4/7/20091Chapter 6:Early AdulthoodModule 6.1Physical Developmentin Early Adulthood4/7/20092PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT IN EARLY ADULTHOOD4/7/20093Physical Development and the Sensesz Physical development and maturation completez Peak of physical capabilitiesz Brain wave patterns show more mature patternsz Senses are peak z Most professional athletes at peak during early adulthood4/7/20094Motor Functioning, Fitness, and Health: Staying Well4/7/20095Physical Fitness▪ Superior physical capabilities require exercise and diet▪ No more than 10% Americans exercise enough to keep themselves in good physical shape▪ Less than 20% participate in moderate exercise on regular basis4/7/20096Benefits of Exercisez Cardiovascular fitness increasez Lung capacity increases, raising endurancez Stronger muscles and greater flexibilityz Greater range of movementz More elasticity in muscles, tendons, and ligamentsz Reduction in osteoporosisz Optimization of immune response z Decreased stress level z Increased sense of control over their bodies and feeling of accomplishment ……AND LOTS MORE!4/7/20097One of the Best Pay-Offs: LongevityGreater fitness level = lower the death rate4/7/20098Health▪ Leading causes of death among young adults (ages 25-34) are: – Accidents –AIDS – Cancer – Heart disease – Suicide– Murder(there are noteworthy gender and SES differences)4/7/20099Secondary Agingz Lifestyle decisions, including the use—or abuse—of alcohol, tobacco, or drugs or engaging in unprotected sex, can hasten secondary agingz This can also increase a young adult’s risk of dying4/7/200910Violence and Death: Tracking Murder4/7/200911Eating, Nutrition, and ObesityYoung adults will put on weight if they do not eat sensibly. z 31% of the adult population is classified as overweight. z 7% of men and 10% of women between the ages of 20 and 25 are obese. z The rate of obesity in the U.S. is increasing.– Genetic factors may lead people to become obese. – Environmental and social factors also produce obesity. – Obese people may have a higher WEIGHT SET POINT, the particular level the body strives to maintain.– Most people who diet eventually gain back the weight4/7/200912Age and Obesity4/7/200913Stress and Coping in Early AdulthoodSTRESS: Response to events that threaten or challenge an individualz Lives are filled with events and circumstances known as stressors, that cause threats to well-being.z Stressors can be both pleasant events and unpleasant events (weddings, winning awards, exams, arguments).z Long-term, continuous exposure to stressors may result in reduction of body's ability to deal with stress. – People become more susceptible to diseases as their ability to fight off germs declines.4/7/200914Lazarus and Folkmanz People move through series of stages that determine whether or not they will experience stress – PRIMARY APPRAISAL is assessment of an event to determine whether its implications are positive, negative, or neutral. – SECONDARY APPRAISAL is assessment of whether one's coping abilities and resources are adequate to overcome the harm, threat, or challenge posed by potential stressor.4/7/200915Predicting Stressful Event(Shelly Taylor, 1991)z Negative emotions are more likely to produce stressz Uncontrollable or unpredictable situations are more likely to produce stress z Ambiguous and confusing situationsproduce more stressz Simultaneous tasks demands are more likely to cause stress(see: Stress Quiz in text (Table 13.1))4/7/200916Styles of Copingz Problem-focused coping is attempt to manage a stressful problem or situation by directly changing situation to make it less stressful. z Emotion-focused coping involves conscious regulation of emotion. z Coping is also aided by presence of social support,assistance and comfort supplied by others. z Defense coping involves unconscious strategies that distort or deny true nature of the situation.4/7/200917Hardiness, Resilience, and Coping z Hardiness is a personality characteristic associated with lower rate of stress-related illnessz Resilience is ability to withstand, overcome, and actually thrive following profound adversity 4/7/200918The Informed Consumer of DevelopmentCoping with Stress: General Guidelinesz Seek control over the situation producing the stressz Redefine “threat” as “challenge”z Find social supportz Use relaxation techniques4/7/200919Chapter 6:Early AdulthoodModule 6.2Cognitive Developmentin Early Adulthood4/7/200920Intellectual Growth in Early AdulthoodPhysical development slows down during early adulthood, but does cognitive?~What did Piaget propose?– Piaget and others argued that by time the teen years were finished, thinking stabilized.– BUT increasing evidence suggests that this part of Piaget’s theory was incorrect!4/7/200921Postformal ThoughtGiesela Labouvie-Viefz suggests that nature of thinking changes qualitatively during early adulthood.z Adults exhibit POSTFORMAL THOUGHT, thinking that goes beyond Piaget's formal operations.z Adult predicaments are sometimes solved by relativistic thinking rather than pure logicz Postformal thought acknowledges that world sometimes lacks purely right and wrong solutions so adults must draw upon prior experiences to solve problems4/7/200922K. Warner Schaie…suggests that adults' thinking follows set pattern of stages.– The ACQUISITIVE STAGE, which encompasses all of childhood and adolescence, in which main developmental task is to acquire information.– The ACHIEVING STAGE is point reached by young adults in which intelligence is applied to specific situations involving attainment of long-term goals regarding careers, family, and societal contributions.– The RESPONSIBLE STAGE is stage where the major concerns of middle-aged adults relate to their personal situations, including protecting and nourishing their spouses, families, and careers. – The EXECUTIVE STAGE is period in middle adulthood when people take broader perspective than earlier, including concerns about world. – The REINTEGRATIVE STAGE is period of late adulthood during which the focus is on tasks that have personal meaning.4/7/200923How Information Is Used: Schaie’s Stages4/7/200924Intelligence: What Matters in Early Adulthood?• Sternberg - TRIARCHIC THEORY OF INTELLIGENCE• Intelligence is made up of three major components:• Componential aspects• Experiential components• Contextual factors4/7/200925Expanding on Sternberg’s Theory…z Psychologist Seymour
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