Chapter 16 - Social and Personality Development in Middle Adulthood

Normative-Crisis Model

- views personality development in terms of fairly universal stages
- tied to a sequence of age-related crisis

Life Events Model

timing of particular events rather than age per se, determine the course of personality development

Generativity-Vs-Stagnation

people consider their contributions to family, community, work, and society

George Vaillant's Theory

- "keeping the Meaning" versus rigidity
- adults seek to extract the meaning from their lives by accepting the strengths and weaknesses of others

Midlife Crisis

stage of uncertainty and indecision brought about by the realization that life in finite

Neuroticism

degree which a person is moody, anxious, and self-critical

Extroversion

outgoing or shy

Openness

person's level of curiosity and interest in new experiences

Agreeableness

how easygoing and helpful a person is

Conscientiousness

person's tendencies to be organized and responsible

Divorce

About one woman in eight will get divorced after 40

Empty nest syndrome

Parents experience feelings of unhappiness, worry, loneliness, and depression resulting from their children's departure from home

Boomerang Children

young adults who come back to live in the homes of their middle-aged parents

Sandwich Generation

Middle-aged couples must fulfill the needs of their children and their aging parents

Involved Grandparents

actively engaged in grandparenting and have influence over their grandchildren's lives

Remote Grandparents

detached and distant and show little interest in their grandchildren

Tension-Building Stage

batterer become upset and shows dissatisfaction initially through verbal abuse

Acute Battering Incident

physical abuse actually occurs

Loving Contrition Stage

husband feels remorse and apologizes for his actions

Cycle of Violence Hypothesis

abuse and neglect of children leads them to be predisposed to abusiveness as adults

Burnout

occurs when highly trained professionals experience dissatisfaction, disillusionment, frustration, and weariness from their jobs