Week 10 - Middle adulthood (40 > 60's)

Question 1

explain how mid-life is changing and define middle adulthood

Answer 1

MA is peak in self development
Self acceptance is more favourable

Baumeister & Vohs (2002) -
the quest for the meaning of life has 4 needs: purpose, values, sense of efficacy and self-worth

70% are religious/spiritual (women more than men)

Question 2

identify physical and cognitive changes in middle adulthood

Answer 2

Physical -
Declining physical skills
Chronic disorders increase (heart disease, cancer)
Stress contributes to chronic illness occurring
Vision declines: lens less flexible, rods and cones diminish
Hearing declines: for high pitch, cilia thin out, less flexible inner ear
Bone density declines
Grey hair and wrinkles increase (biological and environmental)
Climacteric: Fertility decreases (menopause)

Cognitive -
Erikson - Generativity (leaving legacies) vs. Stagnation (doing nothing for the next generation)
Increasing responsibility
Aware of young>old polarity
Desire to transmit something meaningful to the next generation and reach and maintain career satisfaction
Crystallised intelligence: accumulated info and verbal skills increases in MA
Fluid intelligence: the ability to reason abstractly, decline in MA
Perceptual speed decline
Expertise and problem solving skills increase.

Question 3

describe personality theories and development in middle adulthood

Answer 3

Personal contentment is at it’s highest
Focus now on roles/relationships

Identity -
Self-acceptance, autonomy and environmental mastery combine to strengthen the sense of ‘self’

Could do with more here . . .

Question 4

identify some important aspects of close relationships in middle adulthood

Answer 4

Gender roles in MA less restrictive
MA tend to have Emerging adults or young adults as kids, these connections are dependent on culture

Becoming a grandparent adds a new role
MA handle divorce better than YA

Marriage satisfaction -
U shape: high, low, high again

Child relationship -
Improves when they move out

Parental relationship -
Mutually supportive, but stress increases when care for parents increases.

Question 5

characterise career development, work and leisure in middle adulthood.

Answer 5

MA is a period of reflection and re-evaluation of career
The glass ceiling: an unspoken limit on career advancement for women due to discrimination
Burnout: a state of disillusionment, frustration and exhaustion of ones job (high in ‘helping’ professions)
Career change possible in MA
Growth in expertise can mean career development in MA
GIG economy means vocational world looks very different now.