Unit 4 Flashcards
what are some role transitions into adulthood?
Completing education
Beginning full time employment
Establishing independent household
Getting married
Becoming a parent
VARIES, not all experience
what are 6 features of Emerging Adulthood?
Identity exploration (figuring yourself out)
Instability (repeated residence changes)
Self-focus (What, where, who w/o family & career pressures)
Feeling in between (beginning to take responsibility)
Possibilities (optimistic about love, life, career, etc.)
Heterogeneity (diverse paths)
what stage did Erikson say was young adulthood?
intimacy vs. isolation
what are two common trends with personalities in young adults when figuring out their future?
Scenario
-Plan or path for expectations about future
-What will my life be like in 10 years
Social Clock
-Putting times with your future scenario
-EX: Married by 25, kids by 27
what four things do young adults peak in physically?
strength
coordination
dexterity
sensory acuity
examples of things that are threats to the physical well-being of young adults
Smoking
binge drinking
poor nutrition
obesity
low SES
low education level
ethnicity
what is Piaget mean by postformal thought?
Relies on subjective experience, intuition, and logic
Thinking is flexible
-Truth may vary across situations
Many causes and possible solutions
-Integrate emotion with logic (how you feel about decisions)
-Abstract reasoning and practical considerations
Pragmatic
-Choose best solution, given criteria
what are Sternberg’s 3 components of love?
Passion
-Physical and psychological arousal component (sexual attraction)
Intimacy
-Emotional components, can share all thoughts and feelings with another
Commitment
-Willingness to stay with person through good & bad times (cognitive component)
what is love like early in a relationship?
Passion is high, infatuation, passionate love
what is love like later in a relationship?
Intimacy, commitment, companionate love
-relationship is likely to end here
what is Assortative Mating?
People find partners based on similarity
-Religion, physical traits, age, SES, intelligence, politics, personality
Physical proximity & timing (social clock) important
-BIRDS OF A FEATHER FLOCK TOGETHER
what is Singlehood?
Temporarily single (looking for suitable partner)
Choosing to remain single
Enjoy freedom & flexibility
May be lonely, dissatisfied with dating and limited social life, less secure
what is Cohabitation?
Unmarried couple living together
-Becoming more common among couples with committed, intimate relationships
-Cheaper, more accepted
what are three types of cohabitation?
Part-time / limited cohabitation
-Based on convenience and sexual accessibility
-No long term commitment!
-Financially, lonely
Premarital cohabitation
-Trial marriage
Substitute marriage
-Long term commitment without legal marriage
what are the trends of Marital satisfaction?
-high early on and after kids leave
-declines with time and birth of kids
what are the average ages of marriage in men and women?
Men: 28.7 yrs
Women: 26.5 yrs
what are three factors that help marriages succeed?
Level of psychosocial development
-Intimacy difficult unless both partners have strong sense of identity
Homogamy
-Similar values and interests
Equity
-Feeling relationship is equal
-Exchange theory
what is the exchange theory?
Both partners perceive fair exchange in the relationship for needs
how does waiting to have kids impact the fathers involvement?
The later you wait to have kids, the more involved fathers will be in raising
-Work-life balance
what is correlated with job satisfaction?
age!
-does not cause!!
what are some third variables for age and job satisfaction being correlated?
Self-selection (able to pick the job you love)
Focus on other aspects of life (not so serious)
Changing responsibilities at work & home
what are occupational transitions?
People willingly change their career path
Others have no choice when their job is eliminated for one of several reasons
what are some pros and cons of occupational transitions?
CONS: depression, financial stress, lost identity, moving
Impacts middle-aged adults the most!
PROS: explore better options, new relationships
what are two types of job stress?
burnout
alienation
what is burnout?
depletion of energy & motivation due to pace & pressure of job
what are some ways to cope with burnout?
Reduce stress
Enhance communication & flexibility
Modify expectations of self
Work / life balance
what is alienation?
you don’t feel valued in your position
-Common in manufacturing (simple tasks), EMT (hands off patient, doesn’t get praise)
what is Glass Ceiling?
Level behind which women & minorities may not rise
-Fewer women and minorities in executive positions
-Women earn less than men for the same job
how do men and women’s ideal number of work hours change with kids?
-women want to vary their work hours
-men want to stay the same
why do women want to vary their work hours with kids?
Women juggle multiple roles
-Perform majority of household chores, regardless of employment status
-Balance important to minimize work-family conflict
what are the top two priorities in their life for a 25-34yr, 35-54yr, 55-65yr, 70-84yr, and 85-100yr?
25-34yr: work, friends
35-54yr: family, work
55-65yr: family, health
70-84yr: family, health
85-100yr: health, family
what is Senescence?
decline caused by aging
what are some physical changes during decline senescence?
Wrinkles & age spots
Grey hair
Baldness
Weight gain (metabolism slows)
Join stiffness
Loss of bone mass (osteoporosis)
what are changes in middle adult women reproduction?
climacteric: decrease in ability to produce children
-menopause: decrease in estrogen
-replacement therapy is BAD
what are changes in middle adult men reproduction?
-quantity & quality of sperm decreases
-replacement therapy is GOOD
what is the cognitive development like for middle adults?
-high-level skills (expertise, flexibility)
-practical intelligence (changing a tire)
-lifelong learning
what is the Seattle Project?
when does cognition decrease?
-sequential research
-22-70yr olds were given cognitive tests
-cross-sectional & longitudinal data was different
what was the conclusion of the Seattle Project?
most cognitive during 50s
-gradual decrease after
what was the cross-sectional & longitudinal data different?
Cohort Effects
-inference doesn’t align with longitudinal
what is personality like for middle adults?
-stable for at least 12 years
-midlife crisis not supported
-priorities change (generativity, stagnation)
what is generativity?
helping those younger than you
what is stagnation?
not helping others, self-focus
what are the family dynamics for middle adults?
parent-child relationship increases as young adults
-sandwich generation
what is sandwich generation?
-children eventually take care of parents
-daughters are more likely
what are the demographics of elders?
people are living longer (better healthcare, better educated)
-elders have more political & economic power
what is the third age? (the young old)
60-80yrs
-have a lot to look forward to
-cognitive & emotional processes intact
what is the fourth age? (the oldest old)
over 80yrs
-limits in daily functioning
-cognitive level decreases
-chronic stress
-dementia
what two things happen to the neurons in elders? describe the difference
neurofibrillary tangles: axons twisted together
neuritic plaques: dead neurons around protein core
