b6 - major life events that affect development Flashcards
what are predictable life events?
events that are expected to happen to an individual at a particular time
predictable event - starting school or nursery
positive learning - learning to make new friends and cope with change
risk of stress - feeling unsafe, withdrawing from others, loss of support from parents
predictable event - beginning and changing employment
positive learning - choosing a work role and having an income from employment
risk of stress - feeling pressured by new demands on time and mental energy, difficulty in adapting, loss of past lifestyle
predictable event - leaving home or care
positive learning - achieving independence, controlling personal environment
risk of stress - feeling unable to cope in a new situation, feeling pressured by new tasks, loss of family or care support
predictable event - leaving prison
positive learning - coping with freedom and choice
risk of stress - loss of routine and structured environment, possible discrimination
predictable event - marriage
positive learning - emotional attachments and intimacy
risk of stress - feel threatened by intimacy and sharing possessions, possible loss of independence
predictable event - parenthood
positive learning - attachment to infant, learning new parenting skills
risk of stress - disruption of previous lifestyle, loss of free tine, loss of sleep, new demands on time and energy
predicable event - retirement
positive learning - controlling own life, disengaging from work
risk of stress - loss of work roles, loss of contact with colleagues, difficulty establishing new lifestyle
what are unpredictable life events?
happen unexpectedly, can impact on an individual’s psychical and psychological wellbeing
unpredictable event - birth of a sibling
positive learning - learning to make new emotional attachments
risk of stress - jealousy and rivalry, emotional tensions because family role changes, older children may lose attention from parents
unpredictable event - redundancy
positive learning - learning to adapt to changes in income and lifestyle
risk of stress - refusal to accept change, anger or depression, failure to cope with loss of income and lifestyle
unpredictable event - illness or serious injury
positive learning - learning to cope with physical change
risk of stress - grief at loss of good health, anger or depression, failure to adapt to disability
unpredictable event - divorce
positive learning - learning to cope with a new lifestyle
risk of stress - resentment or depression, grief at loss of relationship, failure to adapt to new lifestyle, possible financial hardship
unpredictable event - bereavement
positive learning - learning to cope with loss and a new lifestyle
risk of stress - grief at loss of relationship, failure to adapt to unwanted lifestyle
effect of life events on health
- major life events can affect growth and development
- some events may result in low income or even a complete loss of income
- other events may affect home life or community and social networks
- even predictable and welcome changes can involve learning new things and coping with a range of losses
holmes - rahe social readjustment rating scale
- questionnaire to identify major stressful life events
- identifies 43 different life events each with a different score for stress level, ask participants to scorer how experienced events affected their stress levels
- the higher the score and the importance of each event, the more likely an individual was to become unwell
- however individuals are likely to experience stress in different ways, but holmes and rahe assumed that each stressor would affect people in the same way
- for example, some people may see the end or breakdown of a relationship to be stressful whereas someone else may see it to be a relief
stress levels
- stress is an automatic response to dealing with challenging situations or life events
- body gets flushed with hormones that increase heart rate, blood pressure, energy, and prepares you to deal with the problem (fight or flight)
- if prolonged, stress can interfere with day to day life and cause an individual to become unwell
- the effect of stress and how well an individual can cope with stress depends on how threatened and vulnerable they feel, rather than the event itself
- stress can be short term or long term, where it ends up affecting an individual’s health
