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Adolescence and Adulthood

Adolescence and Adulthood

AdolescenceAdulthood and Old Age

Thoughts About Adolescence and Adulthood

Adulthood, as we define it in our society, really constitutes about four-fifths of the life cycle.

Bernice Neugarten When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant I could

hardly stand to have the man around. But when I got to be 21, I was astonished at how much he had learnt in 7 years.

Mark Twain We do not count a man’s years until he has nothing else to

count. Ralph Waldo Emerson

Subjective Age

Younger people tend to feel older than they are

Older people tend to feel younger than they are

This effect is most pronounced in the oldest and youngest

Milestones

Some people mark off their life in years, others in events. I am one of the latter … I did not become a young man at a particular year, like 13, but when a kid strolled into the store where I worked and called me ‘mister.’” Richard Cohen

Adolescence

Biological Development

Cognitive Development

Social Development

Adolescence and Mental Health

Adolescence

Adolescence: The period of life from puberty to adulthood, corresponding roughly to the ages of 13 to 20

Puberty: The onset of adolescence, as evidence by rapid growth, rising levels of sex hormones, and sexual maturity

Menarche: A girl’s first menstrual periodSpermarche: A boy’s first ejaculation

Adolescent Growth Spurt

At about age 13 for girls, 16 for boys, there is a final maturational growth spurt in height

Puberty and Body Image in Girls

Girls who mature earlier than their peers are usually less satisfied with their size, weight, and figure.

Puberty and Body Image in Boys

Boys who mature later than their peers have only temporary decreases in body image.

Erikson’s Eight Stages - I

Trust vs. Mistrust Infancy (0-1 year)

Autonomy vs. Shame and doubt Toddler (1-2 years)

Initiative vs. Guilt Preschool (3-5 years)

Industry vs. Inferiority Elementary School (6-12 years)

Erikson’s Eight Stages - II

Identity vs. Role confusion Adolescence (13-19 years)

Intimacy vs. Isolation Young adulthood (20-40 years)

Generativity vs. Stagnation Middle adulthood (40-65 years)

Integrity vs. Despair Late adulthood (65 and older)

Social Development

Identity Crisis: An adolescent’s struggle to establish a personal identity, or self-concept

Who Am I?

Think about this question and write down 10 different answers to the question.

Answers could be:

social roles responsibilitiesgroups you belong tobeliefspersonality characteristicsneeds, feelings or behavior patterns

RANK THEM IN ORDER OF IMPORTANCE

1.2.3.4.5.6.7. Etc.

What Do Parents and Teenagers Fight About?

Adolescent Disengagement

The proportion of time spent with the family decreases almost 3% per year

Not true for time spent alone with parents

Adolescent Transformation

Boys feel worse while in family settings from grades 5-8, then improve

Girls feel worse while in family settings from grades 5-10

improvement later

Debunking the Myth: Adolescence is Not Always Stormy

“Storm and stress in adolescence is not something written indelibly into the human life course. On the contrary, there are cultural differences in storm and stress, and within cultures there are individual differences.” J. J. Arnett

A Kohlberg Dilema

In Europe, a woman was near death from a special kind of cancer. There was one drug that the doctors thought might save her. It was a form of radium that a druggist in the same town had recently discovered. the drug was expensive to make, but the druggist was charging ten times what the drug cost him to make. He paid $400 for the radium and charged $4,000 for a small dose of the drug. The sick woman's husband, Heinz, went to everyone he knew to borrow the money and tried every legal means, but he could only get

together about $2,000, which is half of what it cost. He told the druggist that his wife was dying, and asked him to sell it cheaper or let him pay later. But the druggist said, "No, I discovered the drug and I'm going to make money from if." So, having tried every legal means, Heinz gets desperate and considers breaking into the man's store to steal the drug for his wife.

Questions

• 1. Should Heinz steal the drug?

• 1a. Why or why not?

• 2. Is it actually right or wrong for him to steal the drug?

• 2a. Why is it right or wrong?

• 3. Does Heinz have a duty or obligation to steal the drug?


• 4. If Heinz doesn't love his wife, should he steal the drug for her? Does it make a difference in what Heinz should do whether or not he loves his wife?


• 5. Suppose the person dying is not his wife but a stranger. Should Heinz steal the drug for the stranger?


• 6. Suppose it's a pet animal he loves. should Heinz steal to save the pet animal?


• 7. Is it important for people to do everything they can to save another's life?


• 8. It is against the law for Heinz to steal. Does that make it morally wrong?


• 9. In general, should people try to do everything they can to obey the law?


• 9b. How does this apply to what Heinz should do?

• 10. In thinking back over the dilemma, what would you say is the most responsible thing for Heinz to do?

• 10a. Why?

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Reasoning

Preconventional Level Punishment and obedience Instrumental relativism

Conventional Level Good boy-nice girl Society-maintaining

Postconventional Level Social contract Universal ethical principles

Moral Reasoning

Most 7-10 year olds are reasoning at the preconventional level

Most 13-16 year olds are reasoning at the conventional level

Few subjects show the post-conventional type of reasoning

Criticisms of Kohlberg’s Theory

Cultural Bias Some cultural differences not reflected in this

theoryGender Bias

Empirical support for this claim is weakConnection between moral reasoning and

moral behavior is often indirect

Quiz on Aging

1. All five senses tend ot decline in old age.2. People lose about 1/3 of their brain cells by late

adulthood.3. Drivers over 65 years of age have fewer traffic

accidents per person than those under 30.4. Older people are more alike than younger people.5.People become less susceptible to short-term

illnesses, such as the common cold, as they age.

Quiz on Aging (cont.)

6. Recognition memory declines sharply with old age.

7. Reaction time becomes slower with age.8. About 1/4 of those over 65 live in nursing homes.9. People become more fearful of death as they

grow older.10. Widows outnumber widowers about 3 to 1.

Adulthood & Old Age

Biological Development

Cognitive Development

Social Development

Dying and Death

Adulthood and Old Age

Life Span: The maximum age possible for members of a given species.

Life Expectancy: The number of years that an average member of a species is expected to live.

Menopause: The end of menstruation and fertility.

The Aging of America

Defining Middle Age

“When 1,200 Americans were asked when middle age begins, 41% said it’s when you worry about health care, 42% said it was when the last child moves out, and 46% said it was when you no longer recognize the names of music groups on the radio.”

Newsweek magazine, 1992

How Good is Your Memory?

Older people are consistently less confident of their memory than younger people.

Alzheimer’s Disease

Alzheimer’s Disease: A progressive brain disorder that mostly strikes older people, causing memory loss and other symptoms.

Accounts for 40%-50% of nursing home admissions

Cost is at least $80 billion per year

Intelligence and Age

Measures of fluid intelligence decline steadily through middle and late adulthood

Inductive reasoning Spatial ability

Measures of crystallized intelligence remain stable into the 70’s

Verbal ability Numeric ability

Timed vs. Untimed Vocabulary Tests

Some abilities are less affected by age than others.

“Typical” Career Trajectory

Productivity tends to peak about 20 years into a career

Peak is more determined by career point than age

This typically corresponds with ages in the late 30’s or early 40’s

Levinson's ”Seasons" of the Life Cycle

Periods of change interspersed with periods of relative calm.

Life Satisfaction and Age

In multiple cultures, 75-80% say they are satisfied with life.

This does not vary appreciably with age.

The Myth of a ”Midlife Crisis"

10,000 adults filled out a questionnaire that measured emotional instability

Neither males nor females showed increased instability during the 40’s or early 50’s

Are Old People More Depressed?

Depression decreases from early adulthood into middle and later years

Depression is increased in the very old

Dying and Death

Elisabeth Kübler-Ross proposed five stages in approaching death:

Denial Anger Bargaining Depression Acceptance

Empirical evidence shows some support, but not all people experience all stages

Health & Medicine

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