Exam 4 study guide

Types of grandparent relationships

1. remote grandparents - (sometimes called distant grandparents). They are emotionally distant from their grandchildren. They are esteemed elders who are honored, respected, and obeyed, and expecting to get help whenever they need it. 2. companionate grandparents - (sometimes called fun loving grandparents). They entertain and spoil their grandchildren -- especially in ways, or for reasons, that the parents would not. 3. involved grandparents - are active in the day-to-day lives of their grandchildren. They live near them and see them daily. 4. surrogate parents - raise their grandchildren, usually because the parents are unable or unwilling to do so.

Risk factors associated with elder abuse

Abuse is likely if the caregiver suffers from emotional problems or substance abuse, if the care receiver is frail and demanding, and if care location is an isolated place where visitors are few and far between. Must be on the lookout for elders who are unexpectedly quiet, losing weight, or injured. But usually elder abuse is more financial than physical. Elders who are mistreated are more likely to be depressed and ill.

Most common types of dementia and description

Alzheimer disease (AD) - the most common cause of dementia, characterized by gradual deterioration of memory and personality and marked by the formation of plaques of beta-amyloid protein and tangles of tau in the brain. (Sometimes called senile dementia of the Alzheimer type). Forgetfulness if the dominant symptom and working memory disappears first. It is partially genetic. Vascular dementia (VaD) - a form of dementia characterized by sporadic, and progressive, loss of intellectual functioning caused by repeated infarcts, or temporary obstructions of blood vessels, which prevent sufficient blood from reaching the brain. (also called multi-infarct dementia). Stroke or repeated strokes can cause this in a person. The interruption of blood flow reduces oxygen, destroying part of the brain. Symptoms like blurred vision, weak or paralyzed limbs, slurred speech, and mental confusion appear.

Factors contributing to happiness and quality of life in late adulthood

Eating a healthy diet, working, being close with family and being a part of the community, getting exercise and relaxation.

Changes in input, memory, processing, and output

Input: sensory loss. Older adults are less adept at knowing where someone was looking. Also less adept at reading emotions by looking at the eyes. Lose hearing and sight. Need glasses and hearing aids. Older adults are less able to decipher the emotional content in speech, even when they hear the words correctly. Memory: Memory fades. If older people suspect their memory is fading, anxiety itself impairs memory, a phenomenon more apparent among those with more education, probably because they are quicker to notice it. Vocabulary remains strong, but memory for names weakens. Source amnesia is forgetting the origin of a fact, idea, or snippet of conversation. Working memory, the memory of information held in the brain for a moment before processing (evaluating, calculating, and inferring), shrinks with age. Older individuals take longer to perceive and process sensations, and this reduces working memory because some items fade before they can be evaluated. Control processes: Elderly rely on prior knowledge, general principles, familiarity, and rules of thumb in decision making. Less likely to use analytic reasoning and more likely to base conclusions on personal and emotional experience. Output: Verbal meaning, spatial orientation, inductive reasoning, number ability, and word fluency decline at age 60. Its a gradual decline.

Effects of aging on the brain structure and function

Neural fluid decreases, meylination thins, cerebral blood circulates more slowly. The result is an overall brain slowdown, evident in reaction time, moving, talking, and thinking. Some areas of the brain shrink like the hippocampus (crucial for memory) and the prefrontal cortex (necessary for planning, inhibiting unwanted responses, and coordinating thoughts). In every part of the brain, the volume of gray matter (crucial for processing new experiences) is reduced; as a consequence, many people must use their cognitive reserve to understand events. Bright white spots appear on MRIs after age 50. These markedly increase the time it takes for a thought to be processed in the brain. Older adults use more parts of their brains, including both hemispheres, to solve problems. This is selective compensation: using only one brain region may be inadequate, so the older brain automatically activates more parts.

Describe function of selective optimization with compensation in late adulthood

Selective optimization with compensation - the theory, developed by Paul and Margret Baltes, that people try to maintain a balance in their lives by looking for the best way to compensate for physical and cognitive losses and to become more proficient in activities they can already do well. When older adults are motivated to do well, few age-related deficits are apparent. However, compared with younger adults, older adults are typically less motivated to put forth their best effort when the task at hand is not particularly engaging.

Self vs. stratification theories

Self theories - theories of late adulthood that emphasize the core self, or the search to maintain one's integrity and identity. Examples: integrity vs. despair - the final stage of Erik Erikson's developmental sequence, in which older adults seek to integrate their unique experiences with their vision of community. Also compulsive hoarding. Also positivity effect - the tendency for elderly people to perceive, prefer, and remember positive images and experiences more than negative ones. Stratification theories - theories that emphasize that social forces, particularly those related to a person's social stratum or social category, limit individual choices and affect a person's ability to function in late adulthood because past stratification continues to limit life in various ways. Examples: disengagement theory, activity theory. Also stratification by gender: men and women put on different life tracks. Stratification by ethnicity: ethnic background affects every aspect of development lifelong including education, health, place of residence, and employment. Stratification theory suggests that these factors accumulate, creating large discrepancies by old age. Stratification by SES: a family's low SES leads to less education, worse health, and poorer work history. Lots of medical care costs for old people. Inflation makes retirement income worth less than half of what it did when that money was first set aside.

Description and likelihood of wisdom in late adulthood

There is not a universal definition for wisdom, it depends on the culture. Some factors of wisdom though include: the ability to put aside one's personal needs, self-reflective honesty, and perspective on past living (life review). Some people of every age are wise, and that doesn't fade as life goes on.

Common elder activities and benefits

Working: helps keep them busy. Generativity, social connections, and less depression. Retirement: when people retire because they want to, it's good. When they retire because they don't want to, that creates decline for them Volunteer work: social connections, generativity, less depression. Reduces the odds of death. Caring for home: both sexes do yard work, redecorate, build shelves, and rearrange furniture. Gardening promotes exercise and social interaction. Correlates with less dementia and longer life. Religious involvement: faith and praying increase with age. Religious prohibitions encourage health (less drugs), joining a faith community increases social relationships, and beliefs give meaning to life and death, thus reducing stress. Political activism: more politically active than people of any other age. More likely to keep up with the news, vote, write letters to representatives, and choose a political party.

Description of who provides caregiving, pros and cons

spouse: extends life, healthier, wealthier, and happier. Works very well. sibling of elder: adult daughter or other child of elder: cons - if one adult child is the primary caregiver, other siblings feel both relief and jealousy. Care receivers and caregivers disagree about schedules, menus, doctor visits, and so on. Resentments on both sides disrupts mutual affection and appreciation. Public agencies rarely provide services unless a crisis arises.