Middle Adulthood: SOCIAL AND PERSONALITY Flashcards
What is Eriksons stage in middle adulthood?
Generativity versus stagnation stage
what is the generativity versus stagnation stage?
- Middle-aged adults find meaning in contributing to the development of younger individuals
- Giving back to the community
- Not achieved = self-absorption or stagnation
What is generativity?
A sense that one is making a valuable contribution to society by bringing up children or mentoring younger people (teaching, mentoring, leading in civic, religious or charitable organizations)
What is some of the research on generativity?
- Generativity is positively related to mental health at middle age
- A more prominent theme for women than for men
- More prominent in middle age, but may continue into older ages
- Generativity is something of a two-way street.
- Cultures that support generativity foster individuals who internalize the value of generativity and who, in turn, show more generativity, and life satisfaction, in middle age
- Cultures that encourage respect for elders by its younger citizens, have higher levels of generative acts and well-being in older citizens.
Who believed that there was a stage after the generativity vs stagnation stage? And what did they call it?
Vaillant argued that there is a stage following generativity versus stagnation called keeper of the meaning
what is the keeper of the meaning stage?
- Middle-aged adults focus on preserving the institutions and values of their culture that they believe will benefit future generations
- Childhood experiences impact adult success and well-being (greater generativity and healthy aging) – impact of generativity on children
- However, adverse childhood experiences could be compensated for through resiliency and effective coping
What is a midlife crisis?
- Midway between school and death, a person’s perspective shifted from “time since birth” to “time left before death”
- The realization of the inevitability of death, along with other indicators of time passing, seemed to be a universal phenomenon that hit people during their 40s
• Now, however, the timing and nature of major life events have changed dramatically
Several studies since the 1980s have failed to identify distinct ages at which measures of “mid-life crisis” occurred
What is the lifes events approach?
a theoretical perspective on middle adulthood that focuses on normative and non-normative events and how adults in this age group respond to them
- All middle-aged adults are dealing with new stressors for which they must develop new ways of coping
What is role conflict?
any situation in which two or more roles are at least partially incompatible, either because they call for different behaviours or because their separate demands add up to more hours than there are in the day
What is role strain?
the strain experienced by an individual whose own qualities or skills do not measure up to the demands of some role
Are family roles still an important part in middle age?
yes
What happens with martial stability and satisfaction during middle adulthood?
Marital stability and satisfaction increase in mid-life as conflicts over child-rearing and other matters decline
what happens with friendships during middle adulthood?
Shared friendships increase, while non-shared friendships decrease
- Mid-life friendships are as intimate and close as at earlier ages
- Since role conflicts are fewer at this age, the need for a social network for emotional support may be lower
- Friendship depends less on frequent contact than on a sense that friends are there to provide support as needed
What is skilled diplomacy?
- a problem-solving approach that involves the confrontation of the spouse about an issue, followed by a period during which the confronting spouse works to restore harmony
- Is practised more often by wives than by husbands
- Appears to be an effective skill for marital problem-solving no matter which spouse uses it
What is the perspective of middle-aged adults when it comes to family relationships? what is it called?
we have to look in both directions: down the generational chain to relationships with grown children and up the chain to relationships with aging parents
- mid-life squeeze
What is the sandwich generation?
- aka multigeneration caregivers
- individuals who experience the mid-life squeeze
What is the caregiver burden?
caregivers reported experiencing a variety of difficulties and challenges
Do caregivers get personal satisfaction or enjoyment from providing assistance to a care recipient?
yes
What are high-intensity sandwich generation caregivers like?
Canadian high-intensity sandwich generation caregivers who spend more time on elder care than low-intensity caregivers also incur
- extra expenses
- are absent from work more often
- have a reduced quality of life in terms of cancelled holiday plans
- reduced social activities
- less time for their own families
List the basic styles of grandparenting
- companionate relationships
- remote relationships
- involved relationships
What is the companionate relationship of grandparenting?
grandparents have frequent contact and warm interactions with grandchildren
What is the remote relationship of grandparenting?
grandparents do not see their grandchildren often
What is the involved relationship of grandparenting?
grandparents are directly involved in the everyday care of grandchildren or have close emotional ties with them
What are the changes of the big 5 personality traits in middle adulthood?
- Openness, extraversion, and neuroticism decline as adults age
- Agreeableness increases up until around age 70 and conscientiousness increases as well
