Lifespan - Chapter 15

Integrity vs despair

According to Erikson, the process in late life by which people try to make sense of their lives

It is Erikson's 8th (and final) stage - 65+ years

According to Erikson, when does integrity vs. despair occur?

- Each person has the potential of being well-adapted to some living situations - When abilities match demands, people adapt - When there is a mismatch, they do not

According to the competence and environmental press theory, what is necessary for a person to be able to adapt to their living situations in late adulthood?

Better physical, psychological, and financial health

Benefits of being married in late life?

- Life satisfaction is represented in a "U shape" - High in young adults and older adults - Lesser in middle age adults

Describe the changes in well-being seen across the lifespan. Do older adults tend to be happy and satisfied?

- Competence = ability to function in five domains (physical health, sensory-perceptual skills, motor skills, cognitive skills, and ego strength) - Environmental press = demands that the environment puts on people (physical, interpersonal, or social demands) - Both change as you go through the lifespan - reflects the life cycle

Describe the main ideas of the competence and environmental press theory

- Relationship goals change across the lifespan - Select relationships based on these goals - Younger adults o No time pressures o Goal: information-seeking - networking knowledge, learning from others, information, resources o Want to meet new people; have larger social networks - Older adults o Time is limited o Goal: emotional regulation - desire for positive experiences and emotions (self-validation, affect regulation) o Are more selective; focus on close and familiar relationships

Describe the main ideas of the socioemotional selectivity theory, including how relationships, goals, and behaviors change with age

- Positives: feeling complete, satisfied, happy, proud about accomplishments - Negatives: sense of despair, failure, dreading or fearing death

Describe the nature of integrity vs. despair, including the positive and negative outcomes it can lead to

- Siblings are usually the longest-lasting relationship in a person's life o Relationships usually more important in late life than in earlier adulthood o Many siblings share emotionally close relationships due to a long, shared past - Does depend on relationship history, proximity, and health

Describe the role of siblings in late adulthood

- Having relationships with others keeps us connected - Social convoy: a group of people that journeys with us throughout our lives, providing support in good times and bad - Older adults have the same need for friends as people do in younger generations - Having at least one good friend provides a buffer against the losses that occur in old age - Also, increases happiness and self-esteem

Describe the role of the social convoy and friends in late adulthood

Planning is not always adequate - financial or psychological

Do most people adjust to retirement well? What factors influence whether someone adjusts well?

Subjective well-being

Evaluation of one's life that is associated with positive feelings

- Biopsychosocial model considers individuals as well as their health problem and the social context - It recognizes that health, disease, illness, and disability result from complex interactions of biological, emotional, cognitive, social, and environmental factors

Explain how the competence and environmental press theory incorporates the elements of the biopsychosocial framework

Social convoy

Group of people who journey with us throughout our lives, providing support in good times and bad

- For an increasing number of people, "retirement" involves working at least part-time - Some chose for finances; others to stay involved

How common is it to work in late adulthood

Long-term marriages: - Satisfaction increases when children leave home - Positivity bias (remember the good times) - Less conflict (learned how to disagree) - More positive emotions, respect, and intimacy

How do marital satisfaction and conflict change over the course of a long-term marriage?

- Widows generally bounce back more than widowers - Widowers may recover more slowly unless they have strong social support systems - Widows may suffer more financially

How do widows/widowers cope?

- Life-affirming involvement in the present - Reflection and impending death involvement in family, community - Life review - often used in therapy with older adults - Self-affirmation and self-acceptance - Promoted by identity, intimacy, and generativity

How does a person achieve and maintain integrity?

- Positively: • Produces more rewards for the caregiver than having someone else take care of their significant other - Negatively: • The partner caregiver assumes the new role after decades of shared responsibilities • Increases stress of caregiver • Depressive symptoms possible

How does caring for a partner affect the relationship, both positively and negatively?

- Behavioral evidence: positivity effect • Selective perception, memory, and preference of/for positive emotions • Research examples: remembering photos, interpretation of social interactions, dealing with disappointment - Amygdala activation and emotional arousal are lower in older adults - may be why they experience less negative emotion, lower rates of depression, and better well-being - Changes in cognitive processing in the prefrontal cortex also associated with changes in emotional regulation • Suppression of emotions

How does emotional processing/regulation contribute to increases in well-being with age? Discuss the main findings from the research on emotion, positivity, and brain processing.

- Change, with continuity in personality, identity - Coping with aging by applying familiar strategies, past experience - Helps to maintain and preserve sense of self, activity, relationships, etc. - Evidence for this theory = continuity in social and civic engagement

How does the continuity theory emphasize change, continuity, and successful aging?

- Goal of successful aging - Adapting to change while maintaining identity and engagement

How does the selective optimization with compensation model relate to the concept of successful aging?

- More common for women - Financial (especially for women) - Psychosocial • Loneliness; depression • Social support and interaction - friends and family may distance themselves - Physical health

How does widowhood affect development in late adulthood?

- Differentiating between what can and can't be changed - Focused on parts of problems that can be changed - Emotionally disconnecting from aspects of the problem that cannot be changed o Relying on higher being/power to provide best outcome

How is spirituality used to cope (three-step process)?

- Life satisfaction - Happiness - Self-esteem

How is subjective well-being measured?

- Older adults tend to rely more on religion/spirituality to cope vs. family/friends - Can help cope with challenges of aging - Research linking spirituality, religious-based coping and: o Physical and mental health o Well-being (even when faced with stress, such as illness) o Self-worth

Is spirituality commonly used as a coping mechanism in late adulthood?

No - it does not differ in quality from long-term heterosexual marriages; nor are the concerns of the individuals different

Is this any difference for heterosexual vs. same-sex partnerships?

Successful aging

Pathway through late life that focuses on positive outcome through health and social engagement to achieve well-being

Environmental press

Physical, interpersonal, or social demands that environments put on people

Life review

Process by which people reflect on the events and experiences of their lifetimes

- Older adults find that volunteering enables them to give back to their local communities - Volunteerism offers a way for society to tap into the resources that older adults offer

Taken together, how can working and volunteering help with the adjustment to retirement from full-time work?

Continuity theory

Theory based on the idea that people tend to cope with daily life in later adulthood by applying familiar strategies based on past experience to maintain and preserve both internal and external structures

Socioemotional selectivity

Theory that argues that social contact is motivated by a variety of goals, including information seeking, self-concept, and emotional regulation

Spiritual support

Type of coping strategy that includes seeking pastoral care, participating in organized and non organized religious activities, and expressing faith in a God who cares for people

Competence

Upper limit of a person's ability to function in five domains: physical health, sensory-perceptual skills, motor skills, cognitive skills, and ego strength

- Retirement = change in roles and lifestyle - Retiree must find new ways to stay involved and active

What changes and process are involved in adjusting to retirement?

- Positive outcomes - Physical health - Social engagement - Well-being

What does successful aging involve?

- Genetic factors - Personal characteristics - Cumulative life experiences - Stressful mid-life events and transitions

What factors influence change and development of long-term relationships from middle through late adulthood?

- Most retire when they can financially (can't always plan for this) - Forced retirement can be problematic - often due to health or economic conditions - Achievement of goals through work or retirement is a major consideration

What factors influence one's decision to retire?

- Hardiness - Chronic illness - Marital status - Social network quality - Stress

What factors influence well-being in late adulthood?

- Mindfulness/meditation: o Regular practice leads to structural changes in the brain (attention, memory) o Research suggests that meditation can help slow down or prevent the brain changes that underlie brain disease such as dementia

What is spirituality's relationship with physical and mental health, and brain activity?

- Physical health: finances, social support; sense of control, internal motivation - Forced retirement associated with poorer physical and mental health

What is the relationship between retirement and health?

Process of withdrawing from full-time occupation and discovering other pathways to the end

What makes retirement a complex process?

Zone of maximum performance potential

When press level is slightly higher, tending to improve performance

Adaptation level

When the press level is average for a particular level of competence

Zone of maximum comfort

When the press level is slightly lower than average, facilitating a high quality of life

- To maintain community ties - Develop a new aspect of the self - Finding a personal sense of purpose - Wanting to share one's skills and expertise - Redefining the nature and merits of volunteer work

Why do older people volunteer - what are the reasons and benefits?

- Means different things to different people - Losing one's occupation identity can be difficult to face

Why is retirement difficult to define?