Psychology of Aging Exam 1
Living in Nursing Homes
Maria and Arnetta may be the kind of people you think of when you conjure up images of nursing homes To be sure, you will probably find some people like them there In this section we examine types of long-term care settings, the typical resident, the psychosocial environment, and residents' ability to make decisions for themselves
Common Chronic Conditions and Their Management
Every day, millions of older adults get up in the morning and face another day of dealing with chronic diseases such as diabetes and arthritis We will also examine some ways to help alleviate the effects of some chronic conditions and consider some ways in which we may be able to prevent such diseases or at least reduce our chances of getting them
Changes in the Immune System
Every day, our bodies are threatened by invaders: bacterial, viral, and parasitic infections, and abnormal cells such as precancerous and tumor cells Finally, the immune system can begin attacking the body itself in a process called autoimmunity Psychoneuroimmunology is the study of the relations between psychological, neurological, and immunological systems that raise or lower our susceptibility to and ability to recover from disease By considering the various factors influencing disease, interventions that optimally combine medication, diet, and mind-body strategies can be devised
Developmental Trends in Psychometric Intelligence
Many returning adult students like Ashley worry they may not be "smart enough" to keep up with 18- or 19-year-olds It is in this stew of complicated interrelationships that much of the controversy is still brewing
Processing Resources
Many theorists and researchers believe with increasing age comes a decline in the amount of cognitive "energy" one deploys on a task Processing resources refers to the amount of attention one has to apply to a particular situation Two more precise approaches to processing resources are inhibitory loss and attentional resources Inhibitory Loss -One popular hypothesis is older adults have reduced processing resources because they have difficulty inhibiting the processing of irrelevant information -It all depends on the situation Attentional Resources -Another way of looking at processing resource issues is through the lens of attention -Divided attention concerns how well people perform multiple tasks simultaneously -Younger adults, on the other hand, optimized their memory performance and ignored walking and balancing
Pharmacology and Medication Adherence
One of the most important health issues for older adults is the use of both prescription and over-the-counter medications Like Lucy, most people take these drugs to relieve pain or related problems resulting from chronic conditions
Problem Solving
One of the most important ways people use their intellectual abilities is to solve problems Nancy Denney proposed a more formal version of this explanation that we consider next Denney's Model of Unexercised and Optimally Exercised Abilities -Denney postulates intellectual abilities relating to problem solving follow two types of developmental functions -Unexercised ability is the ability a normal, healthy adult would exhibit without practice or training -Optimally exercised ability is the ability a normal, healthy adult would demonstrate under the best conditions of training or practice -As we noted earlier in our discussion of attempts to train fluid intelligence, it appears this increase occurs Practical Problem Solving -Denney's model spurred considerable interest in how people solve practical problems -In short, solving practical problems offers an excellent way to discover how all the topics we have considered in this chapter come together to produce behavior in everyday life
time-of-measurement effects
One of the three fundamental effects examined in developmental research, along with age and cohort effects, which result from the time at which the data are collected
Metabolic Theories
One theory of aging that makes apparent commonsense postulates that organisms have only so much energy to expend in a lifetime Extrapolated to people, the restrictions could well cause a drop in humans' ability to engage in the kinds of activities we would consider important for a high quality of life
The Big Picture: A Life-Span View
One thing is clear about the ways people view intelligence—everyone has an idea of what intelligence is, and everyone considers it a complex construct Theories of intelligence, therefore, are multidimensional; that is, they specify many domains of intellectual abilities The first concept, multidirectionality, refers to the distinct patterns of change in abilities over the life span, with these patterns differing for different abilities The term plasticity refers to the range of functioning within an individual and the conditions under which a person's abilities can be modified within a specific age range The last concept, interindividual variability, acknowledges adults differ in the direction of their intellectual development The first component, termed the mechanics of intelligence, concerns the neurophysiological architecture of the mind The second component, pragmatic intelligence, concerns acquired bodies of knowledge available from and embedded within culture As we will see, three primary research approaches have emerged
Antioxidants
Organic molecules that help protect the body from harmful chemicals called free radicals
Managing Pain
People do not like to be in pain, and they fear pain more than almost any other aspect of disease Pain relief is an important part of recovery and should be included in any treatment regimen for adults of all ages
Ethnic Differences in Average Longevity
People in different ethnic groups do not have the same average longevity at birth The full explanation for these ethnic group differences remains to be discovered
Cardiovascular System
Tune into your pulse This decline is one reason why older adults who are not in good physical shape are more likely to have heart attacks while performing moderately exerting tasks such as shoveling snow
Creativity and Wisdom
Two additional aspects of cognition are important when viewed within an adult development context: creativity and wisdom Let's see whether these views are accurate Creativity -What makes a person creative? -The Current Controversies feature explores this question Wisdom -For thousands of years, cultures around the world greatly admired people who were wise -Perhaps because with the experience that brings wisdom comes an understanding that life does not always work out the way one would like
Aging and the Stress and Coping Paradigm
Two important age-related differences in the stress and coping paradigm are the sources of stress and the choice of coping strategies Cairney and Krause use data from a large Canadian longitudinal study to show that the experience of negative life events matters in the lives of older adults
Structural Changes in the Eye
Two major kinds of age-related structural changes occur in the eye This is what causes difficulty in seeing close objects clearly, called presbyopia, necessitating either longer arms or corrective lenses First, opaque spots called cataracts may develop on the lens, which limits the amount of light transmitted Second, the fluid in the eye may not drain properly, causing very high pressure; this condition, called glaucoma, can cause internal damage and progressive loss of vision Glaucoma, a fairly common disease in middle and late adulthood, is usually treated with eye drops
sequential designs
Types of developmental research designs involving combinations of cross-sectional and longitudinal designs
Linking Structural Changes with Executive Functioning
Understanding how changes in brain structures affect behavior involves careful linking of specific brain structures to specific behaviors This "disconnected brain" hypothesis is being used to explain much of cognitive decline in older adults
Competence and Environmental Press
Understanding psychosocial aging requires attention to individuals' needs rather than treating all older adults alike Competence is defined as the upper limit of a person's ability to function in five domains: physical health, sensory-perceptual skills, motor skills, cognitive skills, and ego strength Environmental press refers to the physical, interpersonal, or social demands that environments put on people Adaptation level is the area where press level is average for a particular level of competence; this is where behavior and affect are normal Slight increases in press tend to improve performance; this area on the figure is labeled the zone of maximum performance potential Slight decreases in press create the zone of maximum comfort, in which people are able to live happily without worrying about environmental demands When people choose new behaviors to meet new desires or needs, they exhibit proactivity and exert control over their lives In contrast, when people allow the situation to dictate the options they have, they demonstrate docility and have little control In these units, environmental supports such as color-coded room doors, help people with dementia identify where they belong
Male Reproductive System
Unlike women, men do not have a physiological event to mark reproductive changes, although there is a gradual decline in testosterone levels that can occur to a greater extent in men who are obese or have diabetes Practicing safe sex is equally important for older adults, as sexually transmitted disease remains a major concern
neuropsychological approach
compares brain functioning of healthy older adults with adults displaying various pathological disorders in the brain
divided attention
concentrating on more than one activity at the same time
executive function
conscious control of thoughts, emotions, and actions to accomplish goals or solve problems
reliability
consistency of measurement
flashbulb memories
detailed recollections of when and where we heard about shocking events
multidirectionality
developmental pattern in which some aspects of intelligence improve and other aspects decline during adulthood
drug excretion
elimination of a drug from the body
Telomarse
elongates the Telomeres in order to assume proper replication
effortful processing
encoding that requires attention and conscious effort
nonnormative influences
events that are irregular: they happen to just one person or a few people and do not follow a predictable timetable
emerging adulthood
for some people in modern cultures, a period from the late teens to mid-twenties, bridging the gap between adolescent dependence and full independence and responsible adulthood
terminal branches
form junctions with other cells
stress and coping paradigm
framework that views stress not as an environmental stimulus or as a response, but as the interaction of a thinking person and an event
Atherosclerosis
hardening of the arteries
competence
having enough skills to do something
myocardial infarction
heart attack
congestive heart failure
heart is unable to pump its required amount of blood
Hypertension
high blood pressure
speed of processing
how quickly and efficiently the early steps in information processing are completed
Neuroscience
how the body and brain enable emotions, memories, and sensory experiences
functional health status
how well a person is functioning in daily life
sensory memory
the immediate, very brief recording of sensory information in the memory system
stress incontinence
the inability to control the voiding of urine under physical stress such as running, sneezing, laughing, or coughing
Synapse
the junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron
corpus callosum
the large band of neural fibers connecting the two brain hemispheres and carrying messages between them
average longevity
the length of time it takes for half of all people born in a certain year to die
autobiographical memory
the memory for events and facts related to one's personal life story
active life expectancy
the number of years a person can expect to live without a disability
maximum longevity
the oldest age to which any individual of a species lives
structure of intelligence
the organization of interrelated intellectual abilities
autonomic nervous system
the part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs Its sympathetic division arouses; its parasympathetic division calms
functional incontinence
the person has bladder control but cannot use the toilet in time
accommodation
the process by which the eye's lens changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina
retrieval
the process of getting information out of memory storage
encoding
the processing of information into the memory system—for example, by extracting meaning
default network of the brain
the regions of the brain that are most active at rest
age effects
the relationship between age and a particular aspect of development
long-term memory
the relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system Includes knowledge, skills, and experiences
storage
the retention of encoded information over time
Psychoneuroimmunology
the study of how psychological, neural, and endocrine processes together affect the immune system and resulting health
Neuroanatomy
the study of the structure of the nervous system
positivity effect
the tendency for elderly people to perceive, prefer, and remember positive images and experiences more than negative ones
perimenopause
the term used to designate the transition phase between regular menstrual periods and no periods at all
menopause
the time of natural cessation of menstruation; also refers to the biological changes a woman experiences as her ability to reproduce declines
Theory of Mind (ToM)
the understanding that others have thoughts that are different from one's own
primary aging
the universal and irreversible physical changes that occur to all living creatures as they grow older
Parieto-Frontal Integration Theory (P-FIT)
theory that proposes that intelligence comes from a distributed and integrated network of neurons in the parietal and frontal lobes of the brain
postformal thought
thinking that acknowledges that adult predicaments must sometimes be solved in relativistic terms
mechanics of intelligence
those aspects of intelligence comprising fluid intelligence
Amygdala
two lima bean-sized neural clusters in the limbic system; linked to emotion
automatic processing
unconscious encoding of incidental information, such as space, time, and frequency, and of well-learned information, such as word meanings
systematic observation
watching people and carefully recording what they do or say
reflective judgment
way in which adults reason through real-life dilemmas
docility
when people allow their situation to dictate the options they have
proactivity
when people choose new behaviors to meet new desires or needs and exert control over their lives
adaptation level
when press level is average for a particular level of competence
zone of maximum performance potential
when press level is slightly higher, tending to improve performance
zone of maximum comfort
when press level is slightly lower, facilitating a high quality of life
free radicals
chemical particles with an odd number of electrons
angia pectoris
chest pain
cataracts
clouding of the lens
preventive adaptations
actions that avoid stressors and increase or build social resources
instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs)
actions that require some intellectual competence and planning
prebycusis
age related hearing loss
biological forces
all genetic and health-related factors that affect development
coping
alleviating stress using emotional, cognitive, or behavioral methods
neuro correlational approach
an approach that attempts to relate measures of cognitive performance to measures of brain structure or functioning
cognitive-structural approach
an approach to intelligence that emphasizes the ways people conceptualize problems and focuses on modes or styles of thinking
life-span perspective
an approach to the study of human development that takes into account all phases of life, not just childhood or adulthood
case study
an observation technique in which one person is studied in depth in the hope of revealing universal principles
chronic disease
an ongoing condition or illness
disability
any lost, absent, or impaired physical or mental function
health-related quality of life
assessment of impact of health status - including elements of physical, mental, emotional, and social function - on overall quality of life
emotion-focused coping
attempting to alleviate stress by avoiding or ignoring a stressor and attending to emotional needs related to one's stress reaction
activation imaging approach
attempts to directly link functional brain activity with cognitive behavioral data
activities of daily living (ADLs)
basic self-care tasks such as eating, bathing, toileting, walking, and dressing
secondary mental abilities
broader intellectual skills that subsume and organize the primary abilities
adult day care
A program for impaired adults that attempts to meet their health, social, and functional needs in a setting away from their homes
population pyramid
A bar graph representing the distribution of population by age and sex
experiment
A research method in which an investigator manipulates one or more factors to observe the effect on some behavior or mental process
Implications of the Developmental Forces
Although scientists do not yet have one unified theory of biological and physiological aging, the picture is becoming clearer If the legitimate research unlocks the secrets of aging, then a serious public discussion is needed to prepare society for the implications of a possible significant lengthening of the life span
Muscles and Balance
Although the amount of muscle tissue in our bodies declines with age, this loss is usually not noticeable in terms of strength and endurance up to age 70, as the loss is no more than 20% for most people up to that point Research evidence clearly indicates that resistance-type exercise can rebuild muscle fitness and mass, and may help delay these changes
universal versus context-specific development controversy
A community survey examined factors affecting the trust of four groups involved in a high concern controversy over the risks posed by motor boats to the quality of a municipal water supply In an effort at conceptual integration the survey results were used to examine the relationships between three concepts of trust Perceived agreement in values between self and four controversy‐involved groups was found to be the most powerful predictor of trust of all four groups, as expected by the salient value similarity perspective "Fairness" and "competency," as expected by the "dimensions" of trust perspective were also found to be significant predictors of trust However, judgments of "fairness" and "competency" were context specific as indicated by significant correlations with judgments of salient value similarity and self interests This violates the assumption of universality of the "dimensions" of trust perspective Judgments of similarity of values between self and the controversy‐involved groups were significantly correlated to self interests This indicates a conceptual overlap between the salient values similarities perspective and the encapsulated trust perspective
Osteoporosis
A condition in which the body's bones become weak and break easily
limbic system
A doughnut-shaped system of neural structures at the border of the brainstem and cerebral hemispheres; associated with emotions such as fear and aggression and drives such as those for food and sex Includes the hippocampus, amygdala, and hypothalamus
Linking Structural Changes with Memory
A great deal of research has examined links between memory and specific structural changes in the brain In order to understand how these complex systems work and are connected and integrated, we will focus on the case of memory and emotion as one key system that shows marked age-related changes
Cerebellum
A large structure of the hindbrain that controls fine motor skills
recall
A measure of memory in which the person must retrieve information learned earlier, as on a fill-in-the-blank test
Hemispheric Asymmetry Reduction in OLDer adults (HAROLD) model
A model of the effects of aging on brain activity during cognitive performance is introduced The model is called HAROLD, and it states that, under similar circumstances, prefrontal activity during cognitive performances tends to be less lateralized in older adults than in younger adults The model is supported by functional neuroimaging and other evidence in the domains of episodic memory, semantic memory, working memory, perception, and inhibitory control Age-related hemispheric asymmetry reductions may have a compensatory function or they may reflect a dedifferentiation process They may have a cognitive or neural origin, and they may reflect regional or network mechanisms The HAROLD model is a cognitive neuroscience model that integrates ideas and findings from psychology and neuroscience of aging
Hippocampus
A neural center located in the limbic system that helps process explicit memories for storage
Cellular Theories
A second family of ideas points to causes of aging at the cellular level Evidence suggests that the tips of the chromosomes, called telomeres, play a major role in aging by adjusting the cell's response to stress and growth stimulation based on cell divisions and DNA damage, and by typically shortening with each cell replication An enzyme called telomerase is needed in DNA replication to fully reproduce the telomeres when cells divide A second cellular theory is based on a process called cross-linking, in which certain proteins in human cells interact randomly and produce molecules that are linked in such a way as to make the body stiffer A third type of cellular theory proposes that aging is caused by unstable molecules called free radicals, which are highly reactive chemicals produced randomly in normal metabolism A growing body of evidence shows that ingesting antioxidants postpones the appearance of age-related diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, and immune system dysfunction, but there is no direct evidence yet that eating a diet high in antioxidants actually increases the life span
Emphysema
A serious disease that destroys lung tissue and causes breathing difficulties
Qualitative Differences in Adults' Thinking
Although Eddie did not know it, his argument parallels one in the intelligence literature—the debate on whether we should pay attention mainly to whether an answer is right or wrong or to how the person reasons the problem through Both these approaches postulate intellectual changes are mainly qualitative, even though they differ on many points
Environmental Factors
Although genes are a major determinant of longevity, environmental factors also affect the life span, often in combination with genes Denying adequate health care to everyone, continuing to pollute our environment, and failing to address the underlying causes of poverty have undeniable consequences: These causes needlessly shorten lives and dramatically increase the cost of health care
Piaget's Theory
According to Piaget, intellectual development is adaptation through activity He organized his ideas into a theory of cognitive development that changed the way psychologists conceptualize intellectual development Basic Concepts -For Piaget, thought is governed by the principles of adaptation and organization -Assimilation is the use of currently available knowledge to make sense out of incoming information -Accommodation involves changing one's thought to make it a better approximation of the world of experience -Because we are most interested in Piaget's description of adult thought, we emphasize that Sensorimotor Period -In this first stage of cognitive development, intelligence is seen in infants' actions -The most important thing infants learn during the sensorimotor period is that objects continue to exist even when they are out of sight; this ability is called object permanence Preoperational Period -Young children's thinking is best described as egocentric -A young child may believe his father's shaving causes the tap water to be turned on, because the two events always happen together Concrete Operational Period -Logical reasoning emerges in the concrete operational period -However, children are still unable to deal with abstract concepts such as love; to children love is a set of concrete actions and not an ill-defined abstract concept Formal Operational Period -For Piaget, the acquisition of formal operational thought during adolescence marks the end of cognitive development -This inspired a number of researchers to look beyond formal operations in determining pathways of adult cognitive development
risk factors
Actions or behaviors that represent a potential health threat
Interrelations Among the Forces: Developmental Influences
All the forces we have discussed combine to create people's developmental experiences A cohort is a group of people born at the same point in time or within a specific time span Normative age-graded influences are experiences caused by biological, psychological, and sociocultural forces that occur to most people of a particular age Normative history-graded influences are events that most people in a specific culture experience at the same time Nonnormative influences are random or rare events that may be important for a specific individual but are not experienced by most people We will return to this issue when we discuss age, cohort, and time-of-measurement effects in research on adult development and aging
ecology of aging
Also called environmental psychology, a field of study that seeks to understand the dynamic relations between older adults and the environments they inhabit
infantilization or elderspeak
Also called secondary baby talk, a type of speech that involves the unwarranted use of a person's first name, terms of endearment, simplified expressions, short imperatives, an assumption that the recipient has no memory, and cajoling as a means of demanding compliance
Systematic Observation
As the name implies, systematic observation involves watching people and carefully recording what they say or do However, whether the behaviors observed in staged situations are the same as would happen naturally often is hard to determine, making it difficult to generalize from staged settings to the real world
HIV/AIDS and Older Adults
An increasing number of older adults have HIV/AIDS; the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that roughly 25% of the people in the United States who have been diagnosed with HIV are over age 50 In short, we need to change outmoded beliefs about older adults and sexuality and focus on health and prevention
Female Reproductive System
As Helen is beginning to experience, the major reproductive change in women during adulthood is the loss of the natural ability to bear children As women enter midlife, they experience a major biological process, called the climacteric, during which they pass from their reproductive to nonreproductive years Menopause is the point at which menstruation stops This time of transition from regular menstruation to menopause is called perimenopause, and how long it lasts varies considerably In response to these increased risks and to the estrogen-related symptoms that women experience, one approach is the use of menopausal hormone therapy: women take low doses of estrogen, which is often combined with progestin The primary reason for the decline in women's sexual activity with age is the lack of a willing or appropriate partner, not a lack of physical ability or desire
What Is Brain Plasticity?
As discussed earlier in this chapter, there are certain situations in which the brain itself compensates for age-related changes Plasticity involves the changes in the structure and function of the brain as the result of interaction between the brain and the environment Neural stem cells are cells in the brain and spinal cord that are thought to give rise to the broad array of specialized cells of the CNS, including both neurons and glial cells Still, this work is not without controversy, as discussed in the Current Controversies feature
Memory in Context
As noted at the beginning of this chapter, memory is so integral to our everyday life we often take it for granted Third, research on everyday memory may force us to reconceptualize memory itself
What Age-Related Changes Occur in Neurotransmitters?
As noted earlier, because neurons do not touch each other, much of the information transmission from one neuron to another occurs chemically via neurotransmitters Let's explore some of the key findings
Fluid and Crystallized Intelligence
As noted earlier, primary abilities are themselves organized into clusters of secondary mental abilities A summary of the major secondary mental abilities is presented in Table 7.1 Fluid intelligence consists of the abilities that make you a flexible and adaptive thinker, allow you to make inferences, and enable you to understand the relations among concepts Crystallized intelligence is the knowledge you have acquired through life experience and education in a particular culture But because people improve their vocabulary skills by reading and they vary considerably in how much they read, individual differences are likely to increase
Factors That Preserve Memory
As should be clear from research we just considered, older adults perform certain everyday memory tasks quite well These findings imply there may be specific factors that help preserve memory performance, termed cognitive reserve Let's investigate some of them Exercise -A major meta-analytic study showed conclusively physical fitness training improves cognitive performance in older adults regardless of the training method or the older adults' personal characteristics -In short, physical exercise is great for the aging brain, a point we will explore further in Chapter 14 Multilingualism and Cognitive Functioning -In an intriguing study, Kavé and colleagues explored whether the number of languages a person speaks positively influences the cognitive state of older adults -These findings suggest speaking multiple languages might be a protective factor for maintaining our cognitive state as we age Semantic Memory in Service of Episodic Memory -Given that semantic memory is relatively unimpaired as we grow older, it may have an enhancement effect on episodic memory for older adults -The more associations are made, the stronger the effect and the more performance is improved Negative Stereotypes and Memory Performance -Older adults may not perform at optimal levels because they are aware of and threatened by the typical belief that aging hampers memory ability -We will explore this psychosocial factor influencing cognition in Chapter 8
Somesthesia
As you've probably discovered, a lover's touch feels different on various parts of your body Part of the problem has to do with how such sensations, including pain, are measured and how individual differences in tolerance affects people's reports
Linking Structural Changes with Emotion
As we have just seen, the age-related changes observed in executive functioning and memory map onto age-related deterioration in specific brain structures We'll return to this need for and roles of extra connections a bit later when we consider whether older adults compensate for brain changes
Theories of Brain-Behavior Changes Across Adulthood
As we have seen, several studies have shown evidence for different patterns of brain activity in specific regions in older adults across numerous cognitive tasks, suggesting that the underlying brain changes are not overly specific to a narrow set of circumstances These models make a common assumption: The primary reason for greater activation in different brain regions, as well as for the different patterns within the prefrontal cortex, is the need for the recruitment of additional brain regions in order to successfully execute cognitive functions as one grows older
A Model of Disability in Late Life
As we saw earlier in this chapter, one defining characteristic of a chronic condition is that it lasts a long time.In the context of chronic conditions, disability is the effects of chronic conditions on people's ability to engage in activities that are necessary, expected, and personally desired in their society Compression of morbidity refers to the situation in which the average age when one becomes disabled for the first time is postponed, causing the time between the onset of disability and death to be compressed into a shorter period of time Risk factors are long-standing behaviors or conditions that increase one's chances of functional limitation or disability Such situations are called exacerbators, because they make the situation worse than it was originally And the model is helping in the development of a new approach to classifying disability in China
Age Differences in Encoding Versus Retrieval
As we saw earlier, encoding is the process of getting information into memory, and retrieval is the process of getting that information out Encoding -Results from years of research suggest an age-related decrement in encoding processes -A strategy is anything people do to make the task easier and increase the efficiency of encoding or retrieval -So, at least part of the reason older adults perform more poorly than younger adults on tests of memory recall is because of poorer encoding Retrieval -We have already seen that one of the most consistent research findings is that older adults do more poorly than younger adults at recalling information -Moreover, even when encoding strategies are provided, and the opportunity to apply them during recall is allowed, older adults still do worse Neuroscience Evidence -Cognitive neuroscience presents evidence suggesting age differences in encoding and retrieval -Second, memory intervention or training programs must consider both encoding and retrieval
How Long Will We Live?
As we saw in Chapter 1, many more people are living to old age today than ever before When you have finished, continue reading to discover the research base behind the numbers
The Autonomic Nervous System
As we saw in Chapter 2, our brains are the most complex structures yet discovered in the universe The autonomic nervous system consists of the nerves in the body outside the brain and spinal column Jorge's experiences are related to changes in the autonomic nervous system; we'll discover whether Jorge's problems are normative
What Age-Related Changes Occur in Brain Structures?
As you already know from observation or personal experience, our bodies undergo visible changes with age as described in detail in Chapter 3 White matter refers to neurons that are covered by myelin that serve to transmit information from one part of the cerebral cortex to another or from the cerebral cortex to other parts of the brain White matter hyperintensities are determined by the observation of high signal intensity or a bright spotty appearance on images, which indicate brain pathologies such as neural atrophy A neuroimaging method called diffusion tensor imaging is a type of magnetic resonance imaging that assesses the rate and direction that water diffuses through the white matter These results provide a key example of how DTI is used in diagnosing serious diseases in order to start treatment earlier that would occur otherwise
Modifying Primary Abilities
As you have seen, older adults do not perform as well on tests of some primary abilities as younger adults, even after taking the moderators of performance into account Let's see what researchers discovered in Project ACTIVE Project ACTIVE -Sherry Willis has revolutionized our understanding of how far researchers can go to investigate the impact of training primary mental abilities -Second, transfer of training occurs, but evidence is lacking that it occurs across a wide range of materials unless training involves executive functioning and working memory, when the effects generalize to many different tasks
Stress and Coping Framework
As you know from your own experience, sometimes your interaction with the environment is stressful Schooler applied Lazarus and Folkman's cognitive theory of stress and coping, described in Chapter 4, to the understanding of the older person's interaction with the environment Caregivers of persons with dementia also show resilience when they have effective ways of dealing with environmental stressors
Neuroscience Research and Intelligence in Young and Middle Adulthood
As you might suspect from Chapters 2 and 6, considerable research shows specific areas in the brain are associated with intellectual abilities, and developmental changes in these areas are related to changes in performance The neural efficiency hypothesis, states intelligent people process information more efficiently, showing weaker neural activations in a smaller number of areas than less intelligent people As neuroimaging and other techniques continue to improve, it is likely that our understanding of both the brain structure-intelligence relations as well as their development will improve
The Reproductive System
As you probably surmised, Helen has begun going through "the change," a time of life that many women look forward to and just as many see as the beginning of old age Let's see how the experience differs for women and men
What Causes Functional Limitations and Disability in Older Adults?
As you were reading about the Verbrugge and Jette model, you may have been thinking about Brian's situation and those of other adults you know As predicted by Verbrugge and Jette, lack of physical activity is a powerful predictor of later disability and with higher rates of cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and obesity, all of which result in higher rates of disability and premature death
cohort effects
Effects due to a person's time of birth, era, or generation but not to actual age
The Stability-Change Issue
Ask yourself the following question: Are you pretty much the same as you were 10 years ago, or are you different? The stability-change issue concerns the degree to which people remain the same over time, as discussed in the Current Controversies feature For many gerontologists, whether stability or change is the rule depends on what personal aspect is being considered and what theoretical perspective one is adopting
Decision Making
At first glance, the research on decision making suggests older adults make less effective decisions This did not happen for younger adults. Kim et al. note that advertisements or interventions having a positive impact on one age group may have a completely different impact on another
Atherosclerosis
Atherosclerosis is an age-related disease caused by the buildup of fat deposits on and the calcification of the arterial walls When the blood flow to a portion of the brain is completely cut off, a cerebrovascular accident, or stroke, results When blood pressure increases become severe, defined as 140 mm Hg or more systolic pressure or 90 mm Hg or more diastolic pressure, the disease hypertension results Although hypotension per se is not a dangerous condition, the resulting dizziness and other symptoms can increase the likelihood of fainting and falls, which may result in more serious injury
problem-focused coping
Attempting to alleviate stress directly by changing the stressor or the way we interact with that stressor
Moderators of Intellectual Change
Based on the research we considered thus far, two different developmental trends emerge: we see gains in experience-based processes but losses in information-processing abilities These include cohort differences, education level, social variables, personality, health and lifestyle, and relevancy and appropriateness of tasks Cohort Differences -Do the differences in intellectual performance obtained in some situations reflect true age-related change or mainly cohort, or generational, differences? -This conclusion is supported by a study of 531 adult parent-offspring pairs indicating generational improvements were becoming smaller for more recently born pairs Information Processing -A number of researchers suggests general processing constraints that occur with aging may help identify mechanisms underlying decline in fluid intelligence abilities with age -Finally, evidence suggests the inability to inhibit actions and thoughts or to avoid interference typically found in older adults may also account for efficient functioning in fluid and/or mechanic abilities Social and Lifestyle Variables -Numerous social and lifestyle variables have been identified as important correlates of intellectual functioning -Finally, although research suggests education and lifestyle factors are a predictor of intellectual functioning, it is still a matter of debate whether it helps slow cognitive change in late life Personality -Several aspects of personality have been proposed as important for understanding intellectual change -Similar to research we examined in Chapter 6 on memory, one of these aspects concerns self-efficacy -In Chapter 8, we will consider the concept of emotional intelligence and see how people use their knowledge of their own and others' emotions to guide their thinking and behavior Health -The most obvious relationship between health and intelligence concerns the functioning of the brain itself -Terminal decline is the gradual decline in cognitive function that occurs relatively near death -Answering that question was the aim of the research conducted by Aichele, Rabbitt, and Ghisletta that is highlighted in the How Do We Know? feature
pragmatic intelligence
the component of intelligence that concerns acquired bodies of knowledge available from and embedded within culture
Medication Side Effects and Interactions
Because of their high rate of medication use, older adults also have the highest risk of adverse drug effects Treating multiple conditions results in polypharmacy, the use of multiple medications The goal should be to use medications only when absolutely necessary, and to avoid creating additional problems through their use
The Measurement of Intelligence
Because the psychometric approach focuses on the interrelationships among intellectual abilities, the major goal has long been to describe the ways these relationships are organized This organization of interrelated intellectual abilities is termed the structure of intelligence If the performance on one test is highly related to the performance on another, the abilities measured by the two tests are interrelated and are called a factor We examine two factors: primary and secondary mental abilities
Perspectives on Adult Development and Aging
Before you read any more, take a minute and think about your own grandparents or great-grandparents Gerontology, the scientific study of aging from maturity through old age, has changed our understanding of aging and the aging process These myths of aging lead to negative stereotypes of older people, which may result in ageism, a form of discrimination against older adults based on their age Finally, by examining various research methods we show how the information presented in this book was obtained
Changes in Mobility
Being able to get around on one's own is an important part of remaining independent As you will see, we all experience some normative changes that can affect our ability to remain mobile, but most of these changes do not inevitably result in serious limitations
Psychological Implications
Being able to maintain proper body temperature can literally be a matter of life and death Ensuring that the sleep environment is maximally conducive to sleeping and by providing whatever environmental supports possible, we can increase the odds of improving sleep
Balance
Bertha, the older woman we met in the vignette, is like many older adults—she is worried about losing her balance and falling People can also be trained to prevent falls through tai chi
Dendrites
Branchlike parts of a neuron that are specialized to receive information
Functional Health and Disability
Brian and Dorothy are not alone In this section, we examine how functional health is determined and how disability occurs
Cancer
Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States, behind cardiovascular disease As with any healthcare decision, people with cancer need to become as educated as possible about the options
stability-change issue
Change Stability implies personality traits present during infancy endure throughout the lifespan In contrast, change theorists argue that personalities are modified by interactions with family, experiences at school, and acculturation
Conducting Research Ethically
Choosing a good research design involves more than just selecting a particular method By treating research participants with respect, investigators are in a better position to make important discoveries about adult development and aging
Psychological Effects of Visual Changes
Clearly, age-related changes in vision affect every aspect of older adults' daily lives and their well-being Thus, part of Bertha's concern about falling may be caused by changes in her ability to tell where the next step is or to see hazards along the sidewalk
Coping
Collectively, these attempts to deal with stressful events are called coping Problem-focused coping involves attempts to tackle the problem head-on Emotion-focused coping involves dealing with one's feelings about the stressful event Of course, should the number of stressful issues exceed one's ability to cope, then the number of issues being confronted would be a key issue
Congregate Housing
Congregate housing includes a range of living options from those providing only housing to those providing some level of medical services The best decisions about where one should live in late life are those that lead to outcomes that are congruent to the person's needs and goals, so congregate living can work for those seeking specific types of social engagement
International Differences in Average Longevity
Countries around the world differ dramatically in how long their populations live on average The differences also mean that populations in countries such as Sierra Leone are very much younger, on average, than they are in countries such as Japan or the United States
Culture and Ethnicity
Culture and ethnicity jointly provide status, social settings, living conditions, and personal experiences for people of all ages, and they influence and are influenced by biological, psychological, and life-cycle developmental forces Given the demographic trends discussed earlier, this focus must change so we can understand the experience of growing older in the United States in the next few decades
type 2 diabetes
Diabetes of a form that develops especially in adults and most often obese individuals and that is characterized by high blood glucose resulting from impaired insulin utilization coupled with the body's inability to compensate with increased insulin production
type 1 diabetes
Diabetes of a form that usually develops during childhood or adolescence and is characterized by a severe deficiency of insulin, leading to high blood glucose levels
ageism
Discrimination based on age
nature-nurture issue
Do inherited traits or life experiences play a greater role in shaping your personality? The nature versus nurture debate is one of the oldest issues in psychology The debate centers on the relative contributions of genetic inheritance and environmental factors to human development
Health and Illness
Each of us has had periods of health and of illness Finally, we will consider how stress can affect our health
Attention: The Basics
Each of us have experienced being in a situation when our thoughts drift off and someone snaps at us, "Pay attention to me." Let's consider these in more detail
Age, Cohort, and Time of Measurement
Every study of adult development and aging is built on the combination of three building blocks: age, cohort, and time of measurement Age effects reflect differences caused by underlying processes, such as biological, psychological, or sociocultural changes Cohort effects are differences caused by experiences and circumstances unique to the generation to which one belongs Time-of-measurement effects reflect differences stemming from sociocultural, environmental, historical, or other events at the time the data are obtained from the participants In general, confounding is any situation in which one cannot determine which of two or more effects is responsible for the behaviors being observed We next consider the most common ways in which researchers gather data about age differences and age changes: cross-sectional, longitudinal, time lag, and sequential designs
Regulating Body Temperature
Every year, newscasts around the world report that during very cold or very hot spells more older adults die than people in other age groups This is why social service agencies are especially mindful of older adults during major weather events
Hearing
Experiencing hearing loss is one of the most well-known normative changes with age The cumulative effects of noise and normative age-related changes create the most common age-related hearing problem: reduced sensitivity to high-pitched tones, called presbycusis, which occurs earlier and more severely than the loss of sensitivity to low-pitched tones Although technology continues to improve, none of these devices can duplicate your original equipment, so be kind to your ears and keep the volume down on your headphones and earbuds
compensatory changes
changes that allow older adults to adapt to the inevitable behavioral decline resulting from changes in specific areas of the brain
Incontinence
For many people, the loss of the ability to control the elimination of urine and feces on an occasional or consistent basis, called incontinence, is a source of great concern and embarrassment Stress incontinence happens when pressure in the abdomen exceeds the ability to resist urinary flow Urge incontinence usually is caused by a central nervous system problem after a stroke or urinary tract infection Overflow incontinence results from improper contraction of the kidneys, causing the bladder to become overdistended Functional incontinence occurs when the urinary tract is intact but because of physical disability or cognitive impairment the person is unaware of the need to urinate All these options help alleviate the psychological and social effects of incontinence and help people live better lives
Adherence to Medication Regimens
For medications to be maximally effective, it is important that they be taken as directed In general, medication use by older adults should get the same careful consideration as by any other age group
Assisted Living
Given that maintaining a sense of place, a home, is important to older adults, it should not come as a surprise that they prefer living options that foster that desire Assisted living facilities are housing options for older adults that provide a supportive living arrangement for people needing assistance with personal care but who are not so impaired physically or cognitively that they need 24-hour care Having access to the resources that this requires will be a major issue
Changes in the Hair
Gradual thinning and graying of the hair of both men and women occur inevitably with age, although there are large individual differences in the rate of these changes Cultural variations are evident in whether people let their hair turn gray or whether they color it
The STAC-r Model
How do we explain the specific patterns of age-related changes in prefrontal activity and resolve interpretive dilemmas? The Scaffolding Theory of Cognitive Aging-Revised model is based on the idea that age-related changes in one's ability to function reflect a life-long process of compensating for cognitive decline by recruiting additional brain areas, and takes life-course factors that enhance or deplete neural resources into account The default network of the brain refers to regions of the brain that are most active when one is at rest These techniques have also allowed us to differentiate preserved areas of the brain from areas that are more prone to decline
The Forces of Development
Hair color, remembering, personality, activity levels—Why do adults differ so much on these and other things? Biological forces include all genetic and health-related factors that affect development Examples of biological forces include menopause, facial wrinkling, and changes in the major organ systems Psychological forces include all internal perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and personality factors that affect development Collectively, psychological forces provide the characteristics we notice about people that make them individuals Sociocultural forces include interpersonal, societal, cultural, and ethnic factors that affect development Sociocultural forces provide the overall contexts in which we develop Life-cycle forces reflect differences in how the same event or combination of biological, psychological, and sociocultural forces affects people at different points in their lives Life-cycle forces provide the context for the developmental differences of interest in adult development and aging One useful way to organize the biological, psychological, and sociocultural forces on human development is with the biopsychosocial framework The biopsychosocial framework, along with life-cycle forces, will provide a way to understand all the developmental outcomes you will encounter in this text
Communicating with Residents
Have you ever been to a nursing home? Inappropriate speech to older adults that is based on stereotypes of incompetence and dependence is called patronizing speech Secondary baby talk, also called infantilization or elderspeak, also involves the unwarranted use of a person's first name, terms of endearment, simplified expressions, short imperatives, an assumption that the recipient has no memory, and cajoling as a way to demand compliance By following these guidelines, you will be able to avoid difficulties and make your visits more pleasurable
Gender Differences in Average Longevity
Have you ever visited a senior center or a nursing home? Between ages 65 and 89, women score higher on cognitive tests; beyond age 90, men do much better
Vision
Have you ever watched middle-aged people try to read something that is right in front of them? The major changes are best understood by grouping them into two classes: changes in the structures of the eye, which begin in the 40s, and changes in the retina, which begin in the 50s
General Issues in Chronic Conditions
Having a chronic disease does not mean that one immediately becomes incapacitated This will necessitate a fundamental change in health care, reflecting a shift from an acute care focus to one that focuses much more on managing chronic conditions
General Designs for Research
Having selected the way we want to measure the topic of interest, researchers must embed this measure in a research design that yields useful, relevant results The specific design chosen for research depends in large part on the questions the researchers are trying to address
Information Processing and Attention
How can Trey filter everything out? In this section, we consider the most popular model: the information-processing model
Determining Functional Health Status
How can we determine where a person can be categorized along Verbrugge and Jette's continuum? The answer to this question describes a person's functional health status, that is, how well the person is functioning in daily life This sequence of loss of function is referred to as the hierarchy of loss Frail older adults are those who have physical disabilities, are very ill, and may have cognitive or psychological disorders and need assistance with everyday tasks Activities of daily living include basic self-care tasks such as eating, bathing, toileting, walking, or dressing A person can be considered frail if he or she needs help with one or more of these tasks Instrumental activities of daily living are actions that entail some intellectual competence and planning A third way of assessing competence is to focus on physical limitations, activities that reflect functional limitations such as walking a block or sitting for about two hours Although frailty becomes more likely with increasing age, especially as a person approaches death, there are many ways to provide a supportive environment for frail older adults
The Neuroscience Approach
How did Margaret's physicians figure out what was wrong with her? Neuroimaging is a set of techniques in which pictures of the brain are taken in various ways to provide understanding of both normal and abnormal cognitive aging
Effects of Stress on Health
How does stress affect us? High levels of LDL cholesterol are associated with cardiovascular disease and stroke
Self-Evaluations of Memory Abilities
How good is your memory? They are based not only on memory and performance per se but also on how we view ourselves in general, our theories about how memory works, what we remember from past evaluations, and our attributions and judgments of our effectiveness
Average and Maximum Longevity
How long you live, called longevity, is jointly determined by genetic and environmental factors Average longevity is commonly called average life expectancy and refers to the age at which half of the individuals who are born in a particular year will have died Maximum longevity is the oldest age to which any individual of a species lives Increasingly, researchers are differentiating between active life expectancy and dependent life expectancy; the difference is between living to a healthy old age and simply living a long time How many active and dependent years one has in late life depends a great deal on the interaction of genetic and environmental factors, to which we now turn
Prospective Memory
How well do you remember to do things such as pick up some vegetables on your way home? Prospective memory involves remembering to remember something in the future, such as an action or event Future research will likely focus on when such forgetting could be injurious, such as taking additional medication because one has forgotten that the dose has already been taken Autobiographical Memory -We noted earlier one main function of memory is to create one's sense of identity -Autobiographical memory involves remembering information and events from our own life -Researchers label memories for personally traumatic or unexpected events flashbulb memories -It may be this earlier period of life contains more key events important in creating one's personal history
Sleep and Aging
If you are older, chances are that you had some trouble Olivia should be informed of these changes and encouraged to make sure Jorge drinks plenty of water and adopts good sleep habits
Changes in Body Build
If you have been around the same older people, such as your grandparents, for many years, you undoubtedly have noticed that the way their bodies look changed over time Keeping your weight in the normal range for your height, then, may help you live healthier longer
The Eden Alternative
Imagine an approach to caring for frail older adults starting from the premise that skilled care environments are habitats for people rather than facilities for the frail However, there is also evidence that staff may feel challenged to keep up with the consistent work assignments
Somesthesia and Balance
Imagine that you are locked in an embrace with a lover right now To maintain her balance and avoid falling, her somesthetic system integrates a great deal of information about her body position
The Life-Span Perspective
Imagine trying to understand, without knowing anything about his or her life, what your best friend is like The life-span perspective divides human development into two phases: an early phase and a later phase As we see throughout this book, this shift in resources has profound implications for experiencing aging and for pointing out ways to age successfully
Aging in Place
Imagine you are an older adult who has difficulty cooking meals and getting around We consider this approach later in this section
Speed of Processing
Imagine you are sitting quietly watching a video on your iPad Speed of processing is how quickly and efficiently the early steps in information processing are completed Interestingly, the amount of beta-amyloid protein found in the central nervous system, a bio-marker linked with the possible subsequent development of dementia, has been shown to be related to the degree processing speed slows
Correlational Design
In a correlational study, investigators examine relations between variables as they exist naturally in the world This means we can describe a great many developmental phenomena, but we cannot explain very many of them
Cross-Sectional Designs
In a cross-sectional study, developmental differences are identified by testing people of different ages at the same time Most importantly, they can point out issues that may provide fruitful avenues for subsequent longitudinal or sequential studies, in which case we can uncover information about age changes
Longitudinal Designs
In a longitudinal study, the same individuals are observed or tested repeatedly at different points in their lives In a microgenetic study, a special type of longitudinal design, participants are tested repeatedly over a span of days or weeks, typically with the aim of observing change directly as it occurs Thus, longitudinal studies are becoming more common
Integrating Emotion and Logic
In addition to an increased understanding there is more than one "right" answer, adult thinking is characterized by the integration of emotion with logic In contrast, when the demands of the task are great, the arousal that is created narrows their ability to bring emotions to bear Neuroimaging Evidence -Evidence from neuroimaging research indicates emotion and logic processing is indeed integrated in adults -It also provides the basis for broader perspectives about life, and the ability to see points of view different from one's own
Implicit Versus Explicit Memory
In addition to working memory, we can further divide memory systems into two other types: implicit memory and explicit memory Implicit memory involves retrieval of information without conscious or intentional recollection Explicit memory, is intentional and conscious remembering of information learned and remembered at a specific point in time This research typically concerns our next topic, long-term memory
The PASA Model
In general, neuroimaging data in cognitive aging research shows an age-related reduction in brain activity in parts of the back, or posterior, parts of the brain and increased activity in the front, or anterior, areas, especially the prefrontal cortex This posterior-anterior shift in aging from occipital to frontal processing is thought to reflect age-related compensation However, some research does not support lower levels of processing in posterior areas of the brain with age, and questions whether this prefrontal activity indicates actual compensatory processing or something else
Adult Day Care
In some cases, older adults need more support than is possible with just home modification, but still do not need assistance on a full-time basis Adult day care is designed to provide support, companionship, and certain services during the day However, a key factor in the success of day care programs is having culturally appropriate programs in interventions, as demonstrated in studies of Korean and Chinese clients who benefited most when programs took their cultural background into account
Defining Intelligence
In terms of intelligence, the distinction between Toni and Stacey's success points to an important question to ask: What do we mean by intelligence? It is more than just these abilities because intelligence also involves the qualitative aspects of thinking style, or how one approaches and conceptualizes problems
Cardiovascular Diseases
In the United States, more than 30% of the people currently have some form of cardiovascular disease; this rate may increase as the overall population continues to age Congestive heart failure occurs when cardiac output and the ability of the heart to contract severely decline, making the heart enlarge, pressure in the veins increase, and the body swell Angina pectoris occurs when the oxygen supply to the heart muscle becomes insufficient, resulting in chest pain Heart attack, called myocardial infarction, occurs when blood supply to the heart is severely reduced or cut off Treating heart attack victims of all ages includes careful evaluation and a prescribed rehabilitation program consisting of lifestyle changes in diet and exercise
Core Issues in Development
Is it your genes or experiences that determine how intelligent you are? Because each of these issues cuts across the topics we discuss in this book, let's consider each briefly
Appearance and Mobility
Kristina's experience isn't unique Having a body that moves effectively also lets us enjoy physical activities such as walking, swimming, and skiing
Appraisal
Lazarus and Folkman describe three types of appraisals of stress Primary appraisal categorizes events into three groups based on the significance they have for our well-being: irrelevant, benign or positive, and stressful Secondary appraisal evaluates our perceived ability to cope with harm, threat, or challenge Reappraisal involves making a new primary or secondary appraisal resulting from changes in the situation As a result, events that were appraised as not stressful in young adulthood may be appraised as stressful in late life
Genetic and Environmental Factors in Average Longevity
Let's return to Susie, who wonders whether she can expect to live a long life Let's begin with genetic and environmental factors
Issues in Studying Adult Development and Aging
Like many grandparents, Levar wonders what the future holds for his granddaughter Similarly, someone who believes that personality characteristics change across adulthood would be likely to search for life transitions
Genetic Factors
Living a long life has a clear, but complex, genetic link The oldest-old, such as Suzie's grandmother, are hardy because they have a high threshold for disease and show slower rates of disease progression than their peers who develop chronic diseases at younger ages and die earlier
Preventive and Corrective Proactivity Model
Maintaining a high quality of life is a key goal for adults of all ages Preventive adaptations are actions that avoid stressors and increase or build social resources Corrective adaptations are actions taken in response to stressors and can be facilitated by internal and external resources In the meantime, keep it in mind as you learn about specific behaviors and situations that help people adapt successfully to the changes that occur with age
Joints
Many middle-aged and older adults have good reason to complain of aching joints Over time and repeated use, the bones underneath the cartilage become damaged, which can result in osteoarthritis, a disease marked by gradual onset and progression of pain and disability, with minor signs of inflammation A second form of arthritis is rheumatoid arthritis, a more destructive disease of the joints that also develops slowly and typically affects different joints and causes other types of pain and more inflammation than osteoarthritis As we have seen, though, they are different diseases requiring different treatment approaches
Memory Processes
Memory researchers have long focused on three general steps in memory processing as potential sources of age differences: encoding, storage, and retrieval Encoding is the process of getting information into the memory system Storage involves the manner in which information is represented and kept in memory Getting information back out of memory is termed retrieval Because there is no evidence for age differences in how information is organized in storage, most research has examined encoding and retrieval as sources of age differences
The Ecology of Aging: Community Options
Most people go through young adulthood, middle age, and into later life performing routine daily tasks without much thought These changes are studied in a field called the ecology of aging or environmental psychology, which seeks to understand the dynamic relations between older adults and the environments they inhabit It's intriguing, and a great mindset to use throughout the rest of this chapter
Special Care Units
Most residents of nursing homes have cognitive impairment, and the majority of those individuals have dementia The behavioral-based intervention preferred in well-designed special care units results in lower mortality and better functioning, all other factors held constant, and is also likely to be used throughout the nursing home, improving quality overall
Neuroscience and Adult Development and Aging
Much adult development and aging research has focused on cognitive aging, both normal and pathological Let's examine what the field of neuroscience and aging has contributed to our knowledge of the aging brain
The HAROLD Model
Numerous studies have documented the fact that younger adults show brain activation in one brain hemisphere when performing various cognitive tasks, but that older adults' brains tend to show increased activation in both brain hemispheres The HAROLD model stands for Hemispheric Asymmetry Reduction in OLDer adults, which explains the empirical findings of reduced lateralization in prefrontal lobe activity in older adults What remains to be established, though, is where the line should be drawn separating normal age-related changes that can be compensated and changes that are so extensive or are happening so rapidly that compensation does not work
New Directions for Nursing Homes
Nursing homes are not static entities Three interesting new developments are the Eden Alternative, the Green House Project, and the Pioneer Network
Long-Term Care in Nursing Homes
Nursing homes house the largest number of older residents in long-term care facilities As noted in the Current Controversies feature, funding for nursing homes will be an increasingly important political issue in the coming decades
Characteristics of Nursing Homes
Nursing homes vary a great deal in the amount and quality of care they provide Including nursing home residents in the planning of their own care represents a major shift in culture from previous models based on convenience for staff, and is an example of the application of research to practice
Psychological Implications
Older adults say that engaging in sexual behavior is an important aspect of human relationships throughout adulthood It is not that they have lost interest; rather, they believe they are simply not permitted to express their sexuality any longer
Designs for Studying Development
Once the general design is chosen, most gerontologists must decide how to measure possible changes or age differences that emerge as people develop Once we have considered these, we will examine the specific designs for studying development
How Important Are Socioeconomic Factors?
Once we have identified the specific conditions that are highly predictive of future functional limitations, an important question is whether the appropriate intervention and prevention programs should be targeted at particular groups of people A Canadian study showed that this difference appears to be set in early adulthood and maintained into late life
Can a Nursing Home Be a Home?
One key aspect of nursing homes has been largely overlooked: To what extent do residents consider a nursing home to be home? As we will see next, how people communicate with residents is also key
Dopamine
One neurotransmitter that has received a great deal of attention is dopamine Dopamine is a neurotransmitter associated with higher-level cognitive functioning like inhibiting thoughts, attention, and planning, as well as emotion, movement, and pleasure and pain Collectively, the neurons that use dopamine are called the dopaminergic system Overall, the studies using neuroscience methods to examine changes in the dopaminergic system with increasing age suggest that these changes play a role in cognitive aging
Deciding on the Best Option
One of the most difficult decisions individuals and families have to make is where an older member should live Additionally, objective information about available housing options can be obtained from local senior centers, offices on aging, and other nonprofit service providers
What Do Structural Brain Changes Mean? The Theory of Mind
One of the most important abilities we have is to interpret one's own and other's mental and emotional states This ability, termed Theory of Mind, helps us understand that other people have beliefs, desires, ideas, feelings, intentions, and viewpoints that are different from our own Let's take a closer look at the underlying changes in the brain that might explain the changes in later life
Memory and Nutrition
Researchers and clinicians often overlook nutrition as a cause of memory failures in adulthood Adequate assessment is essential to avoid diagnostic errors
sociocultural forces
Pressures emanating from the social structure of a country or society or from the national culture
Decision-Making Capacity and Individual Choices
Providing high-quality care for nursing home residents means putting into practice the various competence-enhancing interventions we have discussed relating to personal control and communication Healthcare staff also need to sit down with family members and talk with them directly about treatment options so better decisions are made
Green House Project
The Green House concept was created by Bill Thomas in 2001, and is grounded in the Eden Alternative Still, ensuring that the Green House culture is maintained takes a highly skilled staff and ongoing attention
Non-health-related quality of life
Refers to things in the environment, such as entertainment, economic resources, arts, and so on that can affect our overall experience and enjoyment in life
Telomeres
Repeated DNA sequences at the ends of eukaryotic chromosomes
Age Differences in Metamemory and Memory Monitoring
Researchers explored age differences in metamemory mainly by using questionnaires, the most common, as well as judgments of confidence in one's ability or performance Does what you believe about yourself matter? The Role of Memory Self-Efficacy -Belief in one's ability to accomplish things is an old, pervasive theme in literature, religion, psychotherapy, and many other diverse arenas -As it applies to memory, belief in oneself is referred to as memory self-efficacy; it is the belief one will be able to perform a specific task -Interestingly, how old a person feels is related to memory performance; the younger one's subjective age, the better one's current performance and the slower one's decline is in immediate and delayed recall Age Differences in Memory Monitoring -Memory monitoring involves knowing what you are doing with your memory right now -In short, building memory strategy interventions on skills that change little with age, such as metamemory and basic memory monitoring, can improve both performance and, by extension, quality of life
Aspects of Memory Self-Evaluations
Researchers of memory self-evaluation have focused primarily on two types of awareness about memory The first type involves knowledge about how memory works and what we believe to be true about it; this type of self-evaluation is referred to as metamemory The second type of self-evaluation, called memory monitoring, refers to the awareness of what we are doing with our memory right now For example, when faced with having to remember an important appointment later in the day, we may consciously ask ourselves whether the steps we have taken are sufficient
Neuroscience Perspectives
Researchers take three general methodological perspectives in tackling the neuroscience of aging: the neuropsychological, the neurocorrelational, and the activation imaging approach The neuropsychological approach compares brain functioning of healthy older adults with adults displaying various pathological disorders in the brain The neuro-correlational approach attempts to relate measures of cognitive performance to measures of brain structure or functioning The activation imaging approach attempts to directly link functional brain activity with cognitive behavioral data Compensatory changes are changes that allow older adults to adapt to the inevitable behavioral decline resulting from changes in specific areas of the brain Compare your findings with the evidence described in the text that follows
Measurement in Adult Development and Aging Research
Researchers typically begin by deciding how to measure the topic of interest The reliability of a measure is the extent to which it provides a consistent index of the behavior or topic of interest The validity of a measure is the extent to which it measures what researchers think it measures Because it is possible to have a measure that is reliable but not valid, researchers must ensure that measures are both reliable and valid
Representative Sampling
Researchers usually are interested in broad groups of people called populations Thus, in the future we may gain a broader understanding of aging
Intelligence in Everyday Life
Robert Sternberg has argued for decades that intelligence involves more than just a particular fixed set of characteristics Whether this consistency maps onto systematic psychological research is a question to which we now turn
Chronic and Acute Diseases
Rosa, the immigrant from Mexico, is typical of older adults: She is beginning to experience some recurring health difficulties and is finding out that she does not recover as quickly from even minor afflictions Acute diseases are conditions that develop over a short period of time and cause a rapid change in health In contrast, chronic diseases are conditions that last a longer period of time and may be accompanied by residual functional impairment that necessitates long-term management As we see a bit later in this chapter, advances in understanding the causes of chronic disease have resulted in better prevention in many cases, and better disease management in others
Common Chronic Conditions
Roughly half of adults in the United States have a chronic health condition We will consider three other common conditions, diabetes mellitus, cancer, and incontinence, in this section
The Pioneer Network
The Pioneer Network is also dedicated to changing the way older adults are treated in society, particularly in care facilities Everyone deserves that
What Age-Related Changes Occur in Neurons?
Several changes occur with age in neurons Interestingly, these same changes occur but in much greater numbers in diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, leading some researchers to speculate that there may be a link between normal brain aging and pathological brain aging having to do with the speed and number of changes, not in the kind of changes that occur
Memory and Physical and Mental Health
Several psychological disorders involve distorted thought processes that sometimes result in serious memory problems Occasionally, people temporarily experience a complete loss of memory and are disoriented in time, a condition known as transient global amnesia The effects of concussion and its relation to continuing to participate in sports is highly controversial, as discussed in the Current Controversies feature
Integrating Findings from Different Studies
Several times in the past few pages, we've emphasized the value of using different methods to study the same phenomenon Meta-analysis allows researchers to synthesize the results of many studies to estimate relations between variables In addition, meta-analysis can reveal the impact of those different methods on results
Primary and Secondary Mental Abilities
Since the 1930s, researchers agreed intellectual abilities can be studied as groups of related skills organized into hypothetical constructs called primary mental abilities In turn, related groups of primary mental abilities can be clustered into a half dozen or so broader skills termed secondary mental abilities Because they are one step removed from primary mental abilities, secondary mental abilities are not measured directly
Everyday Reasoning and Problem Solving
So far, our consideration of intellectual abilities includes examinations of how people's performance on standardized tests and their modes of thinking differ with age Let's explore this distinction first in the area of everyday decision making
Exercise and Brain Aging
Some of the most compelling work that has moved beyond the mere documentation of plasticity to the actual improvement of cognitive skills and concomitant changes in the brain focuses on the influence of aerobic exercise As a preview, the positive effects on the brain are only one reason to get up and move
Case Studies
Sometimes researchers cannot obtain measures directly from people and are able only to watch them carefully In certain situations, researchers may be able to study a single individual in great detail in a case study However, their primary limitation is figuring out whether the information gleaned from one individual holds for others as well
Research Approaches to Intelligence
Sternberg's and Baltes' work point out that many different skills are involved in intelligence depending on one's point of view Historically, psychological research on intelligence has focused on performance on standardized tests; this view represents the psychometric approach In the cognitive-structural approach researchers have been more concerned with the ways people conceptualize and solve problems than with scores on tests The information you uncover will be useful as you read the rest of the chapter
reappraisal
changing one's emotional experience by changing the way one thinks about the emotion-eliciting stimulus
Going Beyond Formal Operations: Thinking in Adulthood
Suppose you are faced with the following dilemma: You are a member of your college's or university's student judicial board and are currently hearing a case involving plagiarism Postformal thought is characterized by recognition that truth may vary from situation to situation, solutions must be realistic to be reasonable, ambiguity and contradiction are the rule rather than the exception, and emotion and subjective factors usually play a role in thinking One of the best is the description of the development of reflective judgment, a way adults reason through dilemmas involving current affairs, religion, science, personal relationships, and the like However, if pushed and if given the necessary supports, people demonstrate a level of thinking and performance far higher than they typically show on a daily basis
The Stress and Coping Paradigm
Suppose you are stuck in a traffic jam The stress and coping paradigm views stress not as an environmental stimulus or as a response but as the interaction of a thinking person and an event Note that this definition states that stress is a transactional process between a person and the environment, that it takes into account personal resources, that the person's appraisal of the situation is key, and that unless the situation is considered to be threatening, challenging, or harmful, stress does not result
The CRUNCH Model
The CRUNCH model stands for Compensation-Related Utilization of Neural Circuits Hypothesis, and describes how the aging brain adapts to neurological decline by recruiting additional neural circuits to perform tasks adequately However, just as is true about the HAROLD model, the point at which compensation breaks down is not well established under the CRUNCH model
Intelligence, Reasoning, Creativity, and Wisdom
The Dalai Lama, spiritual leader of the Tibetan people, was the recipient of the 1989 Nobel Peace Prize and is recognized as a leader in Buddhist philosophy, human rights, and global environmental problems Along the way we look at some attempts to modify intellectual abilities through training programs, but first we need to consider what intelligence is
multidimensional
characteristic of theories of intelligence that identify several types of intellectual abilities
Psychological Implications
The appearance of wrinkles, gray hair, fat, and the like can have major effects on a person's self-concept and reflect ageism in society In addition, older people who witness friends or relatives struggling during rehabilitation may reduce their own activities as a precaution
health
The combination of physical, mental/emotional, and social well-being
Home Modification
The competence-environmental press model provides two options for people who experience difficulties dealing with the tasks of daily life As the number of older adults increases rapidly, though, it is likely more communities will permit ADUs as a way to enable more older adults to age in place and to provide a much less expensive alternative than long-term care
continuity-discontinuity controversy
The continuity view says that change is gradual Children become more skillful in thinking, talking or acting much the same way as they get taller The discontinuity view sees development as more abrupt-a succession of changes that produce different behaviors in different age-specific life periods called stages
Diabetes Mellitus
The disease diabetes mellitus occurs when the pancreas produces insufficient insulin Type 1 diabetes usually develops earlier in life and requires the use of insulin, hence it is sometimes called insulin-dependent diabetes. Type 2 diabetes typically develops in adulthood and is often effectively managed through diet Taking the appropriate steps to avoid diabetes in the first place is the best strategy, of course, so monitoring diet and weight are important aspects of an overall wellness-based life style
independent variable
The experimental factor that is manipulated; the variable whose effect is being studied
Patterns of Medication Use
The explosion of new prescription and over-the-counter medications over the past few decades has created many options for physicians in treating disease, especially chronic conditions Understanding how medications work and how these processes change with age is extremely important
The Diversity of Older Adults
The general population of the United States is changing rapidly All of these countries will need to deal with an increased demand for services to older adults and, in some cases, competing demands with children and younger and middle-aged adults for limited resources
How Is the Brain Organized?
The human brain is an amazingly complex organ It still remains more flexible and capable than any computer, handling billions of computations and providing us with the wide range of emotions we experience At the most basic level, the brain is made up of cells called neurons, an example of which is shown in Figure 2.1. Key structural features of the neuron are the dendrites, which act like antennas to receive signals from other nearby neurons, the axon, which is the part of the neuron that transmits information from the cell body to its terminal branches, where the information passes to other neurons In order for information to be passed from one neuron to another, the terminal branches release chemicals called neurotransmitters, that travel across the space between neurons, called the synapse, where they are received by the dendrites of the next neuron The study of the structure of the brain, called neuroanatomy, is fundamental to neuroscience The cerebral cortex is the outermost part of the brain It consists of two hemispheres that are connected by a thick bundle of neurons called the corpus callosum The prefrontal and frontal cortex is intimately involved in higher-order executive functions such as the ability to make and carry out plans, switch between tasks, and maintain attention and focus, and connects with other key brain structures that are involved with emotion In addition, the cerebellum, at the back of the brain, controls equilibrium and the coordination of fine motor movements, and may be involved in some cognitive functions The hippocampus, located in the middle of the brain, is a key structure associated with memory The limbic system is a set of brain structures involved with emotion, motivation, and long-term memory, among other functions For adult development and aging research, the most important components of the limbic system include the amygdala, and the hippocampus Details regarding both additional brain structures and the functional aspects of the various regions of the brain will be discussed more fully with respect to specific age-related changes
Information-Processing Model
The information-processing model uses a computer metaphor to explain how people process stimuli Using the information-processing model poses three fundamental questions for adult development and aging: What areas of information processing show evidence of age differences? How can we explain variability when we find age differences in information processing? What are the practical implications of age-related changes in information processing? Sensory Memory -All memories start as sensory stimuli—a song heard, a person seen, a hand felt -Sensory memory is a brief and almost identical representation of the stimuli that exists in the observable environment -Importantly, age differences are not typically found in sensory memory
person-environment interactions
The interface between people and the world they live in that forms the basis for development, meaning behavior is a function of both the person and the environment
cerebral cortex
The intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells covering the cerebral hemispheres; the body's ultimate control and information-processing center
Self-Reports
The last approach, self-reports, is a special case of using tasks to sample people's behavior Self-reports are simply people's answers to questions about the topic of interest People may not remember accurately what they did in the past, or they may report what they think the researcher wants to hear
Respiratory Diseases
The most common and incapacitating respiratory disorder in older adults is chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, a family of diseases that includes chronic bronchitis and emphysema Emphysema is the most serious type of COPD and is characterized by the destruction of the membranes around the air sacs in the lungs The thing to remember, though, is that the damage caused by COPD is irreversible
Other Neurotransmitters
The neurotransmitter serotonin is involved in several types of brain processes, including memory, mood, appetite, and sleep Damage to the brain structures that use acetylcholine is associated with serious memory declines such as those found in Alzheimer's disease, and in cardiovascular disease development
Changes in the Voice
The next time you're in a crowd of people of different ages, close your eyes and listen to the way they sound However, other researchers contend that these changes result from poor health and are not part of normal aging
Training Memory Skills
The notion memory can be improved through acquiring skills and practicing them is old, dating back to prehistory External aids are memory aids that rely on environmental resources, such as notebooks or calendars Internal aids are memory aids that rely on mental processes, such as imagery In addition, we briefly review two alternatives, memory exercises and medications External Memory Aids -External memory aids are objects such as diaries, address books, calendars, notepads, microcomputers, and other devices commonly used to support memory in everyday situations like taking notes during a visit to the physician -Because people process the color-coded aspects of the building automatically, the implicit nature of this external cue makes it ideal for people who may otherwise have difficulty learning and remembering new information Internal Memory Aids -Looking at Camp and colleagues' examples of internal memory aids may trigger some personal experiences.It is superior to other techniques, and combining spaced retrieval with additional memory encoding aids helps even more Memory Drugs -The search for an effective medication that can improve memory, especially for people experiencing significant memory difficulties due to disease, has been intense for decades -Clearly, if one is taking medications and experiencing memory difficulties, a thorough analysis of whether the medication is causing the side effect should be conducted
dependent variable
The outcome factor; the variable that may change in response to manipulations of the independent variable
Automatic and Effortful Processing
There are two other constructs that round out our understanding of attention and cognitive processing: automatic and effortful processing Automatic processing places minimal demands on attentional capacity and gets information into the system largely without us being aware of it In contrast, effortful processing requires all of the available attentional capacity Because age differences are sensitive to the conditions under which they are measured, the key question for researchers today is: When and under what circumstances will we observe age-related change in cognitive functioning, and when is that change problematic?
Neurotransmitters
chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gaps between neurons
Posterior-Anterior Shift in Aging (PASA) model
The posterior-anterior shift in aging is a commonly observed phenomenon in functional neuroimaging studies of aging, characterized by age-related reductions in occipital activity alongside increases in frontal activity In this work we have investigated the hypothesis as to whether the PASA is also manifested in functional brain network measures such as degree, clustering coefficient, path length and local efficiency We have performed statistical analysis upon functional networks derived from a fMRI dataset containing data from healthy young, healthy aged, and aged individuals with very mild to mild Alzheimer's disease Analysis of both task based and resting state functional network properties has indicated that the PASA can also be characterized in terms of modulation of functional network properties, and that the onset of AD appears to accentuate this modulation We also explore the effect of spatial normalization upon the results of our analysis
Absorption
The process by which nutrient molecules pass through the wall of the digestive system into the blood
Retinal Changes
The second major family of changes in vision result from changes in the retina Loss of acuity is especially noticeable at low light levels
secondary aging
The specific physical illnesses or conditions that become more common with aging but are caused by health habits, genes, and other influences that vary from person to person
The Continuity-Discontinuity Controversy
The third major issue in developmental psychology is a derivative of the stability-change controversy The continuity-discontinuity controversy concerns whether a particular developmental phenomenon represents a smooth progression over time or a series of abrupt shifts Plasticity refers to the belief that capacity is not fixed but can be learned or improved with practice Although plasticity can be demonstrated in many arenas, there are limits to the degree of potential improvement, as we will see in later chapters
Common Theoretical Themes and Everyday Competence
The three theories we have considered have much in common Everyday competence is a person's potential ability to perform a wide range of activities considered essential for independent living; it is not the person's actual ability to perform the tasks We consider aging in place in more detail in the next section
The Parieto-Frontal Integration Theory
The typical finding is reduced brain activity in older as compared to younger adults in prefrontal and temporal areas that support cognitive functioning, such as memory The Parieto-Frontal Integration Theory proposes that intelligence comes from a distributed and integrated network of neurons in the parietal and frontal areas of the brain That's the issue we'll consider next
The Universal Versus Context-Specific Development Controversy
The universal versus context-specific development controversy concerns whether there is just one path of development or several In Levar's case with his granddaughter, it may be a blend of the two
Polypharmacy
The use of many different drugs concurrently in treating a patient, who often has several health problems
The Demographics of Aging
There have never been as many older adults alive as there are now, so you see many more older people than your great-grandparents did when they were your age People who study population trends, called, demographers, use a graphic technique called a population pyramid to illustrate these changes Individuals over age 85 generally need more assistance with the tasks they have to accomplish in daily living than do people under 85, straining the health care and social service systems
Smell
There is a great deal of truth in the saying "The nose knows." Loss of odor cues may mean that our sense of the past suffers as well
Taste and Smell: Taste
There is an expression "too old to cut the mustard," which dates to when people made mustard at home by grinding mustard seed and adding just the right amount of vinegar to balance the taste For instance, we are much more likely to eat a balanced diet and to enjoy our food when we feel well enough to cook, when we do not eat alone, and when we get a whiff of the enticing aromas from the kitchen
Complex Development in the Prefrontal Cortex
There is no question that neuroscience research points to the central role played by the prefrontal cortex in adult development and aging The positivity effect refers to the fact that older adults are more motivated to derive emotional meaning from life and to maintain positive feelings Changes in how the prefrontal cortex is connected with other parts of the brain has important implications for behavior, as we will see at several other points in this book
Stress as a Physiological Response
There is widespread agreement across many research studies that people differ in their physiological responses to stress In men, performance improved only for competition recognition, whereas in women it improved for kinship recognition
Plasticity and the Aging Brain
There's an old saying that "You can't teach an old dog new tricks."
Autonomic Nervous System
These and other regulation functions in your body are controlled by the autonomic nervous system Jorge, whom we met in the vignette, is experiencing both of these changes
Working Memory
Think about a time when you asked a friend for their mobile phone number so you could send them text messages Working memory is the active processes and structures involved in holding information in mind and simultaneously using that information, sometimes in conjunction with incoming information, to solve a problem, make a decision, or learn new information Rehearsal is the process that information is held in working memory, either by repeating items over and over or by making meaningful connections between the information in working memory and information already known For example, researchers have begun to show working memory may be key to understanding the age differences in recall performance
The Nature-Nurture Issue
Think for a minute about a particular characteristic that you and several people in your family have, such as intelligence, good looks, or a friendly, outgoing personality Answers to these questions illustrate different positions on the nature-nurture issue, which involves the degree to which genetic or hereditary influences and experiential or environmental influences determine the kind of person you are To explain a person's behavior and discover where to focus intervention, we must look at the unique interaction for that person between nature and nurture
How Does Disability in Older Adults Differ Globally?
Throughout this and previous chapters, we have encountered important differences between men and women and between various ethnic/racial and socioeconomic groups An important difference is access to health care, in terms of whether everyone is guaranteed access by the government or not
Normal Versus Abnormal Memory Aging
Throughout this chapter we have seen that many normative changes take place in memory as people grow old Forgetting that you drove is another matter
Sequential Designs
Thus far, we have considered two developmental designs, each of which has problems involving the confounding of two effects Sequential designs represent different combinations of cross-sectional or longitudinal studies Clearly, this type of commitment to one project is not possible for most researchers
Describing Person-Environment Interactions
To appreciate the roles different environments play in our lives, we need a framework for interpreting how people interact with them This relationship defining person-environment interactions means behavior is a function of both the person and the environment As you will see, these ideas, especially the notion of personal control, are included in many approaches to understanding person-environment interactions
Experimental Design
To find out whether Leah's or Sarah's approach to remembering works better, we could gather groups of older adults and try the following What we have done is an example of an experiment, which involves manipulating a key factor that the researcher believes is responsible for a particular behavior and randomly assigning participants to the experimental and control groups At best, we can find age-related effects of an independent variable on dependent variables
Clinical Issues and Memory Testing
To this point we have been focusing on the changes that occur in normal memory with aging After that, we discuss how memory is affected by nutrition and drugs
terminal decline
acceleration in deterioration of cognitive functioning prior to death
Nutrition and Brain Aging
We began this chapter with a consideration of "brain food" and the claims that certain foods result in benefits for the brain As with exercise, we will return to the topic of nutrition and its effects on aging in Chapter 14
Making Sense of Neuroscience Research: Explaining Changes in Brain-Behavior Relations
We have considered evidence that structural and neurochemical changes occur in the brain as we grow older, and that these changes in the brain relate to changes in cognitive functioning The research we will consider in this section will provide insights into Barbara's concerns
Can Older Adults Compensate for Changes in the Brain?
We have seen that differences in brain activation have been documented between younger and older adults, and that these differences relate to differences in performance The question is whether these results are simply a matter of which task was examined or evidence that challenges the conventional view of broader activation as compensation in older adults
Expertise
We saw earlier in this chapter aspects of intelligence grounded in experience tend to improve throughout most of adulthood That's achieved through lifelong learning Lifelong Learning -Many people work in occupations where information and technology change rapidly -Effective lifelong learning requires smart decisions about how to keep knowledge updated and what approach works best among the many different learning options available
Quality of Life
We'll bet if you asked most people what they want out of life, they would say something about a good quality of life They tend to look at several specific aspects of quality of life: health-related quality of life and non-health-related quality of life Health-related quality of life includes all of the aspects of life that are affected by changes in one's health status Non-health-related quality of life refers to things in the environment, such as entertainment, economic resources, arts, and so on that can affect our overall experience and enjoyment in life We consider this issue in more detail in Chapter 10 when we focus on Alzheimer's disease
Defining Health and Illness
What does the term health mean to you? The World Health Organization defines health as a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity Illness is the presence of a physical or mental disease or impairment But as we have noted, we must keep in mind certain systematic differences across racial and ethnic groups that result from external factors such as discrimination and differential access to adequate health care
Linking Structural Changes with Social-Emotional Cognition
What happens in the brain when things get even more complicated, such as when we have to process complex situations that involve social judgments, when memory, emotion, and previously learned information come together? Based on these findings, we would expect that older adults might tend to rely more on automatic processes
Genetic Programming Theories
What if aging were programmed into our genetic code? As genetics research continues, it is likely that we will have some exciting answers to the question, Why do we age?
Neuroimaging Techniques
What neuroimaging does is allow us to see inside the brain of a living person to examine the various structures of the brain Structural neuroimaging provides highly detailed images of anatomical features in the brain The most commonly used are X-rays, computerized tomography scans, and magnetic resonance imaging Images from structural neuroimaging techniques are like photographs in that they document what a specific brain structure looks like at a specific point in time Structural neuroimaging is usually effective at identifying such things as bone fractures, tumors, and other conditions that cause structural damage in the brain, such as strokes Functional neuroimaging provides an indication of brain activity but not high anatomical detail The most commonly used neuroimaging techniques are single photon emission computerized tomography, positron emission tomography, functional magnetic resonance imaging, magnetoencephalograpy, and near infrared spectroscopic imaging In general, fMRI is the most commonly used technique in cognitive neuroscience research Functional neuroimaging provides researchers with information about what parts of the brain are active when people are doing specific tasks A typical image will show different levels of brain activity as different colors; for example, red on an image might indicate high levels of brain activity in that region, whereas blue might indicate low levels of activity Furthermore, examination of the structure and function of the brain has become even more informative for cognitive aging research as the focus has shifted from describing brain activation patterns toward explaining them
Developmental Changes in How Medications Work
When Lucy takes her medications every day, what happens? Absorption is the time needed for one of Lucy's medications to enter the bloodstream Getting rid of medications in the bloodstream is partly the job of the liver, a process called drug metabolism Drug excretion occurs mainly through the kidneys in urine, although some elimination occurs through feces, sweat, and saliva.In general, a dosage strategy of "start low and go slow" is best
hierarchy of loss
When a loss occurs, most families revere those related closest with the deceased person, creating a hierarchy of grief Though this hierarchy can be interpreted in many ways—some of which are quite toxic—there are reasons for deferring to closest relatives when someone passes away
Sampling Behavior with Tasks
When investigators can't observe a behavior directly, another popular alternative is to create tasks that are thought to sample the behavior of interest For example, asking people to learn grocery lists would have good validity to the extent it matched the kinds of lists they actually use
Long-Term Memory
When most people think about memory, they think about having to remember something over time, whether a few minutes or many days Long-term memory refers to the ability to remember rather extensive amounts of information from a few seconds to a few hours to decades Semantic memory concerns learning and remembering the meaning of words and concepts not tied to specific occurrences of events in time Episodic memory is the general class of memory having to do with the conscious recollection of information from a specific event or point in time Although semantic memory starts to decline at age 65, the decline is much less substantial than for episodic memory Semantic Memory -As indicated previously, semantic memory is relatively spared in normal aging -Such FOK problems indicate even highly familiar information can become more difficult to retrieve as we grow older Episodic Memory -Because episodic memory includes so many of the day-to-day activities adults perform, it has been the focus of more research than any other single topic in memory development -In a recall test, people are asked to remember information without hints or cues -Recognition, on the other hand, involves selecting previously learned information from among several items -It turns out there is one episodic memory process relatively spared with age: autobiographical memory, that we will consider a bit later
Changes in Skin, Hair, and Voice
When we, like Kristina, see the first visible signs of aging, it makes no difference that these changes are universal and inevitable What matters on that day is that we have seen our first wrinkle and gray hair
The Meaning of Age
When you are asked the question "How old are you?" what crosses your mind? Primary aging is normal, disease-free development during adulthood Secondary aging is developmental changes that are related to disease, lifestyle, and other environmentally induced changes that are not inevitable Finally, tertiary aging is the rapid losses that occur shortly before death Some human developmentalists view the period from the late teens to the mid-to late 20s as emerging adulthood, a period when individuals are not adolescents but are not yet fully adults A great example of these points can be seen in the life of Pope Francis, as discussed in the Real People feature
Who Is Likely to Live in Nursing Homes?
Who is the typical resident of a nursing home? The decision tends to be made by spouses/partners or adult children, a finding generalized across ethnic groups such as European Americans, Mexican Americans, and Koreans, especially when there is evidence of cognitive impairment
Source Memory and Processing of Misinformation
Why are some autobiographical memories that seem so vivid actually inaccurate at the detail level? Two main reasons have to do with how we remember the source of information and how susceptible we are to false information Source Memory -Think about a familiar event in your life -Source memory refers to the ability to remember the source of a familiar event as well as the ability to determine if an event was imagined or actually experienced -Furthermore, episodic memory is more highly dependent upon contextual information that could explain why older adults have difficulties with that kind of task False Memory -At times in our lives, we may be repeatedly told stories about us by relatives or friends that we could not have personally experienced -False memory is when one remembers items or events that did not occur -Moreover, older adults have more difficulty separating misleading context from relevant context, that also explains why older adults are more susceptible to misleading information in general
Changes in the Skin
Why does our skin wrinkle? Varicose veins may appear as knotty, bluish irregularities in blood vessels, especially on the legs; various treatment methods are available
Why Do We Age? Biological Theories of Aging
Why is it that some people, like George Foreman and Dara Torres, who at age 41 became the oldest woman to win an Olympic gold medal in swimming, manage to stay competitive in their sports into middle age and others of us experience significant physical decline? What similarities and differences did you uncover?
corrective adaptations
actions taken in response to stressors and can be facilitated by internal and external resources
Where People Live: Person-Environment Interactions
You encounter them every day—devices such as grip bars in bathrooms, wider doorways, and ramps leading to building entrances Sometimes we must consider the person separately from the environment, but keep in mind throughout the chapter that in the end it is the interaction of the two we want to understand
Vital Functions
You gotta have heart Let's explore in more detail how these various forces come together
Bones
You have probably seen commercials and advertisements aimed mostly at women for products that help maintain bone mass Women are especially susceptible to severe bone degeneration, a disease called osteoporosis, in which the severe loss of bone mass creates bones that resemble laced honeycombs There is also evidence that regular weight-bearing exercise is beneficial
Sensory Systems
You have probably seen people like Bertha walking slowly and tentatively along the sidewalk These changes challenge our ability to interact with the world and communicate with others
The Role of Stress
You know what it feels like to be stressed Let's consider each in more detail
Research Methods
You might be asking yourself why you need to know about research methods when you could just Google the topic and find out all sorts of things about it This makes research on adult development and aging more difficult, if for no other reason than it involves examining more variables
Respiratory System
You probably don't pay much attention to your breathing unless you're gasping for breath after exercise—or you're an older adult For example, it is difficult to determine how much age-related change in respiratory function is due to air pollution and how much is due to the processes underlying aging
rheumatoid arthritis
a chronic autoimmune disorder in which the joints and some organs of other body systems are attacked
Scaffolding Theory of Cognitive Aging-Revised (STAC-r)
a conceptual model of cognitive aging that integrated evidence from structural and functional neuroimaging to explain how the combined effects of adverse and compensatory neural processes produce varying levels of cognitive function
false memory
a distorted or fabricated recollection of something that did not actually occur
cohort
a group of people from a given time period
Compensation-Related Utilization of Neural Circuits Hypothesis (CRUNCH) model
a highly influential model of compensation, and states that increased functional magnetic resonance imaging activity in older adults compared to younger adults should reverse at higher levels of task difficulty
recognition
a measure of memory in which the person need only identify items previously learned, as on a multiple-choice test
Neuron
a nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system
semantic memory
a network of associated facts and concepts that make up our general knowledge of the world
working memory
a newer understanding of short-term memory that focuses on conscious, active processing of incoming auditory and visual-spatial information, and of information retrieved from long-term memory
everyday competence
a person's potential ability to perform a wide range of activities considered essential for independent living
meta-analysis
a procedure for statistically combining the results of many different research studies
correlational study
a research project designed to discover the degree to which two variables are related to each other
compression of morbidity
a shortening of the time a person spends ill or infirm, accomplished by postponing illness
microgenetic study
a special type of longitudinal design in which participants are tested repeatedly over a span of days or weeks, typically with the aim of observing change directly as it occurs
cross-sectional study
a study in which people of different ages are compared with one another
assisted living facilities
a supportive living arrangement for people who need assistance with ADLs or IADLs but who are not so impaired physically or cognitively that they need 24-hour care
Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI)
a technique used to produce images of the brain that shows connections among different regions
biopsychosocial framework
a useful way to organize the biological, psychological, and sociocultural forces on human development
psychometric approach
a way of studying intelligence that emphasizes analysis of the products of intelligence, especially scores on intelligence tests
white matter hyperintensities (WMH)
abnormalities in the brain often found in older adults; correlated with cognitive decline
prebyopia
impaired near vision in middle age or older caused by loss of elasticity in the lens
incontinence
inability to control bladder and/or bowels
patronizing speech
inappropriate speech to older adults based on stereotypes of incompetence and dependence
psychological forces
include all internal perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and personality factors that affect development
Glacoma
increased intraocular pressure results in retinal and optic nerve damage
Osteoarthritis
inflammation of the bone and joint
Dopamine
influences movement, learning, attention, and emotion
normative history-graded influences
influences that are common to people of a particular generation because of historical circumstances
normative age-graded influences
influences that are similar for individuals in a particular age group
primary appraisal
initial decision regarding whether an event is harmful
diabetes mellitus
insulin is not secreted adequately or tissues are resistant to its effects
assimilation
interpreting our new experiences in terms of our existing schemas
metamemory
knowledge about memory
menopausal hormone therapy (MHT)
medication therapy in which women take low doses of estrogen, which is often combined with progestin to counter symptoms associated with menopause
external aids
memory aids that rely on environmental resources, such as notebooks and calendars
internal aids
memory aids that rely on mental processes, such as imagery
explicit memory
memory of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and "declare"
climacteric
midlife transition in which fertility declines
information-processing model
model of memory that assumes the processing of information for memory storage is similar to the way a computer processes memory in a series of three stages
white matter
myelinated axons
rehearsal
the conscious repetition of information, either to maintain it in consciousness or to encode it for storage
drug metabolism
the enzymatic biotransformation of a drug into metabolites
structural neuroimaging
neuroimaging technique such as CT and MRI scans that provides highly detailed images of anatomical features in the brain
functional neuroimaging
neuroimaging technique that provides an indication of brain activity but not high anatomical detail
dopaminergic system
neuronal systems that use dopamine as their major neurotransmitter
Attention and Memory
not very good at birth, but will increase over time
confounding
occurs when two variables are associated in such a way that their effects on a response variable cannot be distinguished from each other
frail older adults
older adults who have physical disabilities, are very ill, and may have cognitive or psychological disorders
fluid intelligence
our ability to reason speedily and abstractly; tends to decrease during late adulthood
crystallized intelligence
our accumulated knowledge and verbal skills; tends to increase with age
prefrontal cortex
part of frontal lobe responsible for thinking, planning, and language
interindividual variability
patterns of change that vary from one person to another
demographers
people who study population trends
self-reports
people's answers to questions about the topic of interest
secondary appraisal
perceptions regarding our ability to cope with an event that follows primary appraisal
chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
permanent, destructive pulmonary disorder that is a combination of chronic bronchitis and emphysema
physical limitations
physical health characteristics that inhibit one's physical abilities and that must be considered in the development of a fitness program
environmental press
physical, interpersonal, or social demands that environments put on people
strategies
planning tools
cross-linking
random interaction of some proteins with certain body tissues, such as muscles and arteries
tertiary aging
rapid losses occurring shortly before death
transient global amnesia (TGA)
rare disorder, not caused by a neurological event or injury, that causes sudden, temporary loss of recent memory
Autoimmunity
reaction of immune response to one's own tissues
source memory
recall of when, where, and how information was acquired
axon
the extension of a neuron, ending in branching terminal fibers, through which messages pass to other neurons or to muscles or glands
validity
the extent to which a test measures or predicts what it is supposed to
life-cycle forces
reflect differences in how the same event affects people of different ages
prospective memory
remembering to do things in the future
longitudinal study
research in which the same people are restudied and retested over a long period
implicit memory
retention independent of conscious recollection
primary mental abilities
seven abilities proposed by Thurstone as crucial to intelligence
exacerbators
situations that makes a situation worse than it was originally
overflow incontinence
small amounts of urine leak from a full bladder
factor
something that contributes to a result
Neuroimaging
sophisticated computer-aided procedure that allows nonintrusive examination of nervous system structure and function
neural stem cells
special cells in the nervous system that are capable of dividing to form new tissue, including new neurons
urge incontinence
state in which a person experiences involuntary passage of urine that occurs soon after a strong sense of urgency to void
illness
state of being sick
neural efficiency hypothesis
states intelligent people process information more efficiently, showing weaker neural activations in a smaller number of areas than less intelligent people
cerebrovascular accident
stroke
Neurofibers
structures in the neuron that carry information inside the neuron from the dendrites to the terminal branches
gerontology
study of the aging process
acute disease
symptoms develop rapidly
optimally exercised ability
the ability a normal, healthy adult would demonstrate under the best conditions of training or practice
unexercised ability
the ability a normal, healthy adult would exhibit without practice or training
cognitive reserve
the ability of the brain to build and maintain new neurons and the connections between them
dependent life expectancy
the age to which one can expect to live with assistance
processing resources
the amount of attention one has to apply to a particular situation
memory monitoring
the awareness of what we are doing in memory right now
memory self-efficacy
the belief in one's ability to perform a specific memory task
Plasticity
the brain's ability to change, especially during childhood, by reorganizing after damage or by building new pathways based on experience
plasticity
the brain's ability to change, especially during childhood, by reorganizing after damage or by building new pathways based on experience
episodic memory
the collection of past personal experiences that occurred at a particular time and place
