PSYCHOLOGY
PRINCIPLES IN PRACTICE
Chapter 12
ADULTHOOD
Section 1: Young Adulthood
Section 2: Middle Adulthood
Section 3: Late Adulthood
Section 4: Death and Dying
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Stages of Adulthood
 Young Adulthood (early adulthood)- 20-40 yrs
old
 Middle Adulthood (40-65 yrs)
 Late Adulthood (65+)
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Young Adulthood- Physical
 People reach physical peak in their 20s.
 Faster, stronger, better coordinated
 At height of cognitive powers
 Health habits are important during this time.
 Time to try new ways of doing things and
relationship with parents start changing.
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Young Adulthood goals in males and females
 Becoming independent and individuals (separate from
parents and peers) was said to be a goal for young
adult men (1994)
 Women were less concerned with seeing themselves
as separate, independent individuals. More interested
in creating relationships. (Gilligan 1990-1991)
 Generalization of women, remember some not all and
this is changing as society changes.
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Section 1: Young Adulthood
PSYCHOLOGY
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Question: What are the characteristics and issues of young
adulthood?
CHARACTERISTICS AND ISSUES OF
YOUNG ADULTHOOD
 Reassessment of what course in life they have
chosen
 Urge to settle down when in their thirties
 Formation of marriage and intimate
relationships
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Levinson’s stages of Adulthood
 Levinson’s stages of Adulthood
 Early Adult Transition (age 17-22)
 Entering the Adult World (22-28)
 Age 30 Transition (28-33)
 Settling Down (33-40)
 Mid-Life Transition (40-45)
 Entering Middle Adulthood (45-50)
 Late Adulthood (60+).
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Levinson’s stages
 http://education-
portal.com/academy/lesson/levinsons-stagesof-adult-development-theory.html#lesson
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Reassessment:
 In 20’s, Choosing course in life that is exactly right
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for them, often reevaluate the decision in early 30’s.
Is this really what they want?
In 30’s may start new careers.
Women might think about their biological clock
ticking
Women might feel overwhelmed with work and
home responsibilities
Can women have it all?
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Settling Down
 Mid to late 30’s– settling down or “planting
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roots”
 Increase the financial and emotional
investments they make in their live
 Promotions and pay raises if employed long
enough
 Focused on advancing careers and gaining
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Developmental Tasks of Young Adulthood
 Exploring adult role
 Becoming independent
 Developing intimate relationships
 Adjusting to living with another person
 Starting a family and becoming a parent
 Assuming the responsibilities of managing a home
 Beginning a career or job
 Assuming some responsibilities in the larger community
 Creating a social network of friends a coworkers
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Marriage and Intimate relationships
 Important part of adolescence and young adulthood is
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Identity
Who you are and what you stand for (values)
Identity brings personal stability
Erik Erikson’s key task for young adulthood is
forming of relationships (intimacy v isolation)
Relationships can be difficult to sustain when one or
both of the people involved lack personal stability.
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Marriage and Intimate relationships
 Intimate relationship- not necessarily a
physical relationship, but a trusting, close
friendship with another person in which one
can be honest without fear or rejection.
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Marriage Census
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History of Marriage
 Western cultures: Men played dominant role in
marriage and in society
 Known as a Patriarchy system
 This has changed and spouses are now more
likely to be considered equal partners in
marriage
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History of marriage
 Marital roles: still changing
 Traditional roles: husband is the breadwinner and wife is the homemaker
 Now some couples share the roles or even reverse them.
 Reasons to marry: Love did not become widespread until the 1800s.
 1600s and 1700s—arranged marriages by parents, and would usually benefit both
families.
 Orderly transition of wealth from one family to another and from one generation to
the next
 Today central goals in most marriages are companionship and intimacy.
 Feeling of security and opportunities to share experiences and ideas with someone
special.
 Most young adults strongly believe marriage should be a lifetime commitment.
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Choosing a spouse
 What are qualities/factors you think you would
look for in a spouse?
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Choosing Spouses
 Ethnicity/Race
 Level of education
 Social class
 Religion
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Choosing a spouse
 In the US people tend to be like their mates in race and
religion
 A study finds that 8.4 percent of all current U.S. marriages
are interracial, up from 3.2 percent in 1980.
 Majority of marriages between people of the same religion
 Marital partners also tend to be similar in physical
attractiveness, attitudes, personality traits, and intelligence
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Choosing a Spouse
 Tend to choose partners who are near their
own age
 Meet in school, marry each other tend to be similar
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ages.
 Most men are 2-5 years older than women they
marry.
 Being similar to your spouse does not necessarily
mean your marriage will be more successful, than
if you were opposites.
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Reading
 Read and answer the questions from the
reading “Making Relationships Work”
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Divorce
 When Marriage doesn’t work…
 Many marriages end in divorce
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Divorce
 Variety of factors caused the divorce rate to rise from 1970- 1990.
 Obtaining a divorce easier now
 Financial independence of women
 Thought that marriage is easy and constantly gratifying.
 Divorce has many financial and emotional costs for people involved
 Property and income usually divided
 Women usually granted custody of children
 Fathers mostly pay for child support and alimony
 Can be hard for people going through divorce, but can also be a time of
growth and renewal.
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Children of Divorce
 Divorce can be difficult for children of all ages
 When both parents share an interest in their children, children
tend to fair better
 Children may develop low self esteem, anger, they may blame
themselves for the divorce
 May have trouble trusting the commitment of relationships as
adults
 Troubles may not stem from just the divorce but the changes
that follow: moving, step-families, etc.
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Chapter 12
Section 2: Middle Adulthood
PSYCHOLOGY
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Question: What are the changes that occur and the issues
that are faced in middle adulthood?
CHARACTERISTICS AND ISSUES FACED
IN MIDDLE ADULTHOOD
 Generativity – the ability to create, originate, and produce
 Transition – a period when people’s perspectives change in a
major way that usually occurs somewhere between the ages of
40–45
 Empty-Nest Syndrome – the feelings of emptiness and loss
mothers and fathers sometimes feel after their children have
left home
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Middle Adulthood
 40-65
 Most people tend to lose the strength,
coordination, and stamina that they once had in
their 20’s.
 Gradual decline- not obvious
 People can work on their health and strength
during this time
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Developmental Tasks of Middle Adulthood
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Helping one’s children make the transition from life to the outside world
Strengthening one’s relationship with one’s spouse
Helping make the world a better place by assuming leadership roles in social and
civic activities.
Achieving mastery in one’s career
Adjusting to the physical changes that occur in middle age
Making decisions about how to spend one’s “second adulthood”
Pursuing one’s passions
Coping with one’s ageing parents
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Generativity
 According to Erikson- Generativity is the
greatest challenge for middle-aged adults
 Generativity– the ability to create, originate,
and produce
 Adds meaning to life and helps maintain and
enhance self-esteem
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Mid-life Transition
 Midlife transition- 40-45
 Lived about half their lives– years they have left
 Turning point
 Generational shift– losing a parent, now the head of the
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family
 Women tend to go through mid-life transition around
35. Why?
 People may acknowledge dreams they had when they
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Midlife Crisis or Age of Mastery
 Midlife transition may trigger a second
reassessment – Midlife Crisis
 Can be a positive thing– new career, new
hobbies, creativeness, new interests.
 Middlescience: A period of searching that in
some ways resembles adolescence
 Search for a new identity or a Second adulthood
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Empty Nest Syndrome
 Empty-nest syndrome- the feelings of
emptiness and loss mother and sometimes
fathers supposedly feel after the children have
left home to establish their own lives.
 Contemporary research
 Marriages and other parts of parents lives may
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become happier
 Increased freedom and new opportunities
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Menopause
 Menopause- end of menstruation usually occurs in a woman’s late 40’s or
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early 50’s.
Decrease in hormones- estrogen and progesterone
Women no longer produce egg cells that can be fertilized
Other body changes occur
Hormonal changes may cause discomfort
 Hot flashes fatigue and mood swings
Psychological changes are often more important than the physical changes
 May feel less attractive
 Less of a woman
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Menopause
 Men– decline in hormones around 40-50 years
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old
 Gradual drop off
 Loss of strength, weight gain, reduced energy,
and decreased fertility
 Could be from gradual loss of human growth
hormone rather than a diminishing in
testosterone.
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Chapter 12
Section 3: Late Adulthood
PSYCHOLOGY
PRINCIPLES IN PRACTICE
Question: How do people’s lives change in late adulthood?
HOW LIVES CHANGE IN LATE ADULTHOOD
 Physical Changes – wrinkles, skin folds,
decline in sense of smell, slower reflexes
 Cognitive Changes – memory ability declines
 Social Changes – new decisions such as
retirement and where they should live
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Late Adulthood
 65+
 Physical changes
 Wrinkles
 Decline of the senses
 Reflexes and reactions become slower
 Bone become more brittle (risk of falling)
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Late Adulthood-why do people age?
 Why do some people seem to age slower than
others?
 2 theories
 Programmed theories maintain that aging is a
result of genetics
 Cellular damage theories maintaining that aging
occurs because the body’s cells become worn out
and damaged
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Cognitive changes
 The great majority of older people have no
serious decline in intellectual skills
 Some memory loss happens, but most isn’t
serious
 The more serious cognitive changes do occur
dementia and Alzheimer’s disease
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Cognitive Changes
 Dementia: serious loss of cognitive
functioning
 Major losses in memory
 Speech problems
 Unable to perform simple tasks
 Dementia after 65 is Senile Dementia, most cases
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occur in people over 80.
 Longer a person lives the more time dementia will
show up.
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Cognitive Changes
 Alzheimer’s Disease: most common cause of
dementia
 Effects 10% of people in the US over age of
65
 Alzheimer’s disease like other kinds of
dementia is connected with aging but it is not a
normal part of the aging process
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Alzheimer’s Disease
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Cognitive changes
 Causes of Alzheimer’s is unknown
 Heredity
 Viral infections
 Aluminum poisoning
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Social Changes
 Retirement- about 65-70 yrs old
 Grandparenthood- different from parenthood
 Living arrangements
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Successful aging
 Ego integrity– the belief that life is meaningful and
worthwhile even when physical abilities are not what
they used to be. Able to accept his or her approaching
death as part of life.
 Positive outlook : blaming aches and pains on old
age vs specific causes. A study of 1400 people aged
70+: Those who blamed the problems on aging were
more likely to die sooner
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Successful Aging
 Financial security
 Good health
 Supportive relationships
 All contribute to the likelihood of successful
aging
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Developmental Tasks of Late Adulthood
 Adjusting to physical changes and keeping or becoming
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physically active
Maintaining concern about other people so that one does not
become preoccupied with one’s own physical changes
Shifting interests from work to retirement or leisure activity
Adjusting to changes in financial status
Establishing fulfilling living arrangements
Learning to live with one’s husband or wife in retirement
Adjusting to the illness or the death of one’s spouse
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Section 4: Death and Dying
PSYCHOLOGY
PRINCIPLES IN PRACTICE
Question: What are attitudes and issues related to death and
dying?
ATTITUDES AND ISSUES OF
DEATH AND DYING
 Hospice alternative, euthanasia, living will
 The Funeral – usually reflects religious beliefs
 Bereavement – the mourning process
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In your composition book…
 What is death?
 What is your greatest fear about dying?
 How would you want others to describe you
after your death?
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Stages of Dying-Kubler-Ross
 Denial– ex: dying person might think, “it can’t be me. The drs.
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Diagnosis must be wrong
Anger– ex: People in this stage might think “it’s unfair. Why
me?”
Bargaining –Ex “I’ll be kinder if I can just live to see my
grandson’s graduation”
Depression – “the person may despair and wonder “What’s the
use of living another day
Acceptance – The person reasons, “I’ve had a good life. I’m
ready to die”
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 Euthanasia- greek “Good Death”
 Controversial
 Living Will- legal document
 Hosptial vs Hospice
 Bereaved- mourning
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Question: What stages are characteristic of young
adulthood?
Young Adulthood
Reassessment
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Settling Down
Marriage and Intimate
Relationships
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