Chapter 15Sensory Changes• Presbyopia: age-related, progressive loss of the eye’s ability to focus on nearby objects due to the loss of elasticity in the lens.• Myopia: nearsightedness, increases through middle age• Presbycusis: age-related, gradual loss of hearing which accelerates after age 55, especially with regard to sounds at higher frequenciesBasal Metabolism: use of energy to maintain vital functions.• Loss of endurance results from gradual decrease in the rate of basil metabolismSexual Issues• Menopause: cessation of menstruation and of ability to bear children, hot flashes, loss of sex drive (age 45-55)• Perimenopause: period of several years during which a woman experiences physiological changes of menopause; includes first year after end of menstruation, called climacteric.• Erectile dysfunction: inability of a main to achieve or maintain an erect penis sufficient for satisfactory sexual performance• Sex therapy is available, both physically and mentallyHealth• Hypertension: chronically high blood pressure• Diabetes: disease in which the body does not produce or properly use insulin, a hormone that converts sugar, starches, and other foods into energy needed for daily life• Osteoporosis: condition in which the bones become thin and brittle as a result of rapid calcium depletion• Cancer is leading cause of death, then heart disease• Risk factors: smoking, drinking, low SES• Women tend to be healthier than men• 45-65 most common obesity ageStress• Very high stress levels at this age• Stress is the response to physical of psychological demands• Stressors are perceived environmental demands that may produce stress• When daily stress occurs, it becomes important to develop good coping skills• Chronic stress drops immune system efficiency• Acute stress boosts immune system temporarily• Middle age adults most likely to have mental health issues: depression, anxietyIntelligence• Fluid intelligence: the ability to solve novel problems that require little or no previous knowledge, such as discovering a pattern in a sequence of figureso Mostly young adults• Crystallized intelligence: the ability to remember and use info acquired over a lifetime, such as finding a synonym for a wordo Mostly adults in middle adulthoodUniqueness• Expertise: completely mastered knowledge of a skill or information, becomes automatic• Encapsulation: progressive dedication of info processing and fluid thinking to specific knowledge systems, making knowledge more readily accessible• Integrative thought: bringing 2 types of thought together (logic and emotions)• Creativity peaks in early-middle adulthood o Losses in quantity are made up by qualityWork• A shift away from early retirement and toward more flexible options is occurringo Problems with financeso People are happy in their jobso Better education leads to reduced need to work longer• Complex work may improve cognitive flexibility• People used to retire earlier because life span’s were shorterChapter 16Trait Models• Big 5, people tend to be more socially mature; confident, warm, responsible, and calm, as they mature through the prime of lifeo This enables them to be more productive contributors at work and to society and to lead longer and healthier livesNormative Stage Models• Individuation: emergence of the true self through balancing or integration of conflicting parts of the personality, including those parts that have previously been rejectedo Giving up image of youth, and acknowledging morality• Erikson: Generativity vs. Stagnation- the concern of mature adults for establishing and guiding the next generation, perpetuating oneself through one’s influence on those to follow. o Giving back, figuring out what is most important in life• Interiority: a concern with inner life, usually appears in middle ageMidlife• Midlife Crisis: stressful life period precipitated by the review and reevaluation of one’s past, typically occurring in the early to mid 40’so Awareness of moralityo Reality sets in “I’m not going to live forever”• Midlife Review: introspective examination that often occurs in middle age, leading to reappraisal and revision of values and prioritieso May bring regret over failure to achieve a dreamIdentity• Identity process theory: identity is made up of accumulated perceptions of the selfo Identity assimilation: an attempt to hold on to a consistent sense of self in the face of new experiences that do not fit an existing schemao Identity accommodation: adjustment of the schema to fit new experienceso Identity balance: enables a person to maintain a stable sense of self while adjusting the self-schemas to incorporate new info; such as the effects of aging• Narrative psychology: stories make up who we are, how we perceive and tell story (911-good experience: resilient, bad experience: conquered)o Changes view of worldRelationships• Social convoy theory: people move through life surrounded by concentric circles of intimate relationships on which they rely for assistance, well-being, and social supporto Best friends throughout life, neighbors o Long-term and short-term friendso Very important for same-sex relationships• Socioemotional selectivity theory: people select social contacts on the basis of the changing relative importance of social interaction as a source of info, as an aid in developing and maintaining a self-concept, and as a source of emotional well-beingo Social interaction is a source of info, helps people to develop and maintain a sense of self, and is a source of pleasure and comfort. • Marital capital: financial and emotional benefits build up during a long-standing marriage, which tend to hold a couple togethero College education decreases risk of separation or divorce after the first decade of marriageo Marriage can be very rewarding at this stage in lifeo Less common to have 1st divorce during middle adulthood (2nd, 3rd more common)o Divorce is frequent at this age (wait until kids leave)o Divorce tends to be far more devastating at this point in life• Filial maturity: when middle-age children learn to accept and to meet their parents’ need to depend on them• Filial crisis: adults learn to balance love and duty to their parents with autonomy within a two-way relationshipo Most middle age people willingly accept their obligations to their parents• Cohabitation: people that have never been married, or people that
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