aging exam 3

Loevinger's stages of ego development

(check notes)

investigative personality

- abstract problem-solvers prefer to work on their own, observing, learning, investigating, and solving problems, frequently in a scientifically related area o Dislike: repetitive activities and working with people o Traits: analytical, independent, curious, precise o Ex: scientist, math career, technical career

conventional personality

- data and detail people prefer to work with words and numbers, carrying out detailed instructions; verbal and quantitative o Dislike: ambiguity, unstructured activities o Traits: conscientious, orderly, self-controlled o Ex: administrative assistant, bank teller, bosses who give them well-defined tasks, clerks

cognitive complexity

- higher levels of thinking and reasoning o Positive effect of work on the individual- those with more complex jobs pre-retirement had better processing speed, general intelligence, and working memory abilities in retirement

crisp retirement pattern

- leave labor force in clear cut unreversed exit o Gold watch and big party for retirement

job strain

- result of doing work that requires high levels of psychological demands from the worker but offers them little control o Negative effect on the individual- associated with higher incidence of heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes

realistic personality

- technically and athletically inclined people prefer to work with their hands and tools to build, repair, or grow things, often outdoors o Dislike: educational or therapeutic activities, self-expression, working with people, and new ideas o Traits: stable, materialistic, frank, practical, self-reliant o Ex: mechanics, truck driver, construction, farmer

Job expertise

- the knowledge and skills a worker has accumulated after a number of years on the job

Woodruf's phase 1- overlapping phases

-assumed decline · Focus is on mapping the assumed inevitable age-relate decline in intelligence · Cross-sectional research (study of all different ages at a time) tests in 1950sà older adults reported lower IQ scores than young Conclusion- decline in intellectual function

Woodruf's phase II

-debate about decline · Began in 1960s- debate about nature of intelligence · Some abilities decline, others may get better; individual abilities differ over time · 1970s debate- a lot of going back and forth deciding which is a myth · Increased awareness of method used matters to see what makes a difference · Cross-sectional results due to cohort membership · Longitudinal research- decline is much less extensive compared to cross-sectional · Seattle longitudinal study- decline in fluid intelligence until mid-60s; decline in crystallized abilities in your mid 70s o Tested 5 primary mental abilities-> by age 88 none have declined on all 5, but maybe a decline on one of them by age 67 o Women showed earlier decline in fluid intelligence (possible early 60s) o Men tend to decline earlier with crystallized intelligence (maybe early 70s) Don't know the reasons on why there are gender differences for intelligence

1. sensory store

-info held for a few seconds § difficult to compare young and older adults because info is held so briefly § possible there's some age-related decline

Woodruf's phase III

-training studies · Focus on experience, practice, and training can modify intellectual abilities · Plasticity- intellectual abilities can be changed through practice and training · Important for fluid abilities since it's most likely to decline · Pretest/posttest- baseline for cognitive abilities and see how they improve with the posttest o Results are positive o Older adults improved with tests of inductive reasoning and spatial abilities Training can last up to 7 years as long as you have periodic booster sessions, reminders

information processing theory

3 important stores by atkinson and shifrin model 1. sensory store 2. short-term store 3. long term store

look at notes for BALANCING WORK AND FAMILY

K

Ginzberg's Career Choice Theory- 1. fantasy period

a. Early and middle childhood; lasts until age 11 b. Kids make and discard career choices without regard to skills, abilities, or available job opportunities c. Ex: cowboy, princess, football player

Ginzberg's Career Choice Theory- 2. Tentative period

a. Occurs between ages 11-16 b. Adolescents think about careers in more complex ways, starting with their interests, and then in terms of their abilities and values c. Learning the requirements of different jobs (lawyer needs undergrad degree plus law degree) d. Figuring out if they would like the job and if they'd be good at it

Ginzberg's Career Choice Theory- 3. Realistic Period

a. Occurs in late teens and early twenties b. Start to focus on economic and practical realities of adulthood in job selection c. 1st step is exploration-> they continue to gather info about possibilities d. Final phase is crystallization-> they focus on a general vocational category and experiment for a while before settling on a single job; this involves choosing a major in college, or enrolling in an apprenticeship or job training program

Vaillant's defense mechanisms

o 1. High adaptive level- Altruism § Ex: Dealing with stress over health by participating in a race to raise funds for researching a disease o 2. Mental Inhibition Level- Repression § Ex: Dealing with stress over childlessness by expelling thoughts and wishes from conscious awareness o 3. Minor Image- Distorting Level-> Omnipotence § Dealing with stress over military assignment by glorifying one's special training and high-tech equipment o 4. Disavowal Level- Denial § Dealing with stress over marital problems by refusing to acknowledge a hurtful incident occurred o 5. Major Image- Distorting Level- Autistic Fantasy § Dealing with stress over potential layoffs by daydreaming about an ideal job instead of taking action to find a new one o 6. Action Level- Help-Rejecting Complaining § Dealing with stress over money problems by complaining, but then rejecting offers of help and advice

retrieval

o 1. Recall- general stimulus question to search contents of LTM o 2. Recognition- MC test and match items in LTM o The greatest discrepancies on recall tests- older adults omit info, include irrelevant info, repeat previously recalled items o Recognition tests don't have a difference between performance Retrieval will be affected if older adults don't use elaborative coding (maybe including irrelevant info...etc.)

median age of retirement

o 1950-1955: 67 year old o 1985-199: 63 years old · Individuals aged 65-69 in labor force increasing

· Do those with a discontinuous work pattern ever considered themselves retired?

o A woman who works off and on while raising children, went back to work, but then had to take care of parents, went back to work o May never use label "retired" for their situation

factors related to intellectual functioning

o Absence of severe sensory deficits o Absence of cardiovascular and other chronic diseases o Above average level of education and income helps o Occupational history of high complexity jobs (not factory working) o Membership in an intact family and marriage to a well-educated, intelligent spouse o Flexible attitudes and behaviors - self efficacy, confident in intellectual abilities, open mindedness o Pursuit of continuing education, participation in clubs and professional associations o Having a stimulating and engaged lifestyle § Cultural events- going to museum, theater, completing crossword puzzles § "use it or lose it" § Cause and effect- are the people who are more educated go to the museum and puzzles? o Many factors overlap Better income- stimulating environment and more likely to get out and go to the theater, and more likely if they are healthier and don't have cardiovascular disease

reasons for retirement- individual factors

o Affordability- people retire when they feel financially secure o Serious health problems- functional impairment is main reason why people retire early o Self-employed workers- usually reduce their hours and not retire ever o How much enjoy your job- boring, repetitive jobs will retire as soon as they can afford it; people with interesting jobs will likely stay in the work force longer and go towards bridge jobs o Affordability- people retire when they feel financially secure o Serious health problems- functional impairment is main reason why people retire early o Self-employed workers- usually reduce their hours and not retire ever o How much enjoy your job- boring, repetitive jobs will retire as soon as they can afford it; people with interesting jobs will likely stay in the work force longer and go towards bridge jobs

· Predictors of satisfaction with retirement

o As long as people have financial security, good health, supportive network of relatives and friends · Importance of social relationships- They cushion the effect of adjusting to retirement · Research- the greatest conflict is when one person is working and other is retired o Men especially have more feelings of depression if wife continues to work · Marital status o Both men and women who are married when retired are happier than those divorced, widowed, or separated

employee impairment

o Attention and concentration o Depression o Physical illness o Poor job performance o Workplace injuries o Absenteeism o Turnover

how can older drivers be safer?

o Avoid driving at night o Avoid major highways due to merging and yielding o Avoid situations that have risky left turns · Reaction time vs decades of experience o The experience compensates for their decrease in abilities of reaction time · Bottom line: this is a difficult issue for older adults to face the facts

planning for retirement

o Begins in middle-age o Why is planning important? § Loss of income- federal gov doesn't guarantee pension of adequate living; US retirees income drops by 50% and SS doesn't cover what you're used to paying forà plan ahead § Loss of status- spending time by doing interests and not obligations; sense of purpose may be threatened o Gender differences § Men do more planning § Women rely on mans preparationsà prob with divorce § Women are contributing to household income and getting more involved o Benefits of planning ahead § Adults who are planning ahead have greater life satisfaction than those who don't o Proportion of income that comes from various sources § Social security § Earnings § Pensions § Asset income § Cash public assistance § Other

mean-level change

o Changes in a group's average scores over time o If mean-level change is found, this means that individuals within the sample have generally changed on a trait in the same way; if everyone changes but in different directions, mean-level change will not show up § Some increased in neuroticism and other decreased in neuroticismà cancels out o Mean-level changes are attributed to factors such as maturation or cultural processes shared by a population § Mainly happens in young adulthood with guiding to career and goals o Results: § Majority of personality trait change occurs in young adulthood (ages 18-40) § Lots of formative life events and role changes during this period § Extraversion was broken down into 2 components in this research: · 1. Social vitality (general sociability and gregariousness) · 2. Social dominance (confidence, independence, dominance) o Other results: § Increases in agreeableness, conscientiousness, social dominance § Decrease in neuroticism § Social vitality decreases though adulthood § Openness increases during adolescence, stabilizes in adulthood, decreases slightly after age 60 o So similar findings to the cross-sectional researcher findings. Giving validity to that research

episodic memory

o Conscious recollection of information from a specific event or point of time o Ex: where you parked your car, last family vacation o Shows steady decline throughout adult years, starts in late 20s Focus on different stages of processing info ENCODING

· What happens to personality as we go through adulthood into old age?

o Continuous- stable, trustworthy friend, outgoing friend all throughout life o Changes - develops over time; perpetually late friend starts showing up on time; not as shy anymore

wisdom

o Defined as expert knowledge and insight in the practical aspects of life; not easy to measure or define o How to distinguish from intelligence § Knowledge that relates to intelligence relates to here and now; logical thinking; makes the time bomb § Wisdom is timeless of what you know and how you can apply it; provides understanding of human behavior; insight; not use the time bomb o With age, comes wisdom? § Many societies with respect to older adults

reasons for retirement-organizational factors

o Downsizing- forced to retire because person loses job o Great ongoing benefits = easier decision to retire § Continue to get insurance or pension o Severance packages- incentives for elders to retire; continuing giving them money for two years instead of keeping them employed

where is burnout most common? and why?

o Helping professions- healthcare, social work, military o Have to deal with other peoples complex problems under difficult time constraints

driving in older adults- 2 specific problems in crashes involving older drivers

o Left-handed turns- judge if there is enough distance between cars and the speed of your car and the other cars o Merging or yielding- difficulty with entering freeway, round-abouts

storage

o Long-term store= warehouse o Aging process does not affect its durability o If info in LTM is not organized-> might not be able to get it out as well

reasons for retirement- family factors

o Men who have more dependents retire later- men who are having later in life o Effect of marriage- married people usually retire earlier; men are more likely to retire if men's wives are retired; women's status of men's job usually doesn't impact retirement o What affects women's decision to retire? § More likely to continue or retire based on family needs, or part time help; decide to retire based on husbands pensions o Dual income families: § Joint retirement- household decision mostly; dual worker couples retire at same time § Sequential retirement- one member of couple retires first while the other continues to work-> ex: age difference; if one keeps working to maintain health insurance

Erikson's Integrity vs Despair

o Occurs in late adulthood o Growing awareness of end of life o Realization that they live on through children, grandchildren, and community o Need to understand what makes you unique o Those who achieve integrity become self-affirming and self-accepting o Despair -> focusing on roads not taken, regrets, poor decisions, hopeless; anger and contempt o Research indicates that midlife generativity predicts ego integrity in late adulthood o Correlates of integrity: happier mood, greater self-acceptance, higher marital satisfaction, closer relationships with adult children, greater community involvement, and increased ease in accepting help from others when it is needed o YOU NEED WISDOM

Erkison's Generativity vs Stagnation

o Occurs in middle age o Generativity is "a concern for establishing and guiding the next generation" § Reaching out to others-> parenting, community projects, coaching, mentoring o Description of stagnation § Self-centered, self-indulgent § "What can I get?" vs. "What can I give?" § Little interest in making the world better o Generativity helps adults to make contributions that will last beyond their lifetimes o Research: o Tends to increase from the 30s to 60s o Highly generative people are well-adjusted o Lower anxiety and depression o Higher in autonomy, self-acceptance, and satisfaction o More likely to have successful marriages and close friends o Other qualities: § More open to differing viewpoints § More likely to be leaders § Care about children/partner/aging parents/society o Gender differences - parenting: fathers tend to score higher in generativity than childless men; but having children is not related to generativity in women o YOU NEED TO CARE

Erikson's Intimacy vs. Isolation

o Occurs in young adulthood o Goal is to establish a fully intimate relationship with another- sharing of all aspects of yourself without losing identity o Failure to do so leads to isolation o Research findings: o Those who have achieved intimacy -> cooperative, tolerant, accepting of differences o Those characterized by isolation -> fear losing their identity, tend to compete, are easily threatened o YOU NEED TO LOVE

on-time vs off-time

o On-time- retire when 65 or 68 o Don't feel good when retiring around 75 and more resentful

How do human personality structures within a group show differential continuity, mean-level change, and intra-individuality variability over time?

o Psych class takes 3 exams: § the class shows differential continuity because those who are the top students on first exam are usually top students on the next two, whereas those at the bottom of the grading scale tend to remain in that rank order § mean level change- average score for the first exam is always significantly lower than the later exams; some students don't take class seriously and are shocked to see certain aspects on the exam, others say that they need to take the first test of the class in order to know how to study for the next two, then most people do best on the following exams § intra-individual variability- student can start off strong with the top grade in the class, and gets loaded with work later in the semester and doesn't do well on the next; whereas someone could start off not well and buckle down in the end and do better

postformal thought

o Refers to cognitive development beyond Piaget's formal operations stage o Requires tolerating ambiguity, remaining flexible, open to considering more than one solution to a problem o Entails shifts in the way you think- William Perry focuses on development of epistemic cognition

cognition- reaction time

o Refers to interval that elapses between the onset of a stimulus and the completion of a response o Measuring of processing speed o How quickly can brain make sense of things o Tasks: § Simple- 1 stimulus and 1 possible response (sitting in front of computer and see letter of W on screen and then you hit the space bar) § Choice- looking for two different stimuli- each requires a different response (high tone, right key; low tone, left key) § Complex: more than 2 stimuli and each requires a different response and a different combination of responses (right - circle; square- left; triangle- bottom) o Slower reaction time appears to be inevitable consequence of aging (several hundredths of a millisecond) o Individual differences of how these decline for their reaction time o Explanations: § General slowing hypothesis- increase in rxn time reflects a general decline in processing speed in time; working memory declines § Age-complexity hypothesis- slowing of central process in NS, age differences increase when tasks become more complex o Why is this important age-related studied? § Theoretical view- see how efficient NS is and how it processes information § Practical view- reaction time relates to everyday functioning -> revolving door and knowing when to step into the door, safety o Driving is a good example of reaction time - can affect your behavior as you age o 7% of all drivers were over the age of 74; account for 28% of all accident fatalities (ages 16-24 have highest rate of fatalities)

retirement

o Represents a transition to a stage of life that does not require paid employment o When are individuals considered "retired"? § Reduced labor force participation § Cessation of a career § Receipt of income from pensions § Willingness to identify themselves as retired

driving in older adults- time tasks

o Simple task- see people in the cross walk, simply tap on the brakes o Choice tasks- fork in the road, do you go left or right, do you exit or move over to keep going straight Complex- driving down freeway and see debris and don't want to hit it and want to move lanes to miss it

how to combat burnout

o Social support, assistance in managing workload and stress o Pay attention to small victories o Need to mentally disengage from work during leisure time

· 2 theories about retirement and its effect on marriage

o Spouse underfoot syndrome- partners are more likely to have conflict when both are seeing each other all the time now o Second honeymoon- couples are now free to enjoy company of each other without work or other things getting in their way

longitudinal research: differential continuity

o Stability of individual's rank order within a group over time o AKA rank-order trait change; it's really test-retest correlations o Ex: stability of individuals rank order of work over time-> do the most introverted people stay introverted over time and do extroverted people do the same? § Correlate rank order from time 1 and make the order and make correlations years later § Correlations do not change much over time o Personality trait rankings remain moderately stable throughout adulthood; stability increases with age; results from metanalysis of 152 studies § Ages 18-22: 0.51 § Ages 50-59: 0.75 § Ages 60-73: 0.72 o Research suggests there's an increase in rank-order stability from age 6-73 o Patterns don't differ much from one personality factor to another, show no gender differences, and are very similar no matter what type of assessment method is used

research using berlin paradigm

o Subject responses to hypothetical real-life situations o Results: age is no guarantee of wisdom- only 5% of subjects received high rating which were evenly distributed throughout all age groups o Type of life experience- human service careers (psychologists) will score higher on wisdom tests; people who hold leadership positions (CEO and management); those who faced and overcame great adversity (overcame poverty, saw someone die and graduated from Harvard) o Growing old doesn't guarantee wisdom, but provides the time for potential development of wisdom

driving in older adults- rxn time does not tell whole story

o Visual system changes- impairs performance of drivers; loss of visual cues; increase in sensitivity of glare; difficulty seeing in the dark o Medication side effects- drowsiness, dizziness, cognitive confusion

voluntary vs involuntary retirement

o Voluntary- no relationship between life satisfaction and retirement o Involuntary- people who have no choice but to retire; significant poor and mental health

does intelligence change with age

o Wechsler's opinion- "nearly all studies shown that human abilities decline between ages 18-25" -> peak at these ages o Woodruf-Pak's 4 overlapping phases...

intelligence

o single entity- associated with Charles Spearman, labeled as "g"; if you're smart in one area, also smart in other areas o multiple aspects: associated with Howard Gardner- he described 7 distinct intelligences (musical, social, books)

look at notes for GLASS CEILING

pg 20

short-term store

primary memory- · passive storage area; held for 20 seconds; hold 7 items in STM (aka primary memory); young and older adults are comparable on STM tasks Working memory- · Involves holding information while actively processing and manipulating it (memorize names and birth date and when the last time you saw them was) Older people's WM is worse than younger people-> why? total amount of space in working memory is reduced; the more complex the manipulation, the more difficulty older adults have; decline in processing speed; older adults less able to ignore irrelevant and confusing info

semantic memories

refers to knowledge of words, rules, and concepts; this type is relatively spared in normal aging, remains fairly stable even through the 70s; older adults remember this information well 2 exceptions: (1) trying to access info you haven't used in a while-> might have a problem with retrieving it; (2) word finding problems, ex: tip of the tongue phenomenon

encoding- remote

§ (maintenance)- milk, bread, eggs from grocery store and repeat it over and over in your head

Berlin Wisdom Paradigm

§ Baltes and Staudinger; wisdom requires 5 skills: · Factual- knowledge of ethics, interpersonal relations, life events, social norms, self-knowledge (strength/weakness) · Strategic- different strategies and rules of thumb that enhance wellbeing; handle conflict; make important life decisions · Lifespan contextualism- context of life/ change; when you are thinking about things you take into account age, family, work, friends, community norms · Relativism- understanding values that other hold; other groups hold; acknowledge own belief systems and other cultures · Uncertainty- considers the uncertainty of life; accept the impossibilities of perfect solutions

remote mem- autobiographical info

§ Ex: personal events-> who you want to prom with, eat at wedding perception § Difficult to verify unless you have a yearbook, but memories might be wrong, and you are unable to verify § Reminiscence bump-older adults have very clear memories of events that occurred during the ages of 10-30 years; why?-> older adults see their favorite films, music, books, world events most important in these years; older adults are surprisingly accurate on answering questions on sports, academy awards, songs that were in this time period · Period of rapid change is why you remember so much · Have peak cognitive function during this time too · Period of developing sense of self-> vivid memories

remote mem- factual info

§ Ex: political events; memory for sports events, movies, TV, songs § Difficult to asses this because it takes place in the real world and not in a lab condition § Seniors remembered names and faces of their old yearbook in a study § Seniors were tested asking what the streets were from when they lived at college § Rapid rate of forgetting within 4-6 years of graduating school of the yearbook/ streets § 20-40% of that information is retained

long-term store

§ Information is purposefully moved to remain indefinitely § Accessing information relatively easy or difficult, depending (middle name is in LTM, but asked what you got at your 10th birthday party) § Declarative/explicit memory- refers to intentional and conscious remembering learned and remembered at a specific point in time (episodic/ semantic)

internal memory strategies

§ Memory aids that rely on mental processes such as imagery and verbal associations § Ex: remembering names- rhyming or acronyms § Getting good at strategies is hard work- requires more difficult processing § Not as frequently used by older adults § Some research reports say that if you train older adults improve; other research finds that there is not much improvement from training Research suggests neurological benefits-> increase white matter density

epistemic cognition

§ Refers to our reflections on how we arrived at facts, beliefs, and ideas § Comparison to others starting in young adulthood (think about how you come to conclusion and compare your thoughts to others; ex: death penalty- good or bad) -> realize when you come up short - Interviews were elite college students, this may not generalize with the whole population

external memory strategies

§ The use of physical aids or cues to maintain or improve memory § Ex: set a timer when you're cooking something; list of stuff to pack for traveling; medication organizers § Especially helpful in aiding prospective memory § Most frequently used strategies - widely available, work well

encoding- elaborative

§ processing unique characteristics of items and their meaning, relating meaning of items in your memory, thinking of examples and connecting them to your past (met a new girl named Sally and want to remember her name by thinking of the movie How Harry Met Sally) § Adult are less likely to use elaborative coding § Adults cognitive resources are reduced

development of dualistic thinking

· (beginning college students)- polar reasons (either right or wrong, not in between); have a hard time understanding contradicting arguments can have supporting evidence; with more experience and exposed to multiple viewpoints and arguments, the dualistic thinking declines

occupational insecurity

· - people are still working but feel insecure about their jobs, during uncertain financial times- company may be taken over or may be downsizing or company moves · Effects o Poorer physical/psychological well-being o Negative attitudes about employer, work in general o Decreased desire to work hard and be successful

stereotype threat

· - refers to idea that people perform in ways consistent with negative stereotypes of the group to which they see themselves belonging o Ex: if you have the idea that boys are better at math, then the girl is going to perform poorly How does it affect memory performance? Putting yourself in the category as old- and you're going to do poorly on the memory tasks (internal stable factor)

explanations of continuity and change: genetics

· 20% of the variance in personality types is heritable · The five major factors are influenced by genetics to about the same extent · Few gender differences · Monozygotic twins score for 5 personality factors show higher correlations than sores for dizygotic twins- genetic influence for personality traits

Vaillant's Theory of Mature Adaptation

· Accepts Erikson's stages as basic framework · Inserts an additional stage between Erikson's stages of intimacy and generativity · Career Consolidation - the stage when young adults are intent on establishing their own competence, mastering a craft, or acquiring higher stats or a positive reputation · Mature adaptation—potential progressive change in ways adults adapt psychologically to the trials and tribulations faced; the major form of adaptation he describes is the defense mechanism

memory self-efficacy

· Age based double standard- trying to make sense on why person forgot birthday o When individual is older - memory failure attributed to internal, stable factors o When individual age is 21- don't say that it's because they are getting older, it's external, unstable factors (lack of sleep, busy) · These stereotypes contribute to our sense of SE · Refers to the system of beliefs and judgements about one's own memory competence and confidence in one's own memory · Adults who have lower memory SE- they do worse on memory tasks o If you believe that you have a bad memory- you actually perform poorly, but if you are more confident then you perform better

job training and retraining

· Career recycling- in vocational psychology, the notion that people may go back and revisit earlier stages of career development · Recycling process is more common today · Nontraditional student- in college a student older than 25 o Over 40% of college students are nontraditional o Older workers over age 55 are slightly less willing to participate in training and career development

Personality and Relationships

· Choice of relationships o Helps determine who we choose; someone high in neuroticism might seek out someone who shares that trait · Behavior with partners o Determines how we behave toward partners; how we react to a partner's behavior; if someone high in neurotic expresses negative mood to his partner, partner will likely respond similarly, leading to an escalation of negativity · Influence on partner's behavior o Evokes certain behaviors from one's partner o People known to be destructive to relationships (the 4 horsemen from Gottman- criticism, contempt, defensiveness, stonewalling)

Cross-Sectional Research on the 5 Factor Model

· Comparing groups in middle adulthood to those in young adulthood o Decrease in neuroticism o Decrease in extraversion o Decrease in openness o Increase in agreeableness o Increase in conscientiousness · Similar findings have been found in other samples around the world · Problem- cohort effects may be partially responsible for the findings, since age and cohort cannot be separated · Therefore, longitudinal research may be better; 2 kinds of change to be studied, differential continuity and mean-level change

Costa and McCrae's Mid-life Crisis research

· Created a "Midlife Crisis Scale" and administered it to 350 men ages 30-60 years o Subjects asked to rate themselves on a scale of: meaningless, turmoil, confusion, job/family dissatisfaction, fear of aging and death · No evidence found of crisis · Longitudinal findings related to neuroticism scores o Men who scored higher on neuroticism 10 years earlier scored higher on midlife crisis-> psychological problems mean it's more likely to happen

memory

· Defined as the ability to retain or store information and retrieve it when needed · Memory failure effects · Memory lapses_> start to get paranoid and think you're getting alzheimer's What kind of changes in memory are normative?

how gender stereotypes influence personality

· Employment ads up until 1960s- help wanted male and female jobs o Male jobs: construction worker, accountant, fireman o Female jobs: secretary, teacher, cashiers · 1970s- changes in gender role attitudes and employed moms-> served as role models to women · Women's progress has been slower; although increases in lawyers, doctors, engineers, but numbers are not nearly where they should be · Women remain concentrated in less paid stereotypical jobs: Writing, social work, education, nursing

Explanation of Continuity and Change: Environmental Influences

· Environment has an effect, both directly and in combination with genetic factors · Twin studies show environmental influences are more prominent in adulthood · Changes in mean-level measures in personality are most common in young adulthood (reactive, evocative, person-environment, proactive, manipulative)

Mid-Life Crisis

· First coined by psychoanalyst in 1965 · Fear of mortality prompts life crises · Passages written in 1974 by Gail Sheehy o Different passages throughout a woman's life o 20s- find husband, work in or outside home o 50s renewed sense of purpose o 40s have the crisis · Based on research, including work by Levinson · Daniel Levinson interviewed 40 men ages mid-30s to mid-40s o Regarded the midlife crisis to be a universal process for at least 10K years o There is little to no empirical support of midlife crisis as universal phenomenon o Both Levinson and Sheehy relied too heavily on age as a marker of development o What should age of crisis be? § No one could agree on the age- Some said 43 and other 45, others extended to 47

phase II continued

· Fluid intelligence- consists of abilities that make you a flexible and adaptive thinker; inductive reasoning, abstract thinking, logic, speed of processing; independent of social influences- raw intelligence (how well your central NS is functioning, brain making connections) o Ex: D F I M R X E -> being able to decipher what comes next · Crystallized- refers to knowledge that you have acquired through life experience and education; improves throughout adulthood (while fluid declines) o Ex: jeopardy game

memory and health-related behaviors

· Focus on average performance not always helpful · Important factors o chronological age o gender (episodic test- women have an advantage) o education - the more education you get now, the better your memory will be o diet § fish = brain food (if you eat fish twice a week- rate of cognitive decline was reduced to 10-15% a year) § vitamins B12, B6, folate § homocysteine- amino acid found in blood of red meat -> decreases memory o exercise § aerobic exercise § hippocampal volume related to aerobic exercise - running/swimming reverses hippocampal volume loss § strength training o stress and depression- worsens memory o hypertension and coronary heart disease- worsens memory § any abnormality in circulatory function declines memory

Woodruf's phase IV- new approaches

· Focus on new ways to define and measure intelligence · Examples include postformal thought and wisdom

reasons for working longer

· Health o Older Americans are healthier now and bale to work longer o Jobs are less physically demanding · Average life expectancy o Increasing through time · Economic resources o Workers want to accumulate more money because of financial need · Mandatory retirement o Eliminated from many jobs o Airline, pilots, police, fire fighters · Changes in social security o Age at which people can start earning SS benefits is rising · Elimination of the "earnings test" o 2000- legislation that eliminated restrictions on earnings before people could receive their whole SS pension o If they did not retire before their collected SSà the earnings test (paying a penalty) o Now people can retire when they want and take their benefits when they want too

how teachers influence personality

· Importance o HS students feel that most teachers are caring, accessible, caring in future; More confident in being successful o Students going to college are closer to their teachers than students who are not going to college; foster high career aspirations in women if they have a good relation with their teacher-> more likely to succeed in their career aspiration · Factors related to students' confidence in choosing a career · College-bound students' relationships with teachers are closer; gender difference

memory training

· Important to find ways to help older adults offset negative changes in memory · What do best memory training strategies have in common o Any adult benefits o Require paying attention to the stimuli o Making new connections - idea that you already have info in your head (elaborative rehearsal) o Properly encoding-> easier to retrieve memory - 2 types of memory strategies-> external and internal

Longitudinal studies: intra-individual variability

· Intra individual variability- stability or instability of personal traits within an individual over time · Here the correlation is between individual scores from time 1 and time 2l different from differential stability because with that you're looking at the rank of scores, not the individual scores themselves · Research not as conclusive using this method; yes individual scores change but what does it mean? · Manipulating personality- can personality be changed intentionally? o People who believed intelligence was malleable were more open to learning, more willing to face challenges, and more resilient after failure o Those who thought intelligence was fixed tended not to demonstrate those characteristics o Possible to devise methods of changing maladaptive traits using interventions

remote memory

· Involves recall of info from the distant past · Popular myth that old people can remember info from many more years ago than recent events; Evidence is not supported with research

job satisfaction

· Job satisfaction is closely related to life satisfaction · Job satisfaction follows a U-shaped - higher in the younger and older years, lower in the middle · Unhappy middle ages workers leave jobs for a better fit · Younger workers enter work force with high expectations that lower as they reach middle-age · Or younger workers are enthusiastic to begin their careers, but enthusiasm declines as they deal with family and financial issues

non-declarative (implicit) memory

· Main focus is procedural memory, recall actions involved in particular tasks · Ex: riding a bike and recall this action; sow on a button · Memories acquired with practice over a period overtime -> once you've learned and acquired, it's naturally there · Procedural memory holds up with age Older adults may be slower in retrieving info, but just need more time think about it, but eventually retrieves it

anticipating career patterns

· Men and women anticipate difference career paths · Men usually plan to work steadily until retirement · Women plan to move in and out of the workforce as they have children · In nontraditional careers, women are more likely than men to cross the gender line · Men entering health care are more likely to choose less patient-centric jobs · Yet there are more women in college today than there are men, and with more women graduating college there are more opportunities for them than ever before

risky behavior and conscientiousness

· Meta-analysis correlated scores on Conscientiousness-related traits and nine different health behaviors · Conscientiousness was significantly correlated with each behavior · Men with wives who had high Conscientiousness scores reported better health than those with low-scoring wives; same was true for women with Conscientious husbands · Conscientious personalities were associated with less heavy drinking, less smoking, and lower waist circumference

work and family life

· Objective: explain how family related cultural expectations and workplace options influence work experiences o Spillover- the extent that events in one domain influence the other o Work family spillover or family work spillover o Women tend to start working fewer hours 2 years before marriage; men start working more hours 4 years before marriage

the effects of gender

· Occupational gender segregation- separation of jobs into stereotypical male and female categories · Pressure for young men and women to conform to what they see around them · Traditional men's jobs are higher in status and income · Women make up 47% of the workforce; 60% are low-wage workers · Many fields filled by women are "helping" fields- teachers, nurses o 1- Preschool and kindergarten teachers o 2- speech and language pathologists o 3- dental hygienists o 4- secretaries and administrative assistants o 5- nurse practitioners · Male-dominated occupations include the STEM fields

burnout

· Occurs when workers experience dissatisfaction, disillusionment, frustration, and weariness from their jobs · Loss of occupational idealism o Ex: teacher who feels like he's not making a difference; or feel like being exploited and not being appreciates · Feeling they are being exploited · Workers who have excessive workloads, reduced feelings of control o Ex: 4 people doing a particular job, eliminate 1 on the jobs, then 3 employees need to pick up the slack · Has negative impact on those who receive services from burned-out employee o Social worker that needs to make sure kids are being taken care of and don't feel like they are making a difference with all of their paperwork they need to fill out

job performance

· Older workers in jobs involving knowledge-based, crystallized abilities, and highly practiced skills have less job-related decline · Workers in jobs requiring manual skill and fluid cognitive abilities may show more decline with age · Older workers demonstrate more citizenship and on-the-job safety behaviors and fewer counterproductive behaviors · People do better middle aged with their jobs type · Middle aged workers have lower rates of turnover and absenteeism, help colleagues and group performance, don't complain about trivial issues

parental leave

· Paid parental leave policy- program in which the employer and/or the state provide time off with pay to new parents · The US does not have a national policy on paid parental leave · Of 41 developed nations, the US was the only one that did not mandate any paid leave when a woman gives birth or adopts · Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)- guarantees workers at large companies 12 weeks of job protection but is unpaid · Median length of parental leave taken by new mothers in the US is 11 weeks; for fathers, 1 week

unemployment

· Perception is reality o If you believe your job is in jeopardy you may still deal with these negative effects · Stress levels similar to those who are unemployed and who are worried about losing their job · Unemployment- the state of being without a paid job when you are willing to work · People with bachelor's degrees have a lower rate of unemployment than those with only high school diplomas · White adults have lower unemployment than Hispanic and Latino adults and black adults · NEETs (neither employed nor being educated or trained)- a majority of these individuals have high school education or less

personality and health

· Personality is closely related to health and longevity · People with high levels of Conscientiousness and low levels of Neuroticism tend to live longer · People low in Agreeableness are at higher risk for heart disease · Personality can directly affect the functioning of the body · Personality can lead to behaviors that promote or undermine health · Personality may be linked with coping mechanisms people choose when dealing with stress

evloutionary psychology explanations

· Personality traits are based on the most important features of the social group in which our ancestors lived · Reactive heritability → process whereby individuals use the qualities they have inherited as a basis to determine strategies for survival and reproduction · Example: Agreeableness may have been "selected" over time because those who could get along with others are more likely to survive and pass their genes on to the next generation

holland's personality type theory

· Premise is that individual personality traits affect which career you choose · If the match is good: o You enjoy your career more o You are more likely to remain in that career - realistic, investigative. artistic, social, enterprising, conventional

Erikson's Psychosocial Development

· Proposed psychosocial development continues over the entire lifespan · Gradual emergence of a sense of identity · A person must move through and successfully resolve eight crises over the lifespan · Each stage is defined by a pair of opposing possibilities · There are 8 stages, but let's just focus on the three adulthood stages · Three dilemmas describe adulthood: o 1. Intimacy → the ability young adults develop that allows them to enter into intimate relationships without losing their own sense of self o 2. Generativity → the tendency of middle-aged adults develop to help establish and guide the next generation o 3. Ego integrity → the tendency older adults develop to review their life meaning and integration

source memory

· Refers to recall of were / ow an individual acquires information · Ex: if you are taking 4 classes-> remember which professor was the one who referenced the pop quiz; or friend saying that had an extra ticket go to a game-> remember which friend · Older adults have more difficulty with source memory tasks · Younger adults are better at connecting items with the context of the situation · Ages 21-80: linear decrease in performance through entire lifespan, gradually over time not good at source memory tasks · Extremely poor source memory- problems with frontal lobe functioning

false memory

· Remember events that did not occur · Are older adults than younger? Yes · Ex: critical lure- subjects were exposed to semantically related words (bed, rest, snooze, comforter) the word sleep was not in the list - older adults more likely to remember critical lure o When you warn them ahead of time what will happen- younger adults avoid the lure, but even when you warn older adults, they don't adjust to the hint May increase older adults' susceptibility to scams

prospective memory

· Remembering to remember something o Ex: taking medication at dinner; remember to send a card to friend · Plays a crucial role in everyday life, especially important to older adults' independence · Research is not sure if older people have prospective memory slips; could even be better than younger adults o Important variable: level of education; verbal ability · Neurological evidence- more heavily task that involves planning (frontal lobe) the more disadvantage the older adult seems to be · Older adults benefit from reminders (lists or calendars)

retirement

· Retirement is a fairly modern concept; SS started in 1935 and before that retirement was rarely considered by most Americans · Number of retired people has been increasing since WWII · Issues o Planning o Reasons o Adjustment

stability vs change

· Staudinger's theory- suggests personality takes on 2 forms: o Personality adjustment § Developmental changes in terms of adaptive and functionality in society and how personality contributes to everyday life running smoothly § As you go into middle ageà increase in consciousness- show up to work on time and make sure your kids are on time too § When you age neuroticism decreases, agreeableness increases, consciousness increases-> changes associated with personality adjustment - maintain and regain different levels of well being o Personality growth § Ideal end; much rarer in adults § Self-transcendence, integrity, self-actualized, wisdom, best person you can be

Jung's Mid Life Changes

· Swiss psychiatrist who studied with Freud · Focused on the concept of balance · Balance shifts at different points in adulthood · Two shifts: o Introversion-extraversion- meeting the demands of external world and explaining social environment, finding a mate, more attainable by extroverts § At midlife there's less pressure and it's more okay to be introvert § Leads more time for reflection as you age o Masculinity-femininity; known as "gender crossover" in the text § Everyone has these types § Anima- feminine § Animus- masculine § Sam sex tendencies predominate § Middle age and older adults- less pressure to fulfill stereotypes § Older men more in touch with nurturing § Older women are more assertive § Expressions of self that have been there all along but haven't been revealed to outside world

trait perspective and personality traits

· Trait perspective- based on the assumption that the organization of our traits guide our behavior · Personality traits- stable patterns of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors; a distinguishable, relatively enduring way that one individual differs from others · Many trait theories have been developed, but few have been interested in how adults of different ages would be described; exception to this Five-Factor Model

personality and achievement

· Traits that make up conscientiousness are more important predictor of work-related markers of achievement · Traits include competence, order, dutifulness, self-discipline · Integral to completing work effectively, paying attention, striving towards high standards, inhibiting impulsive thoughts and behavior · All 5 personality factors predict good job performance if the job is a good match for the personality · Openness is another predictor for achievement

adding children to family

· Typical for men to remain in the workforce and for women to move into and out of employment due to family obligations · Number of years a woman stays in the workforce depends on the number of children they have- more children means less time in the workplace · Creating a household and family is entered in the "quality of life" equation

family influences on personaity

· Vocational aspirations correlate with parents' jobs o Ex: individuals who grew up in higher socioeconomic homes are more likely to select high status white collar jobs than those of lower; lower socioeconomic status blue collar jobs, retail jobs · Why the similarity? o Similarity in personality inherited o Functional intellectual abilities and educational attainment o College grad parents are more likely to encourage you to go opposed to those who didn't o High socioeconomic status parents promote more independence and curiosity and self direction which are required in high status careers o Doesn't mean that lower socioeconomic status parents cannot instill educational attainment · Parenting practices · Families may openly encourage children to have high career aspirations · Middle-class parents more likely to encourage children to attend college than working-class parents · Families affect career choices in their children by the roles they model · Women whose mothers worked outside the home were more likely to be employed themselves than women whose mothers remained home · Sons of working mothers support their wives' careers

Other Research on Mid-Life Crisis

· Whitbourne's study of 100 men and women ages 24-61 o None of subjects fit the criteria of crisis · "National Survey of Midlife Development in the US" o 26% reported they had experienced a mid-life crisis · Exaggeration because those who reported the problem said their crisis attributed to challenging life event, not to age (divorce, job loss, parent death) · No peak in problems in the mid-40s · Some female respondents stated the age of their mid-life crisis was over 60 (!) · Mid-life is no more or no less traumatic for most people than any other period of life · Middle adulthood often viewed as a positive time in life o Increase life satisfaction, self esteem and wellbeing o Kids are usually older and less dependent, and career is more established · Why does a theory so thoroughly debunked continue to remain alive in our culture? o The idea makes a "good story"- some may find it exciting to do new things o Turmoil in midlife is easily remembered by observers § Ex: Man gets divorced trades in mini van for sports car and starts dating younger women

Gender and work interests

· Why do young men and women choose "his and hers" jobs? · There may be gender differences in work-related interests o Studies find women tend to prefer working with people o Men are more interested in working with things o Many times the "working with people" jobs are more traditionally "feminine" jobs · Innate gender differences in vocational interests? OR Have young adults already internalized gender stereotypes presented by families, teachers, and friends?

impact of job loss

· Workers who lose jobs often suffer from poor mental and physical health · Increase in anxiety, depression, alcoholism, suicide o Every time employment rate goes up 1% there is a 4% increase in suicide rate in US o Admissions to psychiatric facilities rise too-> 4% for men and 2% for women · Generally the higher your education level, the faster re-employment you experience after losing a job · Young person- interferes with career establishment and identity as an adult · Older workers- difficulty finding new jobs or adjusting to new work conditions, many retire early · Worst for middle-aged workers- problem finding a job with comparable pay and prestige and too young to retire early o Lower life satisfaction because they have a hard time finding new job and may not have same benefits and salary as they used to

Person-environment transactions

· combinations of genetic endowment and environmental factors that maintain the stability of personality traits over time

five factor model

· demonstrated by Costa and McCrae · Big Five Model o Openness o Conscientiousness o Extroversion o Agreeableness o Neuroticism · NEO Personality Inventory- 3 (NEO-PI-3) · FFM is the standard, though other personality models and tests exist

personality

· enduring set of characteristics that define our individuality and affect our interactions with the environment and other people · Study of personality psychology encompasses a range of topics - traits, motivations, emotions, the self, coping strategies, etc.

blurred retirement pattern

· exit and reenter labor force several o Bridge employment- retirees work in a completely different occupation than most of adult life o Strongly related to financial need- part time, self employed

artistic personality

· idea creators prefer to work with their minds innovating, imagining, and creating o Dislike: structured situations, rules, and physical work o Traits: imaginative, idealistic, original, intuitive, expressive o Ex: musician, actors, poets

development- relativistic thinking

· knowledge is viewed as relative; knowledge depends on the situation and the thinker, where thinking becomes more flexible; absolute knowledge and embrace that there is multiple truths that are relative to context and individual; beliefs are subjective and there are multiple perspectives on issues (ex: 10 commandments should not commit adultery, get divorced, you're not a sinner)

ability/expertise trade-off

· observation that as a general ability declines with age, job expertise increases

social personality

· people helpers like to work with people informing, enlightening, helping, training, developing, or curing them; verbally and interpersonally skilled o Dislike: machinery and physical exertion o Traits: cooperative, understanding, helpful, tactful, sociable, ethical o Ex: salesperson, teachers, counselors, social worker

enterprising personality

· people influencers like to work with people influencing, leading, or managing them; power/status o Dislike: precise work, concentrated intellectual work, and systematic activities o Traits: persuasive, domineering, energetic, ambitious, flirtatious o Ex: TV producer, business executive, real estate agent, politician

phases retirement

· reduce responsibilities and ease gradually into retirement

manipulative transactions

· strategies in which we attempt to change our current environment by causing change in the people around us o Ex: extroverted person is moved to a quiet office and tries to motivate subordinates to be more outgoing

developmental- reflective judgment

· synthesizing the contradictions among different perspectives; Perry believes that few adult use reflective judgment; you can still use different criteria to evaluate different ideas (ex: which movie deserves the best picture Oscar; acting, screenplay, cinematography, score-> using all these aspects in order to make the decision)

evocative transactions

· when we behave in a way that elicits reactions from others that confirm our own personality or self-concept o Warm and secure individual will be inviting from peers than cold and aloof individual

reactive transactions

· when we react to, or interpret, an experience in a way that is consistent with our own personality o Ex: large gathering is going to be viewed differently with introverts and extroverts

proactive transactions

· when we select roles and environments that best fit our personalities o Conscientious person who volunteers at a campus organization because she will take good notes for record keeping