Physical and Cognitive Development in Middle Adulthood Chapter 15 Robert S. Feldman Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

Looking Ahead In what ways does personality develop during middle adulthood? Is there continuity in personality development during adulthood? What are typical patterns of marriage and divorce in middle adulthood? What changing family situations do middle-aged adults face?

Looking Ahead What are the causes and characteristics of family violence in the United States? What are the characteristics of work and career in middle adulthood?

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Age Changes What stays the same as we age? What changes with age?

Changes with age = Aging “Layers of Aging” Socioeconomic Cognitive Spiritual Biological functions

How is aging like or NOT like other social categories? What are the “isms”? Does ageism exist?

Physical Transitions in Middle Adulthood Gradual psychological and emotional changes in body’s capabilities Depends in part on self-concept and lifestyle

Height, Weight, and Strength: Benchmarks of Change After age 55, bones become less dense Ultimately women lose 2 inches and men lose 1 inch in height Women are more prone to declining height due to OSTEOPOROSIS Both men and women continue to gain weight in middle adulthood

There was an old lady…. Society applies a double standard to men and women in terms of appearance Older women tend to be viewed in unflattering terms Aging men more frequently perceived as displaying a maturity that enhances status

Sights and Sounds of Middle Age Starting at age 40, visual acuity declines Changing eye's lenses in shape and elasticity results in loss of near vision, called PRESBYOPIA Declining depth perception and night vision GLAUCOMA

Do you hear what I hear? PRESBYCUSIS About 12 percent of people between 45 and 65 suffer from presbycusis Men more prone to hearing loss Sound localization is diminished

Reaction time: Not-so-slowing Down Decreases slightly in middle adulthood Improves or compensated for by being more careful and practicing the skill Exercise can slow this loss

“Use It or Lose It”

Sexuality During Middle Age Frequency of sexual intercourse decreases with age Sexual activities remain a vital part of most middle-aged adults’ lives Adults have more freedom Women no longer need to practice birth control

Sexual Intercourse Men typically need more time to get an erection Volume of fluid in ejaculation declines Production of testosterone also declines In women, walls of the vagina become less elastic and thinner Vagina shrinks, potentially making intercourse painful

Female Climateric Starting about age 45, transition from being able to bear children to being unable to do so Lasting about 15 to 20 years MENOPAUSE

Menopause Estrogen replacement therapy (ERT) Women's expectations about menopause relate to their experience of menopause Variations by race and culture

From Research to Practice The Dilemma of Hormone Therapy Estrogen and progesterone used to alleviate menopausal symptoms CON Increases risk of breast cancer and blood clots higher risk for pulmonary embolism and heart disease PRO Changes ratio of “good” cholesterol to “bad” cholesterol Decreases thinning of bones Associated with reduced risks of stroke and colon cancer Cognitive advantages Enhances sex drive

What do you think? How might the fact that the medical advice of experts on hormone therapy has changed frequently over the last decade affect women’s decisions about what course of action to follow? What are the most important factors a woman should take into account in deciding whether or not to embark on a course of hormone therapy?

The Psychological Consequences of Menopause Early research Menopause was linked directly to depression, anxiety, crying spells, lack of concentration, and irritability Current research Normal part of aging that does not, by itself, produce psychological symptoms Effects influenced by personal and cultural expectations of menopause

Do men experience the equivalent of menopause?

Male Climacteric Male changes during middle age Period of physical and psychological change relating to male reproductive system that occurs during late middle age. Enlargement of the prostate gland Problems with urination, including difficulty starting to urinate and frequent need to urinate during night Men still produce sperm and can father children through middle age

Review and Apply REPLY People in middle adulthood experience gradual changes in physical ____ and ____. The acuity of the senses, particularly ____ and ____, and ____ ____ ____declines slightly during middle age. Sexuality in middle adulthood changes ____, but middle-aged couples, freed from concerns about children, can often progress to a new level of ____ and ____.

Review and Apply REPLY ____ ____relating to sexuality occur in both men and women. Both the female ____, which includes menopause, and the male ____ seem to have physical and perhaps psychological symptoms. Controversy attends the emerging medical areas of ____ ____ ____and induced pregnancy in older women through ____ of the eggs of much younger women.

Review and Apply APPLY Would you rather fly on an airplane with a middle- aged pilot or a young one? Why? What cultural factors in the United States might contribute to a woman’s negative experience of menopause? How?

HEALTH

Health and Wellness American College of Sports Medicine and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention At least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity daily: Reduces risk of heart disease, osteoporosis, weight gain, and hypertension Provides psychological benefits of sense of control and well-being

Complete the following sentences: 1.Middle-aged people like to ____. 2.Middle-aged people get annoyed by ____. 3.Middle-aged people’s health is ____. 4.Middle-aged people’s cognitive abilities are ____. 5.The societal stereotype about middle age indicates____.

Chronic Diseases in Middle Adulthood Arthritis typically begins after age 40 Diabetes is most likely to occur in people between the ages of 50 and 60 Hypertension (high blood pressure) is one of the most frequent chronic disorders found in middle age

Recommended Diagnostic Tests See Table 15-1 for adult preventative health care screening recommendations

Table 15-1

Developmental Diversity: Individual Variation in Health Ethnic differences African Americans death rate is twice rate for Caucasians Lower family’s income  higher likelihood of disabling illness, more dangerous occupations, inferior health coverage

Gender Differences During middle age, women experience more non- life threatening illnesses than men but men experience more serious illnesses Women smoke less; drink less alcohol; have less dangerous jobs Medical research has typically studied diseases of men with all male samples; the medical community is only now beginning to study women's health issues

Health and Income

What are the consequences of stress in middle adulthood?

Stress in Middle Adulthood Stress continues to have a significant impact on health in middle age According to psychoneuroimmunologists, who study the relationship between the brain, the immune system, and psychological factors, stress produces three main consequences Leads to unhealthy behaviors

True or False? Heart and circulatory disease in middle age are responsible for more loss of work and disability days due to hospitalization than any other cause.

Coronary Heart Disease More men die in middle age of diseases of the heart and circulatory system than any other cause. Both genetic and experiential characteristics are involved Heart disease runs in families Men are more likely to suffer than women, and risks increase with age

The A’s and B’s of Coronary Heart Disease

TYPE A BEHAVIOR PATTERN Type A behavior: Competitiveness, impatience, and a tendency toward frustration and hostility, are more susceptible to heart disease Evidence is only correlational so cannot say Type A behavior causes heart disease

TYPE B BEHAVIOR PATTERN Type B behavior: Non-competitiveness, patience, and a lack of aggression Evidence that Type B people have less than half the risk of coronary disease that Type A people have

The Threat of Cancer Cancer is associated with genetic and environmental risks Poor nutrition, smoking, alcohol use, exposure to sunlight, exposure to radiation, and particular occupational hazards Early treatment is related to higher survival rate

Cancer Treatment Takes a variety of forms Radiation therapy involves the use of radiation to destroy a tumor Chemotherapy involves the controlled ingestion of toxic substances meant to poison the tumor Surgery may be used to remove the tumor Early diagnosis is crucial

Breast Cancer Mammography, a weak X-ray, is used to detect breast cancer Death rate lower for those who had a "fighting spirit" or those who denied they had the disease A positive psychological outlook may boost the body's immune system

Breast Cancer Incidence and Age

Psychological Factors Relating to Cancer: Mind Over Tumor? Power of a “fighting spirit”

Review and Apply REVIEW In general, middle adulthood is a period of ____ health, although susceptibility to chronic diseases, such as ____, ____, and ____ increases. ____ ____is a risk for middle-aged adults. Both ____ and ____ factors contribute to heart disease, including the Type ____ behavior pattern.

Review and Apply REVIEW The incidence of ____ begins to be significant in middle adulthood. Therapies such as ____ therapy, ____, and ____ can successfully treat cancer, and psychological factors, such as a ____ ____and a refusal to accept the ____ of cancer, can influence ____ ____.

Review and Apply APPLY What social policies might be developed to lower the incidence of disabling illness among members of lower-socioeconomic groups? Does the effect of psychological attitude on cancer survival suggest that nontraditional healing techniques—such as the use of meditation—might have a place in cancer treatment? Why or why not?

COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT

Does intelligence decline in middle adulthood?

Cognitive Development Cross-sectional studies Older subjects scored less well than younger subjects on traditional IQ tests Intelligence peaks at 18, stays steady until mid- 20s, and declines till end of life Longitudinal studies Different developmental patterns in intelligence Stable and even increasing IQ scores until mid-30s and some to mid-50s, then declined

Difficulties in Answering the Question Older research Cross sectional studies Cohort effect Newer research Longitudinal studies Practice effect and participant attrition

Testing Effects Practice effect Attrition Physical performance portion Timed Reaction time slows with age Results may be due to physical changes not cognitive changes

Kinds of Intelligence FLUID INTELLIGENCE is the ability to deal with new problems and situations CRYSTALLIZED INTELLIGENCE is the store of information, skills, and strategies that people have acquired through education and prior experiences, and through their previous use of fluid intelligence

Relationship Between Fluid and Crystal Intelligence

Continuing Competence versus Growing Decline Salthouse suggests four reasons why this discrepancy exists: 1.Typical measures of cognitive skills tap a different type of cognition than what is required to be successful in particular occupations 2.Measures of practical intelligence rather than traditional IQ tests to assess intelligence may yield little discrepancy 3.People can be quite successful professionally and still be on the decline in certain kinds of cognitive abilities 4.Older people may be successful because they have developed specific kinds of expertise and particular competencies

Highly Successful Middle-Aged People Who do you know?

The Development of Expertise: Separating Experts from Novices EXPERTISE, the acquisition of skill or knowledge in a particular area, develops as people devote attention and practice Expert = rely on experience and intuition, process information automatically, use different neural pathways to solve problems Novice = strictly follow formal rules and procedures, use better strategies and better problem-solving

Memory: You Must Remember This According to research on memory changes in adulthood Most people show only minimal losses Many exhibit no memory loss in middle adulthood Memory is viewed in terms of three sequential components Sensory memory Short-term memory holds information for 15 to 25 seconds Long-term memory

Schemas in Middle Adulthood Help people represent the way the world is organized Aid in categorization and interpretation of new information Convey cultural information

Becoming an Informed Consumer of Development Effective Strategies for Remembering Mnemonics Get organized Pay attention Use encoding specificity phenomenon Visualize Rehearse

Review and Apply REVIEW The question of whether intelligence ____ in middle adulthood is complicated by limitations in ____ ____ studies and ____ studies. Intelligence appears to be divided into components, some of which ____while others hold steady or even ____.

Review and Apply REVIEW In general, cognitive competence in middle adulthood holds ____ ____despite declines in some areas of ____ functioning. Memory may appear to ____ in middle age, but in fact ____ ____ memory deficits are probably due to ineffective strategies of ____ and ____.

Review and Apply APPLY How might crystallized and fluid intelligence work together to help middle-aged people deal with novel situations and problems? How do you think the apparent discrepancy between declining IQ scores and continuing cognitive competence in middle adulthood would affect the learning ability of middle adults who return to school?

EPILOGUE Return to the prologue of this chapter, about Matt Carpenter’s high-altitude racing, and answer these questions : What changes in physical functions during middle adulthood are likely to affect Carpenter’s performance? What adjustments could Carpenter make to compensate for his changes in ability? Do you think that Carpenter’s ability to thrive at a high- intensity sport is typical of people in middle adulthood?

EPILOGUE What physical and psychological benefits might Carpenter be gaining from his running? If Carpenter were to return to school in middle adulthood, what cognitive challenges would he face compared with his younger classmates?