chapter 16, 18-19 Flashcards
(36 cards)
General Adaptation syndrome (Selye)
Alarm reaction- call to arms, rats :cortex became enlarged and hyperactive, a number of glands shrank, ulcers - childhood
Stage of resistance-reversal of alarm reaction with continued stress- early adulthood
Stage of exhaustion- gradual depletion of the adaptable energy- resistance is lost- middle and old age
risk and resilience
Resilience: ability to recover from highly stressful situations with few adverse effects
Risk Factors: stressors (poverty, chronic illness, parental mental illness and drug abuse, exposure to violence, divorce, teenage motherhood)
Protective factors: family environment, support networks, personality characteristics that protect from stress
marriage at middle age
Midlife transition-levinson, reappraisal of marriage
Emotional Divorce- recognition of drifting apart
Empty nest syndrome- temporary negative emotions following disruption of family when kids leave home (for many this time becomes a second honeymoon)
Happy Marriage: Friendship, love, similar interests and backgrounds, high marital satisfaction/higher rate of parenting satisfaction, handle conflicts well,
conflict handling can be relearned in marriage counseling
Sex in Middle adulthood
small increase in sexual activity compared with early adulthood
relationships with Aging parents
Improved relationship with parents
people who had close relationships with their parents, whose parents provided consistent care, will have better relationships with parents in middle age
Relationship begins to reverse (parents may become dependent upon children)
Caregiving is difficult: emotional strain, time constraints, physical health of caregiver, mental health of caregiver
relationships with siblings and friends
most enduring relationship a person has
must make mutual decisions about taking care of parents
Interaction frequency with acquaintances and close friends begins to decline in adulthood while time increases with spouses and siblings
These select few relationships become closer and more satisfying in middle adulthood
Divorce in Middle age
proportion of divorced people in middle age is high (many who divorce early never remarry)
divorce over 40, more turmoil and unhappiness
length of time married, complex economic and property linkages, and web of social relationships
personality continuity vs Change
Traits Theorist- McCrae and Costa-Normal adult personality is really maintenance of personality
Stage theorist- Levinson, Vaillant, Erickson-normal adult personality is a continual process of growth and change
seasons of a man’s life: Levinson 2nd & 3rd
Settling Down- ages 33-40: establish niche in society, advance up career ladder
Midlife transition- ages 40-45: Young/old-recognition of mortality, desire to leave legacy, Destruction/creation- desire to create new and useful activities
Masculinity/femininity- reduction in dichotomy
Attachment/Separation- changing balance
Seasons of a woman’s life: Levinson
Females go through a sequence of stages similar to man
Major differences exist between genders within these similar stages
Five Factor Model (FFM) of personality McCrae and Costa
- Neuroticism= experience some sort of breakdown under stress (depression, guilt)
- Extraversion = tendency to be outgoing and social
- Openness to experience = open to new ideas, fantasies, actions, feelings, values
- Agreeableness = willingness to cooperate and defer to others
- Conscientiousness = strong sense of purpose, high expectations
Gender Roles in old age
Role discontinuity: abrupt change as roles in life change
Crossover effect
Greater candor with others and comfort with oneself
Differences
men trust their best friend more
Men have less personal conversations with man than women with women
Women:relationships at top of list
Men: topics at top of list
sexuality late adulthood 65-death
sexual satisfaction does not decline with age: 75% of people 65-75 are satisfied w/ sex lives; can be as frequent
concerns: health (impotency, hormonal changes), negative physical self -image, attitudes/discomfort
family stages
Child-rearing; childlessness before retirement; retirement; widow/widowerhood
widowhood
1/2 of women 65 and older; normal life transition but still stressful and life-altering; more difficult if death was sudden; remarriage unlikely: 2/3 woman still attracted to men but: 55% strongly opposed to remarriage, 15% favor remarriage
Widowhood: reasons not to remarry
Seen as improper by society
Children opposite it (loss of inheritance)
not financially advantageous
3 women for every 1 man
care of elderly parents
Was performed by unmarried daughters in the past, but includes others now
caregivers suffer from stress and depression
For elders with no kin, a close friend usually substitutes as caregiver
grandparents
The changing role of grandparent
positively linked to the mental health and morale of elderly persons “Greatest joy of the eldery”
More important today; assume many tasks (daycare)
supports erickson’s stage of generativity
Fives styles of Grandparenting
- Formal
- Fun-seeker
- Reservoir of family wisdom
- Distant Figure
- Surrogate Parent
Favorites are Fun-seeker and Distant figure
The older Worker
11% of older adults are in the labor force
# of older workers increasing, more research
Age and job performance: mild decline in physical abilities offset by: experience, lower absenteeism, turnover, sick days, accidents, more positive work ethic
retirement
Affects males more than females
health factors, money factors
11% still work after 65 years old
importance of finding meaning
Personal Development changes
- Time and death
- change in control over the environment: see the world as more dangerous and complex
- Emotional energy declines
- Gender role reversal “the cross-over effect”
- Age status- society’s expectations about what is normal at various ages-becomes more rigid
relationships with other people
Activity theory-humans flourish through interaction with other people and physical activity
Disengagement theory- mature adults become less interested in their interactions with others in preparation for death
Ericksons final psychosocial crisis
Integrity: feel their lives have been well spent
despair: feel as though they have made wrong decisions, or, more commonly, have not made any decisions at all
what is death
clinical death- respiration and heartbeat stop( least useful/unreliable
Brain death- cortex, then midbrain, the brainstem stop operating (irreversible coma)
biological or cellular death- no electrical charge in the tissues of the heart and lungs
social death- hospital setting, patient is “biologically” alive but treated like a corpse
