social and emotional aspects of later adulthood

Question 1

Carl Jung’s theory basic premises

Answer 1

the principle of entropy -> the tendency for all energy to become equally distributed, not daily but over time

Question 2

Carl Jung

Answer 2

◦The unconscious
‣ Personal unconscious
* Things you do not want to or cannot access about why you do things
‣ Collective unconscious
* Do I believe it? (Maybe not) but is it cool?
◦Archetypes
* The idea of what someone or something should be even if you do not
have it
‣ Anima and animus
* Anima - female part of men
* Animus - male part of women
‣ Shadow and ego
* Ego - the conscious part of you that wants to do good
* Shadow - the part in all of us that is driven to destruction
‣ Physical and spiritual
◦Mandala - a circle and symbol balance and unity

Question 3

the theory of development

Answer 3

◦Childhood - largely unconscious
◦Early adulthood - largely conscious
◦Middle adulthood - midlife crisis
old age

Question 4

middle adulthood of the theory of development

Answer 4

‣ Psychic balance
* From conscious to unconscious
◦With conscious sometimes starting to want to engage in bigger questions and answer them but not being able to
* From external to internal
* Balance of anima and animus
The healthy integration of one into the other
‣ Tension
* Environmental resistance
* The greatest failure is to ignore aging and death
◦Do not necessarily look for death but also dont try to avoid it and act like it does not exist

Question 5

old age in the theory of development

Answer 5

◦Old age
‣ Staring death in the face -> major task of one’s later years, fits with existentialism
‣ Spirituality -> vision of the Hereafter is necessary for successful functioning
‣ Individuation -> consciousness and balance
* Becoming conscious of both sides of all parts or ourselves

◦Archetype of eternity

Question 6

support for Jung’s theory

Answer 6

◦Largely unscientific
◦Levinson’s studies - midlife crisis
◦Bernice neugarten’s studies
‣ Energy away from outer life to inner life
‣ Aging and androgyny

Question 7

Erikson’s theory on old age

Answer 7

◦Middle adulthood -> generativity versus stagnation
◦Old age -> ego integrity versus despair
‣ Positive outcome
* Search for wisdom
* Life review and search for meaning in the face of death
* Transcendent feeling of companionship
‣ Negative outcome
* Anger and disgust
* Fear of death
* Shallow pride

Question 8

effects of aging on marriages

Answer 8

Effects of aging on marriages
* Marriages that survive this long, tend to be relatively healthy
◦New forms of balance
‣ Less gender stereotyped
‣ Less focused on physical status
‣ More companionship and mutual reliance
◦Ability to look at shared past
‣ Take pleasure in family they have created
‣ Look at what we have created

• A lot of variation, sometimes the miserable just become more miserable
  ◦Can be very difficult if one of them dies on the other spouse

Question 9

effects of retirement

Answer 9

• retirement can have a negative effect on people’s self-esteem and sense of meaning. Especially:
  ◦People who are struggling financially
  ◦Have sacrificed a lot to start their job
  ◦Primarily define themselves in terms of their career
  ◦Do not feel connected to their community
  ◦Waited too long to retire (end up pushed out of their job and are also not in good health so
  they can’t enjoy their golden years)
• Gradual retirement can be helpful to many: especially for stay-at-home wives who have trouble

Question 10

depression and mental health

Answer 10

• depression is a major fact for older adults
  ◦Loss of relationships due to the death and loss of mobility
  ◦Loss of joy due to less sensory stimulation
  ◦Increase in health problems and pain
  ◦Loss of purpose due to job loss and social distancing
  ◦Realization of all that one is losing
• Hard to get an accurate rate of depression -> the scales are confounded with the effects of aging
  ◦Trouble staying asleep or sleeping too much
  ◦Poor appetite or overeating
  ◦Moving or speaking so slowly that other people notice

Question 11

loss of freedom in older adults

Answer 11

◦Loss of Driver’s license is a major blow
‣ Loss of adulthood status
‣ Dependence on others for daily needs
◦Family members taking over financial and other matters
◦Motility issues - lack of freedom even within One’s home
◦Ellen Langer’s work - even simple choices make a difference