Middle Adulthood Developmental tasks  Social interests in activities in middle age are

greatly influenced by social-class status, sex and

Characteristics —Nurturing the marriage relationship marital status.
—Management of household
 declining physical skills —Parenting Personal and Social Hazards
—Management of a career
 increasing responsibilities, self-satisfaction and —giving up the image of youth  The most important personal hazards of middle
awareness of time (past, future) —acknowledging mortality age include:

 According to Erikson, the issue is generatively  Achieving adult civic and social responsibilities. – acceptance of traditional beliefs about middle
(a commitment to and caring for next generation) age,
vs. stagnation.  Assisting teenage children to become responsible
and happy adults. – idealization of youth,
 Middle Age (35—60) is generally the most
powerful stage in life in terms of earning capacity,  Developing adult leisure-time activities. – unrealistic aspirations & changes in roles, in
influence on other people and impact on society in interests and in value placed on status symbol
general. Middle age is the age of society's norm-  Relating oneself to one's spouse as a person.
bearers and decision-makers, bill-payers and power-  Among the common hazards that affect social
brokers, managers, and leaders — society's movers  Accepting and adjusting to the physiological adjustments in middle age are:
and shakers. changes of middle age.
― acceptance of the 'rocking chair‘
 Middle age is characterized by competence,  Reaching and maintaining satisfactory
maturity, responsibility and stability. performance in one's occupational career. ― philosophy about middle age

 This is the time when one wants to enjoy the  Adjusting to aging parents. ― unattractive appearance
success of job, satisfaction derived from the family
and social life. Interests ― lack of social skills

 People look forward to the success of their  Middle-aged men, as a group, have a greater ― preference for family contacts
children. interest in clothing and appearance than middle-
aged women, as a group, because they recognize ― financial problems
 Attention gets more focused on health, the fate of its importance to vocational success.
children, aging parents, the use of leisure time and ― family pressures and obligations
plans for old age.  Middle-aged men's interest in money is different
from that of middle-aged women; though it is ― a desire for popularity as expressed in immature
 For women, menopause occurs between the usually greater in women than in men - who regard patterns of behavior and social mobility
ages of forty-five and fifty. Menopause is supposed it as essential to security and to having the status
to be accompanied by some distressing physical and symbol they crave. Vocational Adjustments
psychological symptoms in women.
 Interest in religion in middle age is usually  Unfavorable social attitude.
 Men during this period show greater concern greater than in adulthood and is often based on
towards their health, strength, power and sexual personal & social needs.  Hiring policies.
potency.
 Interest in strenuous recreations wanes.  Increased use of automation.
 People start viewing themselves as becoming
older and become conscious of their mortality which  There is a shift from recreational activities  Group work.
leads to emotional instability. involving large groups to those involving only
several people.  Increasing importance of the role of wives.
 Reexamine their lives, their relationships, their
work, and even to question the meaning of it all.  There is a narrowing down of recreational  Compulsory retirement.
This process has been referred to as a mid-life interests.
crisis.
 Dominance of big business.

 Necessity for re-location.

 — menopause- cessation of women’s menstrual — few infectious, mostly chronic
periods
— heart disease most common, then cancer
— may be accompanied by emotional, physiological
Physical Development changes — Hypertension-chronically high blood pressure

— decreasing height / increasing weight — highly variable: most women report no major — diabetes
problems
— After 55, approximately 2 inches lost for men, 1 —osteoporosis-conditions in which the bones become
inch for women — men: no equivalent to menopause (although some thin and brittle as a result of rapid calcium depletion.
hypothesize “andropause”-generally, slow decline
— decreasing bone density (for women, loss is twice in testosterone >men
as fast)
— decreasing strength and coordination — may lead to some degree of erectile dysfunction — more: heart disease, cancer specifically breast
cancer, stroke
— visual problems: near vision, dynamic vision — 75% of dysfunction due to physiological problems
(reading moving signs), sensitivity to light, visual — divorced men: greater incidence
search and speed of processing visual information. — much of this associated with lifestyle (smoking,
drinking, nutrition) >women
*prebyopia-farsightedness associated with aging,
resulting when the lens of the eye becomes less —Still, sexual excitation and sexual activity remains — nonfatal illnesses (i.e., arthritis)
elastic. normal
— lung cancer: rates increasing a greater rate than
*myopia-nearsightedness Changes in Human Reproductive System During for men
Middle Age
— decreasing hearing (especially high frequencies) Female Male Lifestyle Changes
Hormonal Drop in estrogen Drop in
*presbycusis-gradual loss of hearing which Change and progesterone testosterone — “catching up” effect of lifestyle
accelerates after age 55, especially with regards to Symptoms Hot flashes, undetermined
sounds at the upper frequencies. vaginal dryness, — now requires active attempt to improve
urinary
— decreasing kidney function (50% decrease) dysfunction — requires behaviour change
Sexual Less intense Loss of
— decreasing cardiac output Changes arousal, less psychological — must create exercise routine to avoid weight gain
frequent and arousal, less
— Sensitivity to taste and smell begins to decline quicker orgasms frequent — must stop smoking, cut down drinking
erections,
—begins to loose sensitivity to touch after the age of slower orgasms, — according to a 1990’s study: by 40’s, half of all
45 and to pain (after 50yrs old) longer recovery alcoholics become social drinkers
between
— Changes in appearance that reflects in body ejaculations, — must schedule regular medical tests
structure and systems increased risk of (mammography, prostate screening)
erectile
—Skin become less taut and smooth dysfunction Burnout-syndrome of emotional exhaustion and a
Reproductive Ends Continues; sense that one can no longeraccomplish anything on
— Hair become thinner, due to slowed replacement capacity some decrease the job
rate, and grayer in fertility may
occur — by this stage, often become aware of lack of effect
—heart begins to pump more slowly of actions

Sexual Adjustments Health — aware that job makes little difference to the
society or to one’s self
— slow, gradual decrease in frequency — fewer accidents, more diseases
— common in helping professions
— associated with greater than average idealism and Identity Development Roles play by today’s grand parents
drive in the 20’s -often, grandparenthood begins before the end of
—changing roles and relationships for men and active parenting
— avoiding burnout requires the setting of realistic women at this time may affect gender identity
goals, change of careers, retirement, etc. —grandparents play an integral role in child rising
—perceived personality traits, physical and family decisions
Unemployment characteristics, and cognitive abilities are
incorporated into identity schema. —grandmothers have closer, warmer more
-greatest work-related stressor is the loss of job. affectionate relationships with their grandchildren
—self-perceptions are continually confirmed or than grandfathers do
Role of Religion revised in response to incoming information
*Gender Identity —as grandchildren grows, contact tend to diminish
— no pattern of change in religious beliefs in middle —middle aged men are more open about their but affection grows
years feelings, more interested in intimate relationships
and more nurturing
—formal role
—the effect of religion on the individual may increase —Fun seeking role
why would beliefs affect health? —There is a reversal or roles once parenting is over —Surrogate parent role
–a gender crossover. —Reservoir of the family wisdom role
— religious beliefs are more likely to be associated —Distant figure role
with: *gender crossover-Gutmann’s term for reversal of
i) lower substance abuse gender roles after the end of active parenting
ii) lower blood pressure, reduced hypertension Vocation and Retirement
iii) increasing ability to cope with stress Relationships —The main predictors of retirement age are health,
— can use the “power of prayer” as a coping —social relationships tend to be more important than pension, eligibility, and financial circumstances
mechanism sexual relationships —50 yrs olds tend to word primarily for financial
reasons, at 60 intrinsic values such as enjoyment of
— also, religious people are more likely to increase —a good relationship with a spouse is important to work, wanting to remain productive and feeling
their development of other coping strategies their quality of life and also close ties to family and valued and respected
friends
Social Roles Theories
—launching children —those who are not married had fewer than six
—becoming grandparents friends and relatives and did not belong to religious —Freud saw no point in psychotherapy for people
—changing jobs or careers or community group over 50 because he believed personality is
—retirement permanently formed by that age.
—couples who remained together for 25, 30, 40
Cognitive and Mental Development years were rare (either broken by death or for —By contrast, humanistic theorists such as
survivors to remarry) Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers looked on
— middle aged people are in their prime middle age as an opportunity for positive change
—a 35 to 44 years of marriage, couples tend to be
—perceptual speed declines steadily even more satisfied than the first four years —According to Abraham Maslow, self-actualization
can come only with maturity
—numerical ability begins to decline around 40 —divorce in midlife is relatively rare
—Rogers (1961) held that full human functioning
—the ability to solve practical problems is strong and —the effects of empty nest depend on the quality requires a constant, lifelong process of bringing the
may peak at midlife and length of the marriage and in a shaky marriage self in harmony with experience.
they may now see no reason to prolong the bond.
—Peak performance in four of the six abilities, —Swiss psychologist Carl Jung (1933,1953,1969,
inductive reasoning, spatial orientation, vocabulary *empty nest-transition that occurs when the 1971), the first major theorist about adult
and verbal memory youngest child leaves home development, held that healthy midlife development
calls for individuation
—if work could be made more meaningful and —social networks ten to be smaller and more
challenging, more adults might retain or improve intimate *individuation-emergence of the true self through
their cognitive abilities. balancing or integrating conflicting parts of the
—relationships with siblings are the longest-lasting in personality
most people’s lives
—Erikson saw the years around age 40 as the time
when people enter their seventh normative stage
(generativity vs. stagnation)