Adult Development and Ageing Lecture 11 PDF

1 ADULT DEVELOPMENT AND AGEING BASIC CONCEPTS OF ADULT DEVELOPMENT AND AGEING Lecture 11  LEARNING OUTCOMES 2 After studying this chapter you will be knowledgeable about: - historical and current viewp...

1 ADULT DEVELOPMENT AND AGEING BASIC CONCEPTS OF ADULT DEVELOPMENT AND AGEING Lecture 11  LEARNING OUTCOMES 2 After studying this chapter you will be knowledgeable about: - historical and current viewpoints on ageing - the sub stages of adult development - perspectives on age - the demographics of the human population - the life-span developmental perspective - the forces and influences of development - the issues in development - domains of development - research in adult development  WHY STUDY ADULT 3 DEVELOPMENT? What is normal & what is not? Based on theories & generated through research & further development Understand development in domains Research methodology: what works and what does not?  INTRODUCTION 4 Historical Viewpoints On Ageing For a long time the focus was on development in childhood and pathology in adulthood Current Viewpoints On Ageing Changes in life expectancy A new scientific discipline called gerontology: multidisciplinary study of old age and the ageing process Gero-psychology / geriatric psychology Geriatrics Substages of 5 Adulthood  early adulthood: (approx. 20 to 39)  middle adulthood: (approx. 40 to 59)  late adulthood: (approx. 60 to death) https://www.flexiprep.com/NIOS-Notes/Secondary/Psychology/NIOS-Class-10-Psychology-Chapter-12-Adulthood- and-Ageing.html  6 Defining age: Chronological age: number of years that have passed since a person’s birth. Functional age: total ability of an Perspectiv individual to function effectively in es On Age his/her environment. Psychological age: ability of a person to adjust to the environment & cope with associated challenges Social age: degree in which person’s role in society meets expectations & perceptions of society Biological age: physical condition of a person in comparison with his/her peer group.  7 The ageing process: Primary (typical, gradual physical deterioration) Secondary (physical deterioration accelerated by disease) tertiary ageing (process of terminal decline before death) The relativity and subjectivity of age: - personal age (how a person perceives & experiences https://www.vectorstock.com/royalty-free-vectors/aging-process-vectors his/her own age) - ageless self (experience by adults that the self remains the same, regardless of biological & chronological ageing) Legal definition (18 years; old enough to make own decisions) The Demographics Of The Human 8 Population  the gradual ageing of the world population  NB for psychologists: focus more on late adulthood  More demand for research and professional services  the decline in population growth rate  Crises (due to contraceptives, AIDS, etc)  Decline in younger population  urbanisation (moving to cities) and migration patterns https://www.istockphoto.com/illustrations/world-population  highly skilled professionals moving away – brain drain A LIFE-SPAN DEVELOPMENTAL 9 PERSPECTIVE PAUL BALTES: Key principles Development  is a life-long process: entire lifespan & all age groups equally important.  is multidimensional and multidirectional: development occurs in various dimensions & affects multiple aspects simultaneously.  is a combination of gains and losses: developmental processes increase & decrease throughout lifespan, since we both grow & decline.  shows plasticity: many aspects of development can be modified or altered: at any point a person’s experience can change their course of development e.g., substance abuse problem  is embedded in history and context: development occurs within a given cultural-historical context.  occurs in context: a person’s development is influenced by an interaction among many influences such as biological, social or environmental influences.  is multidisciplinary: development is influenced by multiple factors; no single perspective can therefore adequately explain the complexities of development. The Forces And Influences Of 10 Development The Interactive Forces: Biological forces All physical and physiological factors that affect development, such as changes in appearance (wrinkles, grey hair), as well as health related factors. Psychological forces Cognitive, emotional & personality factors that affect development; some change others remain stable. Sociocultural forces These refer to interpersonal, societal & cultural forces which provide the overall contexts in which we develop. Life-cycle forces Forces that affect the course of development & may be a combination of biological, psychological & sociocultural forces that affect people at different points of their lives. (interrelated & combine to influence development) Sets of influences that may affect development 11  normative age-graded influences  Experiences caused by biological, psychological & sociocultural forces & are usually associated with chronological age. E.g. menopause  normative history-graded influences  Influences result from events most people in specific culture experience at the same time. e.g. biological – AIDS/Covid-19 epidemic; psychological – attitudes towards women)  non-normative influences  Influences result from random or rare events that may affect a particular individual, but are not experienced by most people. e.g. winning the lotto or being in a car accident Consider the complexity & interactive nature of all of the forces Issues In Development 12 The nature-nurture issue Nature (Hereditary, genetic & biological factors) vs Nurture (environmental factors & experience) The stability-change issue Concerns the issue whether people change or remain the same over time The continuity-discontinuity issue Refers to whether development occurs gradually i.e., unfolding of potential or abruptly i.e., one stage looks distinctly different from the next. The activity-passivity issue Refers to whether people are actively involved in their own development or whether they are passive recipients of biological or environmental effects. Issues…. 13  The universality-context specific issue  Refers to the extent to which development is common to all humans (universal) or different from person to person (context specific).  The mechanistic-organismic-interactionist issue mechanistic: human behaviour results from biological or environmental forces upon which the individual passively reacts; development seen as continuous and quantitative in nature. organismic: People develop according to internally generated patterns of development; development occurs in a qualitative, orderly, stage like fashion. interactionist: combination approach genetics and environment  14 Physical development: Concerns changes in biological systems & structures of the body i.e., sensory capabilities, motor skills DOMAINS Cognitive development: OF Includes changes in mental functioning such as memory, intelligence, creativity, wisdom. DEVELOPM ENT Personality development: Involves the unique way in which individuals deal with the world, how they think about themselves and express their thoughts. Social development: Refers to changes in the person’s social world. It encompasses the world of interpersonal relationships, social roles, social networks and social responsibilities. Research In Adult Development 15 Quantitative research process where mainly statistical data are used to obtain information & to make predictions KINDS concerning a specific topic. OF RESEAR Qualitative CH research provide an in-depth understanding of what people experience Methods of Gathering Information 16 Sampling Data gathering Self-reports: Systematic Psychological Interviews/ testing observation questionnaires  17 Experimental design: 2 groups – experimental and control group – e.g. you want to see the effect of cognitive training on Alzheimer’s patients Correlation research: General You want to determine whether there is a relationship between variables e.g. is watching violent movies related to aggressive Research behaviour in children? Designs Case Studies: In- depth study of a single person / family / institution Meta-analysis: Review several studies with different / contradictory findings and use statistics to try and make sense of these findings – overall trend Research Designs For Studying 18 Adult Development Cross-sectional Longitudinal design: design: studying the persons of different age same sample over a groups studied long period of time together, results compared Sequential design: both longitudinal and cross-sectional are used