1. Chapter 16 Emotional and Social Development in Middle Adulthood

2. Erikson’s Theory: Generativity vs. Stagnation
Reaching out to others in ways that give to and guide the next generation
Extending commitment beyond self and partner
May be realized through parenting or other family, work, and mentoring relationships
Stagnation
Self-centered, self- indulgent, self-absorbed
Lack of interest in young people
Focus on what one can get from others, not what one can give
Little interest in being productive at work or developing talents

3. “Belief in the Species” Erikson
The conviction that life is good and worthwhile, even in the face of human destructiveness and deprivation is a major motivator of generative action, which has improving humanity as its goal.

4. Aging, Generativity, and Self-Perceptions
Longitudinal:
300 College Educated Women
Figure Age-related changes in self-rated generativity, concern about aging, identity security, and sense of competence
Figure 16.1
(Adapted from Stewart, Ostrove, & Helson, 2001.)

5. Highly Generative Adults
Well-adjusted:
low in anxiety, depression
high in autonomy, self-acceptance, life satisfaction
Parenting = + Generative Commitments
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6. Levinson’s Four Tasks of Middle Adulthood
Young–Old
Seek new ways of being both young and old
Destruction– Creation
Acknowledge past hurtful acts, try to leave legacy for future generations
Masculinity–Femininity
Balance masculine and feminine parts of self
Engagement–Separateness
Balance engagement with and separateness from external world

7. Stop and Think

8. Possible Selves What one hopes to become or fears becoming
Become fewer in number, more modest and concrete with age
Rely more on temporal than on social comparisons
Can be redefined by the individual, permitting affirmation of the self
Play protective role in self-esteem

9. Vaillant’s View of Midlife
“Keepers of meaning”: older people as guardians of their culture
“Passing the torch” to next generation
Focus on longer-term, less-personal goals
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10. Is There a Midlife Crisis?
Wide individual differences in response
Gender differences in work-related turning points:
women: early adulthood
men: midlife
Sharp disruption uncommon
Differences in handling life regrets:
making life changes or not
role of interpretation, acceptance in well-being
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11. Self-Acceptance, Autonomy, Environmental Mastery
Gains in expertise, practical problem solving
More complex, integrated self-descriptions
Increase in
self-acceptance
autonomy
environmental mastery
Factors contributing to well-being differ among cohorts
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12. Psychological Well-Being
Factors in Midlife
Psychological Well-Being
Good health and exercise
Sense of control and personal life investment
Positive social relationships
Good marriage
Mastery of multiple roles
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13. Coping Improvements in Middle Adulthood
Effective coping strategies:
identifying positives
postponing action while evaluating alternatives
Personality changes that support coping:
complex, integrated, coherent self-descriptions, blending strengths and weaknesses
gains in emotional stability and confidence

14. Gender Identity in Middle Adulthood
Women increase in “masculine” traits
Men increase in “feminine” traits
Theories:
parental imperative
cohort effects: women’s career experiences
demands of midlife
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15. Big Five Personality Traits
Neuroticism
Extroversion
Openness to experience
Agreeableness
Conscientiousness
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16. Big Five Personality Traits
As we go through connect to fictional personalities we see in the media (cartoons, book characters, etc).
Neuroticism: Individuals who are high on this trait are worrying, temperamental, self pitying, self conscious, emotional and vulnerable. Individuals who are low are calm, even tempered, self content, comfortable and unemotional
Extroversion: Individuals who are high on this trait are affectionate, talkative, active, fun loving and passionate. Individuals who are low are reserved, quiet, passive, sober and emotionally unreactive
Openness to experience: Individuals who are high on this trait are imaginative, creative, original, curious, and liberal. Individuals who are low are down to earth, uncreative, conventional, uncurious, and conservative
Agreeableness: Individuals who are high on this trait are softhearted, trusting, generous, lenient, and good natured. Individuals who are low are ruthless, stingy, antagonistic, and irritable
Conscientiousness: Individuals who are high on this trait are conscientious, hardworking, well organized, punctual, ambitious, and persevering. Individuals who are low are negligent, lazy, disorganized, late, aimless, and non-persistent
Which personality trait do you have and why?

17. Changes in Big Five Personality Traits with Age
Basic, enduring individual dispositions persist
Changes occur in overall organization and integration of personality:
agreeableness and conscientiousness increase
neuroticism declines
extroversion and openness to experience remain the same or decrease slightly
Figure 16.4

18. Relationships at Midlife
Often, more close relationships than in any other period:
ties to both older and younger generations
well-established friendships
For many people, a liberating time:
sense of completion
opportunity to strengthen social ties, rekindle interests
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19. Marriage in Middle Adulthood
Middle-aged households typically well off compared with other age groups
Contemporary view of midlife marriage: expansion, new horizons
Need for review and adjustment of marital relationship
Marital satisfaction predicts psychological well-being
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20. Divorce in Midlife
Rate for U.S. 50- to 65-year-olds has doubled over past 20 years
Midlifers adjust more easily than young adults:
practical problem solving
effective coping strategies
Contributes to feminization of poverty

21. Parenting in Middle Adulthood
Launching: culmination of “letting go” process:
decline in parental authority
continued contact, affection, support to children
adjusting to in-laws
kinkeeper role, especially for mothers
Affected by
investment in nonparental roles, especially work
children’s characteristics: “off-time” children stress parents
cultural variations in social clock

22. Grandparenthood
On average, begins in early fifties; can spend one-third of life as a grandparent
Significant milestone for most
Grandparenting styles influenced by proximity, age, gender, SES, ethnicity
Trends in grandparenting:
extended-family household
skipped-generation family
response to divorce of grandchildren’s parents
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23. Meanings of Grandparenthood
Valued elder
Immortality through descendants
Reinvolvement with personal past
Opportunity for indulgence
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24. Grandparents

25. Middle-Aged Children and Their Aging Parents
Increasingly likely to have living parents
Reassess relationships with parents
In collectivist cultures, parents typically live with married children
Children provide more help to parents:
financial and household aid
caregiving as parental health problems increase
helping based on quality of earlier relationships

26. Caring for Aging Parents
“Sandwich generation”
Factors include finances, location, gender, culture
Highly stressful:
time devoted to care averages 10 to 20 hours per week, more for women
emotional strain of witnessing parent’s decline
greatest stress for those sharing a household with ill parent

27. Baby Boomers Caring for Aging Parents
Figure Baby boomers, by work status and gender, who provide basic personal care to an aging parent in poor health
Figure 16.2
(Adapted from The MetLife Study of Caregiving Costs to Working Caregivers: Double Jeopardy for Baby Boomers Caring for Their Parents, June 2011, Figure 3. Reprinted by permission of the MetLife Mature Market Institute, New York, NY.)

28. Relieving Caregiving Stress
Use effective coping strategies.
Seek social support.
Use community resources.
Get workplace help.
Work for helpful public policies.
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29. Siblings in Middle Adulthood
Contact and support decline because of demands of diverse roles
Still, siblings often feel closer, often in response to major life events
Affected by
earlier relations
culture
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30. Friendships in Middle Adulthood
Gender trends continue: men are less expressive than women
Fewer friends: become more selective, try harder to get along with friends
Rely on friends more for pleasure, family for support and security

31. Vocational Life Important component of satisfaction and self-esteem:
attempt to increase personal meaning of vocational lives
increased job satisfaction
Negative stereotypes of aging may hinder advancement

32. Burnout Causes long-term job stress work with high emotional demands
unsupportive work environment
excessive work assignments for available time
lack of encouragement from supervisors
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33. Career Development in Middle Adulthood
Limits to advancement
training
glass ceiling
Retirement planning
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34. Influences on Interest in Job Training
Personal
desire to change: growth vs. security needs
co-workers, supervisor
stereotypes: self-efficacy
Job
challenging vs. routine tasks
co-workers, teams
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35. The Glass Ceiling
Invisible barrier to career advancement for women and minorities
Results from
lack of mentors, training opportunities
stereotypes about career commitment, managerial ability
prejudices toward gender role deviation (for women)
Many women deal with glass ceiling by leaving corporate environment

36. Ingredients of Effective Retirement Planning
Finances
Fitness
Role adjustment
Where to live
Leisure and volunteer activities
Health insurance
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