Developmental Psychology- Lectures 5-9 Flashcards
Decrement Model
Aging as a period decline
Personal Growth Model
Concentrates on advantages of growing old
Cognitive Decline
Common belief regarding cognitive ability over the life-span
Brain Growth across the lifespan
Brain develops rapidly during last period of gestation & first 2 years
At 2 years old, brain is 80% of adult weight, but continues to develop through childhood and adolescence.
Peaks of growth at age 7, 12 & 15
Synaptic Pruning (elimination of unneeded synaptic connections) Up 50% reduction between ages 2-10, continues through adolescence and into young adulthood Brain reaches full maturity at around age 24 when synaptic pruning ceases
Cognitive Decline - IQ
Crystalised intelligence (Gc) increases as we age.
Fluid Intelligence (Gf) peaks between ages 20 and 30 and then decreases over time.
Physiological changes – cardiovascular / metabolic
RTs slow
Slowing of nervous system processes
Decline in sensory system performance may be a better indicator of change.
Memory Decreases
Decreases
Episodic – free recall
Compared to young adults, older adults tend to perform more poorly on than older adults on tests of free recall.
Working Memory
Contextual
For example repeating the same story to the same person a number of times.
Memory remains unchanged
Recognition
There is less difference between young and older adults on recognition tests
Short Term Memory
Procedural
Semantic
Though begins to decrease in mid 70s
Dementia – Separate to Cognitive Decline
The predominate factor for developing Alzheimer’s disease is age
Greater life expectancy has led to increased rates.
1% prevalence at age 65%
25% prevalence at age 85
Disease, not an acceleration of normal aging
Rates actually falling in developed countries.
Social disengagement theory (Cummings & Henry, 1961)
Mutual withdrawal of the aging individual from society and of society from the individual.
Retreat of the elderly into a more solitary existence
Withdrawal from society is a voluntary, and inevitable process and represents the most appropriate way of growing old.
Detrimental consequences of theory - encourages segregation and the belief that old age has no value (Bromley, 1988)
Do the elderly really disengage (Havighurst et al., 1968)?
Those who disengage the least are happiest and tend to live longer.
Several different personality types including reorganisers and disengaged.
Focuses on quantitative rather than qualitative changes (Cartensen, 1996)
Activity Theory (Havinghurst, 1964; Maddox, 1964)
Main alternative to Social Disengagement Theory
Old people have the same psychological and social needs as middle aged.
Isolation not mutual but result of withdrawal by ageist society.
Optimal aging can be achieved by staying active and resisting ‘shrinkage’ of social world.
Maintaining activities of middle age for as long as possible
Finding substitutes for work, spouses and friends.
Unrealisitic? Major activity of middle age is ‘productive’ employment (Bond et al., 1993).
Does SDT underestimate and AT overestimate degree of control people have in the reconstruction of their lives?
Some individuals seem happy to disengage – people might be left to choose the style of ageing most suited to their personalities.
Socio-emotional selectivity theory (Carstensen, 1992, 1993, 1995; Carstensen and Turk-Charles, 1994; Lang and Carstensen, 2002)
Social contact motivated by a number of goals. Survival Information-seeking, Development of self concept, Emotion regulation.
Importance of each varies throughout life – influenced by construal of the future:
Open ended = Long term goals are important
Limited future = Attention devoted to the present – emotional states become more salient.
Age related reduction in social contact appears to be highly selective rather than reflecting a reduced capacity
Younger people faced with own mortality, make similar decisions to those of the elderly (Carstensen, 1996).
Older individuals prioritise emotionally meaningful goals (Lang & Carstensen, 2002)
Age related reduction in social contact therefore selective. Individuals choose to focus on those who can give most emotional support.
Friendships increase life expectancy more than contact with family (Giles et al., 2005)
Fear of Death
Unique as human beings in that we are aware of our own mortality.
Death Terror – fear of death present within each human being.
Conflict – We want to live but know death is inevitable.
Is death anxiety related to age?
No greater self reported levels of death anxiety in elderly (Kastenbaum, 2000)
Age however may predict nature of anxiety (Stricherz & Cunnington, 1981, 1982)
Adolescents fear possible loss of loved one or death as punishment
Adults fear experiencing painful death
Retirees fear becoming helpless and dependent on others and the impact of their deaths on loved ones.
Further distinction between ‘young old’ (70s) and ‘old old’ (80s) (Munnichs, 1966)
Young Old – What should death mean to me at this stage.
Old Old – See prospect of death as a well-known, familiar phenomenon.
Anticipatory grief – Stages of Dying (Külbler-Ross, 1969)
Denial Anger Bargaining Depression Acceptance
Bereavement – Becoming a Widow(er)
Highly stressful and emotionally demanding!
Impact on two of Erikson’s key stages, intimacy and identity
Intimacy – loss of life partner.
Identity – Identity defining routines lost, changes in life roles, changes ch in social relationships,
Role of widow(er) not clearly defined in Western society
Standard against which other types of loss are measured.
Retirement
Significant transition
Achieved on the whole without great psychological stress
Three different responses to retirement (Kloep & Hendry, 2006):
High Distress
Work as a lifestyle
Life beyond work
Again reinforces the danger inherent in treating aged as one homogenous group.
Influences on Adult Development
Three kinds of influence on the way we develop…
Normative age-graded influences
Biological
Social
Non-Normative influences
Normative history-graded influences
Levenson et al. (1978) – Seasons of Man’s Life
Four Eras Pre-Adulthood – Age 0 - 22 Early Adulthood – Age 17 - 45 Middle Adulthood – Age 40 - 65 Late Adulthood – Age 60 onwards
Early Adult Transition (17 – 22)
Developmental bridge between adolescence and adulthood.
Two key themes – ‘separation’ and ‘formation of attachments to adult world’.
Entering the adult world (22 – 28)
Entry life structure for early adulthood
Novice phase
Create provisional structure for workable link between the ‘valued’ self and adult society
Women’s dreams and gender splitting.
‘Gender splitting’ occurs in adult development (Levison, 1986).
Men = Unified visions of future
Women = Dreams split between career and marriage
Disappointment and developmental tension? (Durkin, 1995)
Age 30 transition (28 – 33)
Opportunity to work on limitations and flaws of first life structure
Set foundations for more satisfactory structure for remaining young adulthood.
Settling Down (33-40)
Culminating life structure for early adulthood.
Consolidation of the second life structure
Shift away from tentative choices
Strong sense of commitment
Two substages early settling down (33-36) and becoming ones own man (BOOM)
Mid-life Transition (40 – 45)
Termination of early adulthood structure an initiation of new life structure.
Soul searching, questioning, what has my life meant so far?
Midlife Crisis
Is there a mid-life crisis (MLC)?
Levison et al. consider that crisis is inevitable, and necessary
No soul searching at this stage will … pay the price in a later developmental crisis or in a progressive withering of the self and a life structure minimally connected to the self. (Levinson et al., 1978)
Concept of MLC to narrow.
Adolescing (Marcia 1998) – making decisions about one’s identity occurs throughout the lifespan.
Symptoms of MLC such as divorce occur more frequently before middle age.
How valid are stage theories?
Propose a ‘ladder like’ progression.
Underestimates individual differences
Is there really a discontinuity in development?
Social Clock
People unconsciously determine whether they are on time or not.
Age deviancy?
Given sheer diversity of experience can we really describe major milestones which apply to everyone?
Marriage
Social Normative age-graded influence 90% of western adults marry at least once. Mortality Happier Healthier Lower rates of mental illness.
Marriage Benefits – Gender Differences
Bee (1994)
Marriage less psychologically protective for women.
Confiding and harmonious relationship important for both sexes, however marriage does not always provide this for women.
Gender Splitting – for women the benefits of a harmonious relationship often counterbalanced with stresses from combined career/parenthood.
Divorce
Non Normative Influence
Average marriage lasts 9 years in UK – Almost half end in divorce
Peaks during first 5 years and then after 15 – 25.
Effects stability of families
Stressor for both men and women
Greater for men
Parenthood
Social Age Graded Normative Influence?
90% of adults will become parents.
Varies in meaning and impact.
Number of motives.
Traditionally domain of married couples but changing.
Delay in age of mother having first child – Related to Gender Splitting?
Motherhood
In the post industrial/modern world we remain influenced by outmoded beliefs regarding the sexes (Kramer, 1998).
Motherhood Mandate (or Mystique), is an example of this and proposes women are born and reared to be mothers.
Implications:
Motherhood is ‘natural’
Unnatural or wicked for mother to leave her children
Unnatural for mother of young children to work
Women comprise 50% of workforce.
Now less likely to leave work to care for children, however, still more likely to do so than men.
Overwhelming majority of working women prefer to be in paid employment (Kremer, 1998)
Tension - contrary to motherhood mandate there is pressure to both work and raise a family – can lead to overwork and disillusionment.
Widening definition of ambition to include all elements which bring happiness (Hill & McVeigh, 2009)
Work
Love
Family
Evolutionary perspective on motherhood
Arguing that that being ambitious is just as natural for a woman as breastfeeding, Hardy (1999) notes that for millions of years mothers combined productive lives with reproduction.
What is different is the compartmentalisation of productive and reproductive lives.
Fatherhood
In dual-earner couples both husbands and wives report greater conflict than ‘traditional’ couples.
Child care more evenly shared in dual-earner couples, however, women still primarily responsible.
Little evidence therefore that domestic responsibilities have been lifted from women ’s shoulders
New perspectives
Pleck (1999) review.
11 studies between mid 1960s and early 1980s
13 studies between mid 1980s and early 1990s
Fathers engagement increased from 34.2% to 43.5%
Fathers availability increased from 51.8% to 65.6%
A more recent (though not systematic) review by Ferreira et al (2018) confirms this shift.
Majority of studies however, on married or cohabiting fathers.
However, in the UK two parent families decreasing
When all groups taken into account a divergent picture emerges.
Two parent families where father’s involvement is increasing
Single parent families where the father has less contact.
Lesbian and Gay Parenting
Early research considered considering difference between children of homosexual and heterosexual parents found little difference in risk.
Though there may be some negative effect from divorce children tend to adjust well to their family situations.
Increasingly focus is on parents themselves.
Coming out to the children.
Co-parenting in in different permutations.
Definition of depressive disorders
A sad or irritable mood along with physical and cognitive changes that affect the ability to behave and interact in a normal way.
Young children may experiences aches and pains rather than sadness.
Dysthymia (persistent depressive disorder)
At least 2 of 9 symptoms over a year
No more than 2 months without symptoms
Major depressive disorder
At least 5 of 9 symptoms within a two week period
Must be a noticeable change
Significant distress or impairment
Diagnosis of depressive disorders
Estimates vary from 1 – 6% of children/adolescents in UK
Higher rate in adolescence
No gender differences until adolescence when rate becomes much higher in girls (ratio at least 2:1)
Often co-occurs with conduct disorder or anxiety disorders
Increases the risk of depression in adulthood
Diagnosis of anxiety disorders
Approx. 7% of children / adolescents
Most common types (England): Generalised anxiety disorder and panic disorder
No gender difference until adolescence when rate becomes higher in girls than boys (almost 2:1)
Gender difference is greatest at 17-19 years (3:1)
Increased risk of anxiety in adulthood, particularly when anxiety disorders co-occur (common)
Risk factors
Various interacting risk factors rather than a definite cause.
Internalising and externalising disorders are particularly difficult to predict because of two concepts in developmental psychopathology:
Equifinality: Different factors / combinations can lead to the same disorder.
Multifinality: The same risk factors can result in different outcomes.
Social environment
Differential responses to the expression of difficulties by boys and girls
Modelling of behaviours
High control and criticism
Low warmth and sensitivity
Poor family functioning
Low income families
Victimisation by peers
(Cause of consequence not always clear; bidirectional influences)
Genetics
Often runs in families
Genes explains about 30-40% of the variance in internalising problems
Temperament (evident from birth)
Biological factors
Puberty may affect the stress response (disproportionately in girls)
Cognitive factors
Rumination
Unrealistic and negative thoughts
Cause or consequence?
Bignardi et al. (2020)
7- to 11-year-olds (n = 168)
Significant increase in depression scores during lockdown compared to pre-lockdown →
No significant change in anxiety or other emotional problems
Longer-term effects unknown
Item scores which increased: Feels like he/she doesn’t want to move Tired a lot Feels sad or empty Nothing is much fun for my child anymore
Disruptive, impulse-control and conduct disorders (externalising problems)
Problems in the self-regulation of emotions and behaviours which lead to conflict with others, distress and impaired functioning.
Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD)
Angry/irritable mood, argumentative/defiant behaviour, or vindictiveness
Often directed to familiar others
Starts before 12y
Conduct Disorder (CD) Persistent behaviour which violates the basic rights of others and societal norms Includes aggression, destruction, lying and stealing Childhood-onset (< 10y); Adolescent-onset (> 10y)
Diagnosis external
Approx. 5% of children / adolescents
ODD more common than CD
Higher rates in boys than girls ( almost 2:1), particularly for CD
Peaks from 11-16 years then declines dramatically
Often co-occurs with AD/HD, depression and anxiety
Risk factors: ODD
Family stress Marital conflict Parent depression Insecure attachment Difficult temperament (genetic basis) Low self-regulation
Risk factors: Childhood-onset CD
In addition to ODD risk factors:
Genetic factors (explain 40-50% of variance)
Physical vulnerabilities prenatally or at birth
Poverty, disadvantage, urban living
Violent and abusive parents
Cognitive factors, e.g., lower intelligence, biased processing
Low arousal
Risk factors: Adolescent-onset CD
Generally milder symptoms than childhood-onset CD
Strongly associated with a deviant peer group
Also associated with certain parenting styles:
Authoritarian parenting: hostile, restrictive rules with no reasoning, harsh punishment
Permissive parenting: low monitoring, few rules
Interventions for internalising and externalising problems
Child-focused interventions, e.g., SEN support at school, medication, cognitive behaviour therapy
Parent training programmes such as Triple P
Family therapy to address the dysfunctional family
But:
Interventions can be difficult to access (limited funding)
Requires motivation and cooperation from all involved
Doesn’t address the underlying societal problems that may be contributing to dysfunction
Summary
One in eight 5- to 19-year-olds in England had a mental disorder in 2017 and has increased since.
Depressive and anxiety disorders are also known as internalising problems. More commonly diagnosed in girls than boys in adolescence and lead to an increased risk of depression and anxiety in adulthood.
Disruptive, impulse-control and conduct disorders are also known as externalising problems. More commonly diagnosed in boys than girls but rates tend to decline rapidly after 16 years. Outcomes vary depending on the type of disorder but childhood-onset conduct disorder is associated with worse outcomes than adolescent-onset conduct disorder.
Internalising and externalising problems often co-occur. Dysfunctional families and adverse socio-economic environments are risk factors, in interaction with genetics and biological factors.
The concepts of multifinality (same factors leading to different outcomes) and equifinality (different factors leading to the same disorder) make it difficult to predict whether an individual child or adolescent will experience internalising and externalising problems, and if so what type.
