Exam #4 -13-17 Flashcards
What age range is defined as middle adulthood
40 to 60-65
Visible signs of aging in middle adulthood
- physical appearance
- wrinkles
- saggy skin
- age spots
- grey hair
- brittle nails
Changes to height and weight during middle adulthood
- Height loss
- weight gain
men lose 0.5 inches
women lose 2.0 inches
Sarcopenia
The loss of muscle mass and strength due to age
- after 50 = 1-2% of muscle loss per year
- smoking or diabetes = risk factor
Changes to joints and bone density throughout adulthood
Cartilage and connective tissue begin to decline causing stiffness and less movement
Bones break more easily and heal slowly
-women lose bone mass faster than man
- eating more fruits and vegetables can help increase bone density
Changes to vision and hearing throughout adulthood
vision (40-59)
- harder to see
- difficulty reading
- difficulty recognizing people
hearing (40)
- high pitch sounds harder to hear
- low pitched sounds are harder to hear
Decline of cardiovascular system decline in midlife
- high blood pressure
- high cholesterol
maintain healthy diet, exercising, weight control
Metabolic syndrome
a condition characterized by hypertension, obesity, and insulin resistance
- regular exercise and weight loss
Menopause
when a woman stops getting her period
- regular exercise, dietary supplements, HRT, etc
Hormonal changes in middle aged men
-lose 1% of testosterone per year
- sperm count declines
TRT and viagra
Crystallized intelligence
is one’s accumulated information and verbal skills which increases.
Fluid intelligence
is an individual’s ability to reason abstractly which declines in middle adulthood.
Erikson’s 7th stage
Generativity vs stagnation
- trying to leave a legacy of themselves behind for future generation so they will never be forgotten
- come to the realization that they have not done anything significant for the next generation
Importance of generativity for middle age
contributes to
- positive social engagement with family and community,
- better health in late adulthood - greater wisdom in late adulthood.
Levinson’s view on midlife crisis
midlife as a crisis and middle aged adults are looking at the past and the future knowing there is no going back in life so they are trying to cope with this gap
Valliant’s view on midlife crisis
middle aged adults are telling the truth about adolescence and adulthood and reassessing their past.
- A midlife crisis is not really that common based on what the experts say
Five big factors of personality
openness
conscientiousness
extraversion
agreeableness
neuroticism
Openness
they can be either imaginative or practical, they like variety or routine, and they can be either independent or conforming.
- tend to live longer
- have superior cognitive functioning
- have better health and well being
Conscientiousness
they can be organized or disorganized, careful or careless, or they can be disciplined or impulsive
- increases throughout life
Extraversion
they can either be fun loving or somber, affection or reserved, or socials or retiring. These individuals high in extraversion are more likely to be satisfied in relationships and have a higher well being.
Agreeableness
they can be softhearted or ruthless, trusting or suspicious, or helpful or uncooperative.
- tend to live longer
- be more generous
- have satisfying romantic relationships
- experience less stressors
- less likely to engage in physical activity.
Neuroticism
they can either be calm or anxious, secure or insecure, or self satisfied or self pitying.
High conscientiousness and longevity
These individuals high in conscientiousness tend to live longer, have positive life satisfaction, better health and less stress, and higher levels of marital satisfaction to name a few
High in neuroticism and longevity
These individuals high in neuroticism are likely to die younger, have worse health, become drug dependent, lower levels of marital satisfaction, and have a lower sense of well being.
