Development Over the Lifespan (Chapter 14) Lecture Outline: Parenting and temperament Adolescence and other transitions

The “Self” Self concept What am “I” Physical, active, social, psychological components are related to progression across ages Self-esteem Evaluative component How valued am I? People internalize the evaluative judgements made by others How we see ourselves is related to how we think others see us, but not always how they actually see us.

Parental Styles Authoritarian: Firm, punitive, unsympathetic, and negative Children can learn to be sneaky and externally controlled with low self-esteem Permissive: Freedom, no rules or discipline Children can learn to be impulsive, get in trouble Authoritative: Firm but understanding Children help make the rules, high self-esteem

Temperament Disposition, intensity, and duration of emotional experience Easy: Playful, adaptable, regular in sleep and eating cycles Difficult: Fusy, irregular, unadaptable to new situations Slow-to-warm up: Avoid/ shy with novelty Temperamental assessment: Behavioral observations Physiological reactivity

Goodness-of-fit: person X environment interaction Irritable Baby Parenting: Stable Unstable Baby: More Fussy Less Fussy Parent: Poor coping Good coping Toddler: Negative Happy Fussy Calm

Physiology of adolescence 1987, Dr. Marcia E. Herman-Giddens and colleagues described the results of physical examinations of 17,077 American girls. Caucasian girls were showing bodily signs of sexual maturity an average of one year earlier than previous studies had indicated, and Black-American girls two years earlier. On the average, breast development was notable before age 10 in white girls and before age 9 in black girls, and the growth of pubic hair generally occurred about a year later. But even at age 7, 27 percent of black girls and nearly 7 percent of white girls had begun to grow breasts, pubic hair or both. Boys go through puberty earlier, but menarche makes this easier to study in girls. Why? Nutrition? Body fat content? Family stress? What is the impact on self concept? Do early maturers get in more trouble?

Growing Autonomy of Teenagers Conflicts with parents Negotiation and enforcement of rules Manipulating parents, Individuation Mood swings and depression Shy, withdrawn, unattractive, rejection by peers Risk-taking behavior Drugs, alcohol, sexuality, gangs, weapons, law Ethnic identity (Own) and acculturation (Dominant Culture) Can be high a low in each, problems when you are low in both

Erik Erikson and Personality Development Trust vs. mistrust: Birth to 1 year Autonomy vs. Shame and doubt (1-3) Initiative vs. Guilt (3-6) Industry vs. Inferiority (6-12) Identity vs. Role confusion (adolescence) Intimacy vs. Isolation (early adulthood) Generativity vs. Stagnation (middle adult) Integrity vs. Despair (old age)

Life transitions and social clock Anticipated transitions: Everyone does these at the same time Examples: go to school, drive a car, vote, serious relationship, children, retirement Unanticipated transitions: You do something early Children (teen parenthood), retirement (forced early but outs), get a job (financial need) Non-event transitions: Something expected does not happen Children (late birth-timing), Work (career advancement is slow), Solitude (not in serious relationship or marriage when you thought you would be)

Cattell’s (1971) Two Subfactors of Intelligence Fluid intelligence Understanding abstract and new information Deductive reasoning and analogies Creative relationships Crystallized Intelligence Accumulation of knowledge Vocabulary and general information Knowing lots of “stuff”

Cognition in later years Decrease in fluid and increase in crystallized intelligence, e.g., “Lost in Boston” Overall changes in information processing, but no net deficits Wisdom: Insight into human development and life Greater awareness of what you do not know Neural plasticity after strokes Degeneration in Alzheimer’s