45 Questions
What is the major focus of human development in the later years of life?
To clarify, deepen, and accept one's own life
What happens to people's characteristics and abilities in later life?
They are accentuated
What is essential for reasonably healthy people to continue having a rich sexual life?
No specific requirements
What happens to a person's ability to think, learn, and remember when they use their mind and memory?
It improves significantly
What is true about older people who keep active lives?
They are happiest
What is the major loss experienced by older people during a major transition point?
Death of a spouse
What is a characteristic of older people who take a more passive and disengaged approach?
They are happiest
Who is quoted in the passage about being 'seventy years young'?
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.
According to research, what is the primary source of well-being for older adults?
Internal sources (emotional and psychological)
What continues into the last years of life?
Human development
What is the last developmental task of life?
Dealing with death
What is prohibited without the prior written permission of SLU?
Reproduction, storing in a retrieval system, distributing, uploading or posting online, or transmitting
What is correlated with a decrease in regrets in family life?
Increase in psychological well-being
What is the purpose of life review in older adults?
To reinterpret and evaluate life experiences
What theory suggests that older adults become more selective about their social networks?
Socioemotional Selectivity Theory
What happens to the brain with age?
It loses weight and volume
What has dramatically increased, while life span has not?
Life expectancy
What is a common physical change associated with aging?
Wrinkled skin and age spots
What age group is described as the 'young-old'?
65-74 years old
What happens to cardiovascular health in late adulthood?
Cardiovascular disorders increase
What contributes to becoming a centenarian?
Genetics, health, and coping well with stress
What is the most common chronic disorder in late adulthood?
Arthritis
What is a common cognitive mechanics decline in older adults?
Speed of processing
What type of memory tends to remain unaffected in older adults?
Semantic memory
What is a common predictor of depression in older adults?
Earlier depressive symptoms
What is the most common dementia characterized by gradual deterioration of memory, reasoning, language, and eventually physical functioning?
Alzheimer disease
What happens to people's height as they age?
They get shorter
What is the estimated number of people above the age of 60 who may be affected by elder abuse?
2 million
What is the most common perpetrator of elder abuse?
Family member
What is the primary goal of hospice care?
To make the end of life as pain-free as possible
What is the term for the act of painlessly ending the lives of individuals who are suffering from an incurable disease or severe disability?
Euthanasia
What is the term for allowing a person to die by withholding available treatment?
Passive euthanasia
What is the typical reaction of adults when informed that they are going to die?
Denial
What is the term for reducing pain and suffering and helping individuals die with dignity?
Palliative care
At what stage of life do children typically develop a more realistic orientation toward death?
Elementary school years
What is the final stage of the dying process, according to Elisabeth Kübler-Ross?
Acceptance
What is the primary goal of the bargaining stage of dying?
To make a deal with a higher power to prolong life
According to Roger Gould, what is the primary development that occurs between the ages of 29-34?
Questioning self and role confusion
What is the primary theme of Daniel Levinson's Seasons of Life Theory?
Midlife crisis and uncertainty
What is the primary task of personality development in elderly people, according to Robert Peck?
Ego-transcendence and body-transcendence
What is the primary characteristic of the acceptance stage of dying?
Showing little feeling or emotion
What is the primary goal of life review in older adults?
To resolve lingering problems and conflicts
What is the primary development that occurs between the ages of 35-43, according to Roger Gould?
Period of urgency to attain life's goals
What is the primary characteristic of people who keep active lives, according to George Valliant?
They seek to extract meaning from their lives
What is the primary task of the depression stage of dying?
To become engulfed in feelings of sadness and despair
Study Notes
Late Adulthood and Aging
- Development continues into the last years of life, with unique demands on the individual to grow, develop, and change.
- Major developmental tasks of later adulthood:
- Clarify, deepen, and accept one's own life
- Use experiences to manage personal change
- Later years often accentuate early and middle-life characteristics and abilities rather than alter them.
- Well-being in older adults comes more from internal sources (emotional and psychological) than external factors (social).
Theories on Late Adulthood
- Life Review:
- Involves looking back at one's life experiences, evaluating, and interpreting them
- Often reinterpreting past events
- Identifying and reflecting on regrets as part of developing mature wisdom and self-understanding
- Activity Theory:
- The more active and involved older adults are, the more likely they are to be satisfied with their lives
- Socioemotional Selectivity Theory:
- Older adults become more selective about their social networks
- They value emotional satisfaction and spend more time with familiar individuals
Physical Development
- Longevity:
- Life expectancy: the number of years an average person born in a particular year will live
- Life span: the maximum number of years an individual can live
- Life expectancy has increased, but life span has not
- Physical changes:
- Brain loses weight and volume with age
- Decline in immune system functioning
- Wrinkled skin and age spots
- People get shorter and weight often decreases after age 60
- Decline in visual acuity, color vision, and depth perception
Cognitive Development
- Cognitive Functioning:
- Two aspects: cognitive mechanics (hardware) and cognitive pragmatics (software)
- Cognitive mechanics decline in older adults, while cognitive pragmatics remain stable or improve
- Cognitive changes:
- Decline in speed of processing
- Difficulty retrieving semantic information
- Decline in working memory and perceptual speed
- Most memory losses are linked to episodic memory
- Decision-making is reasonably well-preserved in older adults
Mental Health
- Depression:
- Predictors: earlier depressive symptoms, poor health, disability, loss events, and low social support
- Majority of older adults with depressive symptoms never receive mental health treatment
- Alzheimer's disease:
- Most common dementia
- Characterized by gradual deterioration of memory, reasoning, language, and physical functioning
Issues in Late Adulthood
- Elder abuse:
- Physical or psychological maltreatment or neglect of elderly individuals
- Often committed by family members
- Social issues:
- Negative stereotypes of older adults
- Social policy issues: economy, Social Security, healthcare, eldercare, and generational inequity
Defining Death and Death Issues
- Issues in determining death:
- Brain death: neurological definition of death when all electrical activity of the brain has ceased
- Euthanasia: "easy death" or the act of painlessly ending the lives of individuals suffering from an incurable disease
- Quality of life: an issue raised by technological advances in life-support devices
- Attitudes towards death:
- Vary among adults of any age
- Infants and preschool children have little concept of death
- Adolescents have abstract, philosophical views of death
- Middle-aged adults show heightened consciousness about death and death anxiety
- Older adults often show less death anxiety, but experience and converse about death more
Stages of Dying
- Elisabeth Kübler-Ross's five stages of dying:
- Denial and isolation
- Anger
- Bargaining
- Depression
- Acceptance
Building on Erikson's Views
- Roger Gould's Transformations in Adult Development:
- Seven stages of adult development, from desire to escape parental control to acceptance of one's life
- George Valliant's Keeping Meaning versus Rigidity:
- Adults seek to extract meaning from their lives by accepting strengths and weaknesses of others
- Daniel Levinson's Seasons of Life Theory:
- Midlife crisis: a stage of uncertainty and indecision brought about by the realization that life is finite
- Robert Peck's Personality in Late Adulthood:
- Three major developmental tasks: redefinition of self, body-transcendence, and ego-transcendence
- Life review and reminiscence: a common theme of personality development in older adults
This quiz covers the human development and growth during the late adult years, exploring the unique demands and changes that occur after the age of 60.
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