate his or her life. Values may change, and how society views these people may change also. Some people make drastic life changes, such as divorce or a career change. At this point, people begin thinking about death and begin to think about leaving a legacy.

Question 7

Entering Middle Adulthood (Age 45-50)

Answer 7

In this stage, choices must be made about the future and possibly retirement. People begin to commit to new tasks and continue to think about the legacy they are leaving.

Question 8

Late Adulthood

Answer 8

In this stage, one begins to reflect on life and the decisions they have made.

Question 9

The Stable Period (Levinson)

Answer 9

When a person makes crucial choices in life.

Question 10

The Transitional Period (Levinson)

Answer 10

When one stage ends and another begins.

Question 11

Contemporary Life-Events Approach

Answer 11

Approach emphasizing that how a life event influences the individual’s development depends not only on the life event, but also on mediating factors, the individual’s adaptation to the life event, the life-stage context, and the sociohistorical context.

Question 12

Fight-or-Flight

Answer 12

The view that when men experience stress, they are more likely to engage in a fight-or-flight pattern, as reflected in being aggressive, withdrawing from social contact, or drinking alcohol.

Question 13

Tend-or-Befriend

Answer 13

Taylor’s view that when women experience stress, they are likely to engage in a tend-and-befriend pattern, seeking social alliances with others, especially female friends.

Question 14

Social Clock

Answer 14

The timetable according to which individuals are expected to accomplish life’s tasks, such as getting married, having children, or establishing themselves in a career.

Question 15

Big Five Factors of Personality

Answer 15

Emotional stability (neuroticism), extraversion, openness to experience, agreeableness, and conscientiousness.

Question 16

Empty Nest Syndrome

Answer 16

A decrease in marital satisfaction that occurs after children leave home, because parents derive considerable satisfaction from their children.