Socioemotional Middle and Late Adulthood

(Generativity vs Stagnation) Middle Adulthood Erikson

Generativity: developing sense of care for next generation

Stagnation: self-centered, self indulgent/aborbed

Mid-life Crisis

• stress and doubt as adults evaluate their life

• not universal, 10-20%

issues prior in life predict mid-life crisis

• comparing possible self vs feared self

  • rivising possible self to avoid feeling failure

Possible Self Vs Feared Self

Possible Self: conception about who someone will become in the future

• guides and motivates choices we make

Feared Self: the self they never hope to become

• rivising possible self to avoid feeling failure

Gender Identity Changes across Adulthood

most couples adopt more traditional gender roles as they have children

• fathers today spend more time doing household tasks than previous generations; 3hr a week → 10 hours

• women show more changes in gender indentity over adulthood

• once strayed from children, gender roles become more fluid over time

overtime, individuals switch traits or blend towards middle

• feminine traits: expressive, caring, dependant

• masculine: confidence, reliance, assertive

Effects of Personality in Middle Adulthood

high conscientiousness = complete college and cogntive abilities (low cognitive decline)

• link to health outcomes (eating, excerisize, poor behaviors)

extraversion = married

neaurtism = divorced

agreeablenes, extraversion, consiouesness, LOW neurtorism = higher levels of wellbeing

Personality changes over lifepsan

mostly stable traits

• more consciousness in emerging-mid adult life

  • peaks ~50-75, then declines

• agreeableness and con increase

• extraversion and openness decline

Friendships in adulthood

on average, spending more time with family than with friends

• postive affect (wellbeing), self-esteem

  • buffer against stress

women: intimate, close, more friends

men: personal updates

• work and family demands for social pruning (decreasing towards middle adulthood)

  • fewer friendships, but lots of support

Marriage in Middle Adulthood

over 80% adults marry by 85

by age 60, 90% adults have married atleast once

• postivily associated w physical and mental outcomes

men are reported to be happer, satisfaction happiest in egalitatrian relationships

(percieved equality of effort)

• similarities drive marriages, satisfaction also coincides with children

Divorce in Middle Adutlhood

• decreased life satisfaction, risk to disease and mortality

women more likely to initiate divorce than men

• most common first 10 years

  • after 10 years risk decreases

• 10% of parents seperate after 10 years

• over 33% of adults 45+ have divorced

reasons

• communication issues

• inequality and abuse

time of stress, negative effects on health but improvments afterwards

Middel Age Relationships with Children

mothers report children leaving as a stressful poeriod

• giving more support than they recieve

• most adults adjust well, 90%

Effects on Parents with Extended Emerging Adulthood

adults provide financial and emotional to support for their children more so than previous generations

• neediness of children associated with neediness of adult child

Sandwich Generation

providing dinancial and material support to aging parents and young children (~15% of midlife adults)

• emotional support to adult child and aging parents

daughters are more likely to be caregivers, and report having closer relationships

• IF they live nearby

Grandparent Experience

age increasing today, waiting longer to have children

• U.S. grandparentship beginning: late 40’s early 50s

• W:49 M:52

• last 1/3 of lifetime

timing of gandparenthood impacts the grandparent experience

earlier than peers may experience a tougher transition

• involvement of grandparent

  • common in SES, financial responsibiltiy

factors that contribute to child

• location

• grandchild gender

  • same sex tend to be closer

• SES and culture

fulfills needs of generativity

overtime conatct with grandparents decline, still remaining strong

Job Satisfaction in Middle Adulthood

• intrinsic rewards (competency, satisfaction, ethics)

Gender diferences:

• women: both intrinsic rewards and extrinsic

• men: primarly extrinsic

Age

• shifts in rewards preferences, younger extrinsic, middle age intrinsic

Job-type Difference

• age related increase in satisfaction grater for white collar workers

Burnout in Middle Adulthood

a sense of mental exhaustion from longer-term stress, high workload, and low sense of control

• frequent in professions that are interpersonally demanding

Work and Retirement in Middle Adulthood

retirement usually planning runs late, infuenced by financial means

• savings and current economy

trnasition is challenged, questions identity and lack of instrinsic motivation

the more prepared, the greatest wellbeing

Erikson Late Adulthood

Integrity Vs. Depair (Ego)

Integrity: feeling whole, satisfied

• associated with psychosocial maturity

Depair:

• bitter and unaccepting, expressed as anger

Reminiscence

the processes of telling stories of one’s past

• sharing stories with young one’s associated with high well-being

Life Review

the reflection on past experiences and one’s life, allowing greater self-understanding and meaning to their life

Ruminating

repeating negative stories

• associated with poor adjustment

prevented and aided by family and social workers

Religiosity across the Lifespan

• increase in religosity (generativity)

  • importance of private and spiritual activities

• positively associated with health

  • buffer against stressful life events

• african american communitys hold religion even stronger

Social Contact in Late Adulthood

interaction tends to decline

• associated with health

Theories:

• Disengagement Theory

• Activity Theory

• Continuity Theory

Disengagement Theory

• assumes natural decline in social interaction as adult anticipates end of life

• mutual decline by both individual and society’s demands

  • debunked by research

Activity Theory

declines in social interaction are a correaltion to barriers with engagement

• older adults attempting to engage in civic and social activities → higher morale and satisfaction

The more active the better

Continuity Theory

older adults work to mantain continuity and consistency despite changes

• desire to mantain habits and lifestyle

• adapting as needed

Socioemotional Selectivity Theory (Laura Castensen)

increased awareness of limited time lefts allows individuals to select and prune out relationahips that are unimportant to them

• emphasizing more important connections

Friendships in Late Adulthood

• quality increases

• quanitity decrease

• seen as more menaningful than in young adulthood- aligning with similar values, activities, and demographics

  • associated with better health outcomes

Siblings in Late Life

• reminiscence due ot long-term history

  • reported as close friends

  • providing emotional support, sometimes physical

• widowed adults rely more on siblings

Marriage in Late Life

satisfaction increases

• less conflict, more positive emotions, more humor and respect

Divorce in Late Life

adjustment to divorce is more difficult

• women face financial harship

  • remarriage is less likely

• men more liekly to remarry

Widowhood

• more commonly experience by women

  • 35% W, 65

  • 11% M, 65

• women tend to survive loss of spouse better

  • more social roles

• Widowhood effect: increased loneliness to recently widowed

  • greatest challenge

• Adapting: multifactoral

  • length of illness

  • age of widow

  • responsibilities and roles

Great-grandparenthood

• less contact as families move away

  • most adults find the role fulfilling

  • fosters sense of longetivity

• close relationships (1/3 state)

  • proximity, positive relationship with children, helping out

Successful Aging

1. avoidance of disease of disability

2. maintenence of physical and cognitive function

3. active engagement in social activities