Dev Psych Ch 11-14

Erikson's generativity vs. stagnation

Generativity encompasses adults' desire to leave legacies of themselves to the next generation, which is the positive side of Erikson's generativity versus stagnation middle adulthood stage. Stagnation, which is sometimes called "self-absorption," is a state of mind that develops when individuals sense that they have done little or nothing for the next generation (negative side).

Difference in views between Levinson and Vaillant regarding midlife crisis

Levinson views midlife as a crisis, believing that the middle aged adult is suspended between the past and the future, trying to cope with this gap that threatens life's continuity. Vaillant concluded that just as adolescence is a time for detecting parental flaws and discovering truth about childhood, the forties are a decade of reassessing and recording the truth about adolescence and adulthood. However, whereas Levinson sees midlife as a crisis, Vaillant maintains that only a minority of adults experience a midlife crisis.

Midlife crisis

Today, adult development experts are virtually unanimous in their belief that midlife crises have been exaggerated. The stage theories place too much emphasis on crises in development, especially midlife crises. Also, there often is considerable individual variation in the way people experience the stages of life.

Stress for males vs. females

When men face stress, they are likely to respond in a fight-or-flight manner- become aggressive, socially withdraw, or drink alcohol. By contrast, when women experience stress, they are more likely to engage in a tend-and-befriend pattern, seeking social alliances with others, especially friends. Taylor argues that when women experience stress, an influx of the hormone oxytocin is released.

What are several factors that are associated with an increase in divorce rate

Youthful marriage, low education level, low income, not having a religious affiliation, having parents who are divorced, having a baby before marriage, alcoholism, psychological problems, domestic violence, infidelity, and inadequate division of household labor

empty nest syndrome

a term used to indicate a decrease in marital satisfaction after children leave home

Crystallized intelligence

accumulated information and verbal skills, based on cumulative learning experiences, which increases in middle age

During menopause, what hormone produced by the ovaries decreases?

estrogen

Neuroticism (emotional stability)

o Calm or anxious o Secure or insecure o Self-satisfied or self-pitying

Openness

o Imaginative or practical o Interested in variety or routine o Independent or conforming

Conscientiousness

o Organized or disorganized o Careful or careless o Disciplined or impulsive

Extroversion

o Sociable or retiring o Fun-loving or somber o Affectionate or reserved

Agreeableness

o Softhearted or ruthless o Trusting or suspicious o Helpful or uncooperative

fluid intelligence

the ability to reason abstractly, which steadily declines from middle adulthood on

List 5 key features which characterize emerging adulthood according to Jeffrey Arnett

• Identity exploration, especially love and work • Instability • Self-focused • Feeling in-between • The age of possibilities, a time when individuals have an opportunity to transform their lives

3 main dimensions of Sternberg's theory of love

• Passion - involves physical and sexual attraction to one another • Intimacy - relates to the emotional feelings of warmth, closeness, and sharing in a relationship • Commitment - the cognitive appraisal of the relationship and the intent to maintain the relationship even in the face of problems

Characteristics of postformal thought

• Reflective, relativistic, and contextual • Provisional - many young adults also become more skeptical about the truth and seem unwilling to accept an answer as final • Realistic - young adults understand that thinking can't always be abstract; in many instances, it must be realistic and pragmatic • Recognized as being influenced by emotion - emerging and young adults are more likely than adolescents to understand that their thinking is influenced by emotions; however, too often negative emotions produce thinking that is distorted and self-serving at this point in development