HDFS 335 Test 1 Study Guide

Development is…

Lifelong, multidirectional, plastic, embedded in historical context

Development is SHAPED by…

social, cultural, and historical conditions

Development results from…

multiple causations (biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors interact)

Selection

Choosing and prioritizing goals

Elective Selection

Choosing among desired goals

Loss-based Selection

adjusting goals due to limitations

Optimization

investing resources to achieve goals

Compensation

using alternative strategies when abilities decline

3 Types of Aging

Primary, Secondary, Tertiary

Primary aging (normal age-related changes)

normative, universal biological changes

Secondary aging (disease-related impairments)

aging due to disease, lifestyle or environmental influences

Tertiary aging

rapid declines occurring shortly before death

What is an example of Primary Aging?

Menopause

What is an example of Secondary Aging?

Alzheimer’s disease

What is an example of Tertiary Aging?

Rapid declines in crystallized intelligence

Cross-Sectional Designs

compare different age groups at one point in time

Longitudinal Designs

Follow the same individuals over time

What conclusion can be drawn from a Cross-Sectional Design?

Age differences

What conclusion can be drawn from a Longitudinal Design?

Age changes

Age effects are…

Changes due to biological, psychological, or social aging processes

Time-of-measurement (period) effects

Changes caused by events occurring at a specific historical time affecting all age groups

Cohort effects

Differences among groups born in different historical periods

What is an example of a Cohort effect?

The Flynn Effect

The Flynn Effect…

IQs increase due to better education, nutrition, social environments, and pre/post natal care

These 3 effects are difficult to disentagle

Age = Period - Cohort

What event can simultaneously illustrate age, period, and cohort effects?

COVID-19

Metabolic Theories

Organisms have a finite amount of energy, higher metabolic rates limits longevity, includes the free radical theory

Cellular Theories

Hayflick Limit and Telomere Hypothesis

Genetic Programming Theories

longevity and aging are partly genetically programmed, epigenetics

Example of Genetic Programming Theories

APOE4 gene increasing risk of Alzheimer’s disease

Skin aging concepts

crosslinking, photoaging

Crosslinking (of collagen)

may be partially responsible for wrinkles and other cardiovascular changes

Photoaging effects

wrinkling, spotting, loss of elasticity

Hair

Graying of hair due to cessation of pigment production in hair follicles, Gradual hair loss

Other physical aging

Height loss with age, Weight gain in midlife; weight loss after age 70

Perimenopause

menstrual cycles become irregular

Menopause

menstrual cycles end

Estrogen & Health

Declines in estrogen and associated outcomes (Osteoperosis)

What is Hormone (Menopause) Replacement Therapy (for how long?)

Low-dose estrogen with progesterone, early and short-term

Women’s Health Initiative findings limitations

Found increased risk for breast cancer, coronary heart disease, and stroke. But did not stratify results by age and time since menopause. Timing and duration of treatment are important to consider

Male Reproductive Aging

Gradual decline in testosterone

White Matter

nerve fibers (axons and dendrites)

Grey Matter

nerve cells (neurons)

Inhibitory Deficit Theory

Difficulty suppressing irrelevant information with age

Risk Reduction

Cognitive training and long-term risk reduction for dementia

Hayflick Theory (Cellular Theory)

Cells have a limited number of divisions

Telomere Hypothesis

telomeres shorten with each cell division (markers of biological aging)

Photoaging is caused by…

exposure to the sun’s UV radiation

Stronger decline of testosterone is associated with…

Obesity and diabetes

Epigenetics

gene expression is influenced by environmental factors

What is NOT true about human development:

Development is Unidimensional

The process of aging that captures the rapid loses observed before death is:

Tertiary aging

Why is it relevant to examine the effects if gender and sex on aging?

There are physiological factors (e.g., hormones) that differentially influence aging; Social factors related to taking gender roles can have long-term consequences

Cohort effects represent which of the 4 prepositions of the life-span developmental perspective?

Development is embedded in historical context

What type of design is considered the gold standard for studying developmental change?

Longitudinal designs

The biological perspective equates aging with the gradual deterioration of function that leads to decreased power to survive and adapt. This is is the process of:

Senescence

Why do larger animal species tend to have longer lifespans compared to small ones?

They have a slower metabolic rate

About how many times do cell divide in humans?

50

This shortens with every cell division:

Telomeres

Neurons are to gray matter what axons and nerve fibers are to:

White matter

Which brain region shows comparatively little atrophy with aging? 

Visual cortex

A decreased ability to tune out irrelevant information is the main argument of which theory of attention and aging?

Inhibitory deficit theory

Which cognitive training program was associated with reduction in dementia risk after 10 years?

Attention