4/16/20091Aging…4/16/20092Did you know?z Vast majority of people in middle age– Face no chronic health difficulties– Fewer accidents and infections4/16/200934/16/20094Table 7-1, continued4/16/20095Gender Differencesz During middle age, women experience more non-life threatening illnesses than men but men experience more serious illnesses– Women smoke less; drink less alcohol; have less dangerous jobsz Medical research has typically studied diseases of men with all male samples; the medical community is only now beginning to study women's health issues4/16/20096Stress in Middle Adulthoodz According to psychoneuroimmunologists (who study the relationship between the brain, the immune system, and psychological factors) stress has THREE specific consequences for health– Direct physiological outcomes – e.g., increased blood pressure and hormonal activity.– Harmful behaviors– Indirect health-related behaviors4/16/20097What are the consequences of stress in middle adulthood?4/16/20098Coronary Heart Diseasez More men die in middle age of diseases of the heart and circulatory system than any other cause.– Both genetic and experiential characteristics are involvedz Cigarette smokingz High fat and cholesterol in dietz Lack of physical exercise– Heart disease runs in families– Men are more likely to suffer than women, and risks increase with age4/16/20099TYPE A BEHAVIOR PATTERNz Characterized by – Competitiveness, impatience, and a tendency toward frustration and hostility, are more susceptible to heart diseasez Evidence is only correlational so cannot say Type A behavior causes heart disease4/16/200910TYPE B BEHAVIOR PATTERNz Characterized by– Non-competitiveness, patience, and a lack of aggressionz Evidence that Type B people have less than half the risk of coronary disease that Type A people have4/16/200911The Threat of Cancerz Cancer is associated with genetic and environmental risks– Poor nutrition, smoking, alcohol use, exposure to sunlight, exposure to radiation, and particular occupational hazardsz Early treatment is related to higher survival rate4/16/200912Cancer Treatmentz Takes a variety of forms– Radiation therapy involves the use of radiation to destroy a tumor– Chemotherapy involves the controlled ingestion of toxic substances meant to poison the tumorz Surgery may be used to remove the tumorz Early diagnosis is crucial4/16/200913Breast Cancerz Mammography, a weak X-ray, is used to detect breast cancerz Death rate lower for those who had a "fighting spirit" or those who denied they had the diseasez A positive psychological outlook may boost the body's immune system4/16/200914Chapter 7:Middle AdulthoodModule 7.2Cognitive Developmentin Middle Adulthood4/16/2009154/16/200916In middle adulthood…z What happens to a person’s intelligence in middle adulthood?4/16/200917In middle adulthood…z How does aging affect memory, and how can memory be improved?4/16/200918Does intelligence decline in middle adulthood?z Cross-sectional studies clearly showed that older subjects scored less well than younger subjects on traditional IQ tests– Intelligence peaks at 18, stays steady until mid-20s, and declines till end of lifez Longitudinal studies, revealed different developmental patterns in intelligence– Stable and even increasing IQ scores until mid-30s and some to mid-50s, then declined4/16/200919Difficulties in Answering the Question z Older research– Cross sectional studies – Cohort effectz Newer research– Longitudinal studies– Practice effect and participant attrition4/16/200920Testing Effectsz Practice effectz Attritionz Physical performance portion–Timed– Reaction time slows with age– Results may be due to physical changes not cognitive changes4/16/200921Kinds of Intelligencez FLUID INTELLIGENCE is the ability to deal with new problems and situations– Fluid intelligence is inductive reasoning, spatial orientation, perceptual speed, and verbal memory.Fluid intelligence does decline with age.z CRYSTALLIZED INTELLIGENCE is the store of information, skills, and strategies that people have acquired through education and prior experiences, and through their previous use of fluid intelligence– Crystallized intelligence includes numerical and verbal abilities, such as solving a crossword puzzle or a mathematical problem.4/16/200922Relationship Between Fluid and Crystal Intelligence4/16/200923z Crystallized intelligence holds steady or increases with age.z Even though scores on IQ tests decline with age, middle-aged people show no decline in general cognitive competence.– Traditional tests may not tap into practical intelligence…4/16/200924Continuing Competence versus Growing DeclineSalthouse suggests four reasons why this discrepancy exists:1. Typical measures of cognitive skills tap a different type of cognition than what is required to be successful in particular occupations2. Measures of practical intelligence rather than traditional IQ tests to assess intelligence may yield little discrepancy3. People can be quite successful professionally and still be on the decline in certain kinds of cognitive abilities4. Older people may be successful because they have developed specific kinds of expertise and particular competencies4/16/200925Highly Successful Middle Age PeopleOlder, successful people may have developed expertise in their particular occupational area.4/16/200926The Development of Expertise: Separating Experts from Novicesz EXPERTISE, the acquisition of skill or knowledge in a particular area, develops as people devote attention and practice– Expert = rely on experience and intuition, process information automatically, use different neural pathways to solve problems – Novice = strictly follow formal rules and procedures, use better strategies and better problem-solving4/16/200927Memory: You Must Remember Thisz According to research on memory changes in adulthood– Most people show only minimal losses– Many exhibit no memory loss in middle adulthoodz Memory is viewed in terms of three sequential components– Sensory memory– Short-term memory holds information for 15 to 25 seconds– Long-term memory4/16/200928Schemas in Middle Adulthoodz Schemas, organized bodies of information stored in memory.– Help people represent the way the world is organized– Aid in categorization and interpretation of new information – Convey cultural information4/16/200929Becoming an Informed Consumer of DevelopmentEffective