Ch. 14: Socioemotional Development in Middle Adulthood
George Vaillant used data collected from individuals when they were 50 to predict whether they would end up in which of the following categories?
- Happy-well - Sad-sick - Dead
Which of the following are criticisms about Levinson's Seasons of a Man's Life?
- He only studied men, but claims his results apply to women as well. - He drew conclusions about early adulthood, without actually studying anyone in that age range. - Levinson's work included no statistical analysis - Respondents may have distorted memories or forgotten parts of their past.
Paul Costa and Robert McCrae conducted the ______ Study, which uses the Big Five factors of personality to track adult personality development.
Baltimore
Which of the following statements is reflective of current trends in family living arrangements for parents in middle age?
Because of uncertain economic times, the refilling of the empty nest is becoming a common occurrence.
Why are middle-aged adults sometimes described as the "sandwich" generation?
Because they must care for their adolescent and young adult children as well as their aging parents.
According to Levinson, which of the following is NOT a major conflict that an adult male must come to terms with during the transition to middle adulthood?
Being ambitious versus being satisfied with life as it stands
Seasons of a Man's Life by Daniel Levinson was based upon the results of ______.
Extensive interviews with 40 middle-aged men
A limitation of the contemporary life-events approach is that it ______.
Fails to address daily experiences that may also be a source of stress
Which of the following responses was the MOST common reason men cited for initiating a divorce?
Falling out of love
What was the most common response when 40- to 79-year-olds were asked "when you think of who you are, you think mainly of _____?"
Family
Which of the following statements regarding friendships in middle adulthood is TRUE?
Friendships that begin in childhood and remain into middle adulthood are deeper than those formed in middle adulthood
In which of the following areas are parents and adult children LEAST similar?
Gender roles
According to Erikson, ____________ occurs in middle adulthood and encompasses adults' desire to leave legacies of themselves.
Generativity
Forty year old Maritska wishes to establish a pediatric AIDS foundation overseas. According to Erikson, she is focused on establishing a sense of ____________
Generativity
Parenting, teaching, and involvement in the community are examples of how middle-aged adults can develop _______________, according to Erikson.
Generativity
When adults work to leave a legacy of themselves to the next generation, they are working toward ______.
Generativity
Which theorist asserted that midlife is not a crisis for most people?
George Vaillant
Who conducted the "Grant Study," which involved Harvard University men in their early 30s and their late 40s who had initially been interviewed as undergraduates?
George Vaillant
George Vaillant's study, called the " __________ Study," involved Harvard University men in their early 30s and their late 40s who had initially been interviewed as undergraduates.
Grant
Which of the following is one of the three longitudinal studies conducted by George Vaillant?
Grant study
The Baltimore Study by Costa and McCrae assessed ______ in adulthood.
Personality
As adult children become middle-aged, they often develop more ______ perceptions of their parents.
Positive
Which of the following is NOT a belief attributed to the contemporary life-events approach?
The stress of life events alone influences a person's development.
Friendships that begin in childhood and remain into adulthood are often _________ than those that begin in middle adulthood.
deeper
Parents who live vicariously through their children and who report a decline in marital satisfaction when their children leave the home are experiencing
empty nest syndrome
Compared to grandfathers, grandmothers have ______ contact with grandchildren.
more
What are negative factors in the relationships between aging parents and their middle-aged children caregivers? (Choose every correct answer.)
- Caregiver stress - Abuse - Neglect
Which of the following are typical outcomes when adult children move back in with parents?
- Children appreciate their parents' support. - There are logistical challenges surrounding noise, meal planning, etc. - Parents and children both complain about loss of privacy.
According to Erikson, which of the following are ways in which middle-aged adults can develop generativity?
- Cultural generativity - Biological generativity - Work generativity
Which of the following are part of the Big Five factors of personality? Select all that apply:
- Extraversion - Openness - Agreeableness
When men face stress, they are more likely to respond in a ______ pattern, while women are more likely to respond in a ______ pattern.
- Fight or flight - Tend and befriend
Roughly, what percentage of adults responded that adults have a duty to care for their aging parents?
80
Which statements about grandparenting and longevity are TRUE? (Choose every correct answer.)
- In 1900, only 4% of 10-year-olds had four living grandparents. - In 2000, 40% of 10-year-olds had four living grandparents. - The current trend in delaying childbearing is likely to offset the increasing longevity of grandparents somewhat.
Which of the following responses to stress are more common among men than women?
- Isolating themselves - Drinking
Men are more likely than women to react to stress with a fight-or-flight approach, which can involve ______. (Select all that apply.)
- Isolation - Alcohol use - aggressive behaviors
George Vaillant performed longitudinal studies of adult development and aging on which THREE of the following groups?
- Middle-SES, intellectually gifted women born about 1910 - Socially advantaged Harvard graduates born about 1920 - Socially disadvantaged inner-city men born about 1930
In middle adulthood, affectionate or companionate love increases. This form of love includes which of the following qualities?
- Mutual emotional interest - Loyalty - Security
According to Vaillant, which of the following behaviors at age 50 were linked to reaching 80 in a good place?
- Not smoking or abusing alcohol - Mature adaptations and quality education - Stable marriage - Healthy weight and exercise
Because many middle-aged adults today are responsible for their children as well as for their aging parents, what names are given to this generation?
- Overload - Squeezed - Sandwich
Which statements are true about the roles of grandparents in their grandchildren's lives? (Choose every correct answer.)
- They often play a particularly important role after family crises - Caring for children helps parents remain in the workforce
According to Levinson, what are the two major tasks to be mastered in early adulthood? (Select all that apply.)
-Developing a stable life structure - Exploring the possibilities for adult living
Which of the following methods did George Vaillant employ in his longitudinal studies?
-Extensive interviews - Numerous assessments
In which TWO of the following areas are parents and their adult children most similar?
-Religion -Politics
Which of the following are drawbacks of the contemporary life-events approach?
-The life-events approach doesn't account for the impact of daily stressful experiences on development. - The life-events approach does not recognize the stability of adult development. - The life-events approach places too much emphasis on change.
Which of the following are some of the main reasons middle-aged and older women gave for initiating a divorce?
-Verbal, physical, or emotional abuse - Alcohol or drug abuse - Cheating
According to Levinson, which of the following ages most closely corresponds to the point in adulthood when a person enters the phase of Becoming One's Own Man (BOOM)?
39
By middle age, more than ______ of middle aged adults provide care for parents or parents-in-law.
40
At what age does Vaillant see an adult reassessing and recording the truth about the adolescent and adulthood years?
40s
Approximately what percentage of married people in middle adulthood described their marriages as "excellent" or "very good?"
75
By 2020, experts project that _____ percent of children at 30 years of age will still have living grandparents.
80
George Vaillant asserted that ______ experience a midlife crisis.
A minority of people
The ______ study found little to support the view that personality universally changes or remains stable from early adolescence through a portion of midlife.
Berkeley
According to recent research, which of the Big Five factors of personality showed a continuous increase from early adulthood to late adulthood?
Conscientiousness
Research indicates that personality ______ throughout adulthood, but there is greater ______ in personality during middle adulthood.
Changes; Stability
In an AARP survey of 40- to 79-year-olds who were divorced at least once in their 40s, 50s, or 60s, which of the following was the MAIN reason they stayed married as long as they did before divorcing?
Children
The majority of sibling relationships in middle adulthood can be described as ______.
Close
Romantic love tends to be stronger in early adulthood, while ______ love tends to be stronger in middle adulthood.
Companionate
Compared to younger adults, most individuals in midlife who are married voice ______ with their marriages.
Considerable satisfaction
The view that adults experience a midlife crisis was espoused by
Daniel Levinson
According to Levinson, a person between the ages of 28 and 33 is faced with which of the following tasks?
Determining life goals
Which of the following statements about divorce in middle adulthood is FALSE?
Divorce is more positive in every respect for adults in middle adulthood than for those in early adulthood.
When parents experience a sharp drop in marital satisfaction after adult children leave the home, this is known as __________ ____________ syndrome.
Empty Nest
The big five factors of personality can be condensed into the acronym OCEAN. It includes all of the following personality factors, EXCEPT ______.
Excitability
According to Vaillant, which of the following characteristics at the age of 50 was not predictive of being in the "happy-well" category at 75 to 80 years of age?
Having wealth and income
Marital satisfaction typically ______ after adult children leave home.
Increases
Which of the following pairs is most likely to have the closest relationships during their adult years?
Mothers and daughters
In general, high scores on the Big Five factor of ______ are associated with less optimal life outcomes.
Neuroticism
Who of the following are the MOST likely to experience a decline in marital satisfaction?
Parents who experience the empty nest syndrome after living vicariously through their children
Following the "Grant Study," Vaillant concluded that which of the following is the main focus of a person in his/her forties?
Reassessing and recording the truth about the adolescent and adulthood years
Women are more likely than men to react to stress with a tend-and-befriend approach, which can involve ______.
Seeking social alliances
The Berkeley studies found that the most stable aspects of personality included all of the following, EXCEPT ______.
Self-control
According to Erikson, __________ develops when middle-aged adults sense they have not done anything for the next generation.
Stagnation
Jacob, who is 45, has amassed a lot of wealth but has not done anything to benefit the next generation. According to Erikson, he may be in a state of ____________
Stagnation
Which research project studied more than 500 children and their parents in the 1920s and early 1930s and then again as they entered midlife, resulting in the book Present and Past in Middle Life?
The Berkeley Longitudinal Studies
What was the name of Daniel Levinson's report on his extensive interviews with middle-aged men?
The Season of a Man's Life
The process by which, over time, people become more adept at interacting with the environment and in ways that promote increased stability in personality can be described as ______.
The cumulative personality model
Olivia is a 19-year-old college student who hopes to be a physician's assistant in a large medical facility. She plans to be married and have two children by the time she turns 30. Levinson would call this ______.
The dream
The contemporary life-events approach takes into account all of the following, except ______.
The stability of one's personality over time
According to Erikson, what causes people to feel stagnation in life?
When they believe they have done nothing for the next generation
What do recent studies suggest about middle-aged parents?
They are more likely to provide support to their grown children than to their parents
True or false: It is rare for sibling closeness to develop for the first time in adulthood.
True
Married men were more likely to be involved with which family group?
Wives' Kin
Men are more likely than women to react to stress with a ______ approach, which can involve isolating themselves, turning to alcohol or drugs, or being aggressive.
fight or flight