CFS100 - Walsh Ch.9

Family & Adulthood

Family & Adulthood

• 3rd decade of life & stretches until late adulthood

  • Emerging Adulthood (ages 20-39)

  • Middle Adulthood (roughly ages 40-64)

  • We spend the majority of our lives in adulthood

What signifies being an adult?

• Fiscal responsibility

• Legal responsibility

Emerging Adulthood

• Arnett (2000)

• Individuals aged 18-30*

  • Feeling in-between

  • Instability

  • Exploration

  • Identity formation

  • Optimism

  • Self-focus

Middle Adulthood

30-60?

Physical Changes

• Influenced by lifestyle factors

• Skin: wrinkles, discolored areas, loses elasticity

• Hair may begin to gray; hair loss

• Weight tends to increase

• Exercise, having a healthy diet, & refraining from drinking & smoking also protects the heart & lungs

• 7-9 hours of sleep are recommended

• Mid-30s: estrogen begins to decline

• Early to mid-50s: women will cease to have menstrual cycles

The Three Stages of Menopause

• Perimenopause

• Menopause

• Postmenopause

Perimenopause

• 2-8 yrs before menopause

• Symptoms:

  • hormonal changes

  • irregular menstruation

  • hot flashes

Menopause

• The point in time 12 months after a woman's last period

Postmenopause

• Symptoms may ease

• Health changes include increased risk for osteoporosis & heart disease

Intellectual Development

• Crystallized abilities: concrete, accumulated knowledge (increased through adulthood)

• Fluid abilities: creativity & flexible thinking required when facing a new & novel situation (20-30 yrs)

• Speed of mental processes begins to decline

• Gains: integrating cognitive, interpersonal, & emotional thinking

• Good memory skills