Adulthood and Aging

By Vivian Vasquez

Topics

1. Social Clock2. Early Adulthood Transitions3. Physical Changes and Transitions4. Diseases Related to Aging5. Cognitive Changes and Transitions6. Social Changes and Transitions7. Dying and Death

Social Clock

• Social clock: culturally preferred timing of social events such as marriage, parenthood, and retirement.– Example: 16-18 yrs: get their license= “on time”

34 yrs: get their license, or haven’t yet= “off time”

Continued

• Social clocks have different settings in different cultures.

• Settings of a social clock can change within a culture too.– 10 yrs ago, the idea of settling down was different

than what it is now.

Early Adulthood Transitions

• Transitions= “STRESS”• You aren’t who you were 3 or 4 years ago.– Yet, our transitions to adulthood today will probably be

less abrupt than it would have been a generation ago.• Development psychologists have noticed that

adolescents are easing more slowly into the self-sufficiency of true adulthood.

• New development stage: 18-29 years– Called “emerging adulthood”

Continued

• “Emerging Adulthood” stage has 5 features: – Age of identity exploration– Age of instability– Age of self-focus– Age of feeling between– Age of possibilities

Physical Changes and TransitionsA. Middle Adulthood and Physical Changes( 36-64 yrs.)

1) Some cultures welcome the outward signs of growing older, believing that those who achieve advanced age deserve status and respect. Not in the U.S!!!!!2) Menopause: when the menstrual cycle ends; also refers to the biological changes a woman experiences as her ability to reproduce declines. -does not make most women depresses or irrational-some do experience “hot flashes” as their bodies adjust to the decreased amount of estrogen in their hormonal systems, but study after study has found that menopause women are no more

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• Males= testosterone and sperm levels dropB.• “Mid-life Crisis”: the exception. They may or may not

happen.– May be considered the stuff of jokes and stereotypes.

Who knows? – It all depends.

B. Later Adulthoods Physical Change• Sight, smell, hearing, muscle strength, and stamina

start to diminish in late adulthood and out bodies take longer to heal from injury.

• Immune system weakens, but, by 65, you’ve built up antibodies to all viruses you’ve ever had; harder to catch cold.

• Aging>brain• By age 80, brain= 5% less than right now. • Remain physically and mentally active.

Disease Related to Aging

A. Alzheimer’s disease- loss of memory, reasoning, language, and physical functioning.

B. Senile Dementia-mental disintegration; accompanies alcoholism, tumor, stroke, aging, and, sometimes, Alzheimer’s-Dementia: be caused by anything that results in substantial loss of brain cells.

Cognitive Changes and Transitions

A. Memory-people in 50s or older recall events from teen to early 20s-Our age group= best recall memory-Recognition: remains stable from ages 20-60

B. Intelligence-Fluid intelligence: think SUDOKU-Crystallized intelligence: accumulated knowledge (increases)

Social Changes and TransitionsA. College Majors and Work

-Most first or second-year college students: change initial major -can’t accurately predict careers they will have later in life-change careers after entering the workforce-post college employment= different-quality of experience= happiness-What is happiness?*having work that is challenging, provides a sense of accomplishment, and fits interest.

B. Love and Marriage-opposites DO NOT attract: it all dependslove by any name is vital to a happy adulthood

• It lasts longer and is more satisfying when marked by:– Intimate self disclosure– Shared emotional support– Similar interests

• 90% of population gets married at least once.• Lasts longer if: members are over 20, have

stable income, date a long time before marriage, and are well educated.

• Stable marriages: 5 to 1 positive to negative interactions

• Children:– Empty-nest syndrome– Middle age women with children at home = lower

happiness and less motherly satisfaction than those w/o children at home

– “post launch honeymoon”C. A lifetime of well-being

-Around 25 yrs., report feeling worthless, sad, or nervous than 70yrs-emotions: less extreme, more enduring later in life-Older people= CONTENTMENT

Dying and Death

• Reactions to death vary from culture to culture– Africa– Muslims– United States

• Death is the only guaranteed thing in life

Sources

• www.allthingsworkplace.com• www.webmed.com