young adulthood

Question 1

what age is the period of young adulthood

Answer 1

18-40

Question 2

what is the transition period into adulthood

Answer 2

called emerging adulthood from the late teens to early 20s

Question 3

what key things are seen in the period of young adulthood

Answer 3

-this period sets up a persons development trajectory and we see cumulative effects build up e.g effects of smoking or high cholesterol are manifested in adulthood
-compensation through lifestyle choices: attenuating the effects of primary ageing and attempting to prevent aspects of secondary ageing

Question 4

what does good ageing/health usually consist of

Answer 4

optimism, exercise, following medical advice etc

Question 5

what does poor ageing/health usually consist of

Answer 5

anger, hostility, pessimism, depression, lack of exercise, poor diet, smoking, substance misuse

Question 6

what are the main biological changes occurring in young adulthood

Answer 6

brain development
reproduction
heart and lungs
immune system

Question 7

brain development in young adulthood

Answer 7

-brain not fully formed until roughly age 22, particularly frontal regions (ties into transition period of adulthood)
-frontal lobe responsible for personality, emotion reg, decisions etc
-volume loss seen here producing slower information processing

Question 8

Cao et al 2004 finding

Answer 8

production of new neurons driven by physical exercise and environment stimulation

Question 9

reproduction changes in young adulthood

Answer 9

harder to conceive from age 30+

Question 10

changes to heart and lungs in young adulthood

Answer 10

Vo2 max declines 1% every year from age 35

Question 11

immune system changes in young adulthood

Answer 11

loss of t and b cells so failure to fight off disease so readily
-social support can help with stress response and in turn helps with immune system (bouhuys et al 2004)

Question 12

what are some psychological changes occurring in young adulthood

Answer 12

relationships
mental health
decision making
IQ
creativity/productivity

Question 13

how do relationships changes effect young adulthood

Answer 13

stage 6 of Erikson’s model (intimacy vs isolation)
-in adulthood, people should be able to engage in supportive affectionate relationships without losing sense of self
-Robards et al 2012: single people tend to be less healthy and less satisfied
–weakness is that this def doesnt talk about the benefits of being single and person growth etc

Question 14

mental health changes in young adulthood

Answer 14

at ages 18-24 there is the highest emotional disturbance in life perhaps due to large scope for things to go wrong and the multitude of changes

Question 15

decision making changes in young adulthood

Answer 15

at this age people are learning to deal with abstract concepts and have to make many more decisions which are generally not black and white

Question 16

IQ changes

Answer 16

dip in IQ across mid 30s but not in all aspects

Question 17

creativity and productivity in young adulthood

Answer 17

peak productivity at 30-35 (dietrich 2004)
can start having ideas for yourself

Question 18

what are some of the social changes faced in young adulthood

Answer 18

parenthood
social networks
occupation

Question 19

parenthood as a change in young adulthood

Answer 19

-stressful but emotional high point
-brings many challenges
-friendships may be neglected
-relationship with partner may suffer
-career roles may change
-for single parents career progression may come to a holt
-transition from who you were to who you are now as a parent

Question 20

social networks in young adulthood

Answer 20

-new relationships formed/detached
-proximity to family may change
-family relationships still remain important
-reduced number of friends by middle adulthood (quality over quantity)

Question 21

occupation and young adulthood

Answer 21

-weighing up career options
-committing to a future is daunting
-education and family influence
-gender biases like how women are described in reference letters (women= collaborative, helpful; men = driven, innovative)
-job satisfaction rises from early adulthood to retirement (depending on job security and work life balance)

Question 22

why might young adulthood be the peak time for emotional disturbance

Answer 22

there are so many changes occurring, its typically the time indivs go from being dependent to independent, moving away from the family home etc

Question 23

might responses to challenges in young adulthood effect later life

Answer 23

-coping strategies like substance misuse effects us biologically and socially later in life
-continuity: coping in the past will likely influence how we cope now

Question 24

what is a consequence of successful ageing

Answer 24

-life expectancy is increasing e.g in 1940s: 63ys, 2021: 82yrs
-proportion of older adults exceeds the rate of population growth putting increased strain on economy and health care resources
-hence the need to promote optimal ageing measure to counteract secondary ageing factors

Question 25

rowe and kahn 1998 definition of optimal ageing and weaknesses

Answer 25

optimal ageing involves the absence of disease and disability, high cognitive and physical function and engagement with life
-disease and disability doesnt mean someone cant age well
-lacks psychosocial elements

Question 26

kamimoto et al 1999 definition of optimal ageing and weaknesses

Answer 26

5 ways to shorten your life:
1.being overweight
2.drinking/driving
3.not eating fruits/veg
4.being physically inactive
5.smoking

-lacks psychosocial factors

Question 27

mclaughlin et al 2010 definition of optimal ageing

Answer 27

successful agers are well educated

Question 28

world health organisation definition of optimal ageing

Answer 28

autonomy and independence are integral to ageing well

Question 29

biological factors influencing ageing

Answer 29

-exercise: predicts wellbeing, sedentary lifestyle = predisposition to health threats

-obesity: high BP, diabetes, sleep apnoea, heart disease etc

-diet: decline in nutrition usually seen when young adults leave home, contributes to obesity, type II diabetes, eating disorders etc

-smoking: lung cancer, mouth and throat cancer etc, immediate effects of quitting

Question 30

psychological factors influencing ageing

Answer 30

-self efficacy: belief in yourself you can make things happen

-sense of control: internal LOC promotes action and responsibility

-education: cog function predicts adaptation to demands of everyday life, successful agers are well educated (top 10%), education predicts physical and cognitive functioning which predicts wellbeing

Question 31

social factors influencing ageing

Answer 31

-socioeconomic status: impacts everyday choices

-life stress: impacts psychological/physical functioning, people who look after their health have ‘organ reserve’ to deal with stress (ability of organ to return to original physiological state following repeated episodes of stress)

-gender: women live longer than men, mens attitudes to health are changing (smoking and cholesterol etc) and men now encouraged to talk about their feelings so gap in life expectancy is narrowing

-social network: quality of friends over quantity, adults with adequate social support have lower risk of disease, depression and premature death

-social networking (social media): rise of FOMO, reduces life satisfaction, having to always be available produces stress and anxiety