1. . Chapter 10 The Lives of Adults Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 10-1

2. . Focusing on adults at mid-life What ages? Roughly mid-30s to around 60 But no clear beginning or end Cohorts have different life experiences Baby boomers - Large post-WW II population - NZ born 1946- 1972 What defines YOUR cohort? Diversity in adult lives Age of having a child or losing a parent will differ across people Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 10-2

3. . Do adults keep developing? No one universal plan for every person’s development ‘Stages’: very difficult to define for adults, so avoid this term! Erikson’s theory focuses on development through the lifespan, while Piaget and Freud stop at physiological maturity US-based research (e.g. Levinson 1978, 1996) has a social and cultural context that may not be so relevant here Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 10-3

4. . Discourses about adulthood [Refresher on discourse: words and practices that seem to define reality in an unquestionable way] Adulthood is the goal of childhood and the end of playtime Adults are sensible, mature grown-ups Autonomy is the key to being an adult Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 10-4

5. . Physiological changes at mid-life Ageing begins from the moment you’re born! Common markers of ageing at mid-life: - grey hair, skin changes - eyes have less flexible focus & require more light Changes require adaptations in behaviour e.g. care in night driving Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 10-5

6. . Changes in the body’s reproductive system at mid-life: the climacteric Menopause: - Final cessation of menstruation in women - Average age is 52 in NZ (Mackenzie, 1984) Peri-menopause: Gradual process before cessation End of child-bearing years may signal sadness (Bart, 1972) or relief (Rubin, 1979) for women Male menopause? Little evidence for this, as male hormones decline gradually over time Cultures differ greatly in their interest in physiological changes at mid-life Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 10-6

7. . Psychological changes: is there a ‘mid-life crisis’? Levinson (1978) and Sheehy (1976) suggested that people at mid-life have doubts about their path in life in their 30s/40s and may undergo a transition to change direction Doubts today about how usual such transitions are Each cohort may experience different socio-political pressures at this age –In NZ, current mid-lifers may have worries about saving for later years, whereas –Previous generations could rely on NZ Superannuation Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 10-7

8. . Your working life Longer lifespan today compared with 100 years ago. Many people are healthier & fitter than previous generations at the same age Changed social policies mean retirement is seldom compulsory (e.g. at age 60 or 65) Adults may have periods of paid work and periods without paid work throughout mid-life Economic pressures differ by generation: current mid-lifers struggle with a troubled world economy, fewer jobs Do you think you will retire from work? When? Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 10-8

9. . Cognitive development and learning in adulthood Intelligence & mental reasoning are composed of many skills –Some of these may decline as adults age (Schaie, 1994) –Earlier cross-sectional studies gave the misleading view that mental ability declines with age –Longitudinal studies showed less decline over age (Schaie & Willis in Claiborne & Drewery, 2009, p. 321) Wisdom may increase over age –Ability to think through problems, reflect on experience & make realistic judgements (Labouvie-Vief & Hakim- Larson, 1989) Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 10-9

10. . Many indigenous cultures value wisdom Māori culture recognises the mana (prestige) that accrues over life Hence, elders are very highly valued for their wisdom Roles of mātua and kaumātua recognise this knowledge accumulated over a lifetime (Macfarlane, 2004c) Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 10-10

11. . A second chance at education? Formal education ends with compulsory schooling or tertiary education study at universities, polytechnics, whare wānanga But adults may: –continue to have professional development in their jobs –attend adult education classes –experience learning in the community or over the internet. Participation by NZers over age 40 in tertiary education tripled between 1995 and 2005: now 30% of tertiary students (Scott, 2006) Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 10-11

12. . Gender and paid work Changing patterns of working lives of women and men in recent years Women’s involvement in paid work has increased in the past 50+ years Due to family responsibilities, women are less likely to work full-time than men And women (age 15+) are still paid less than men, even with the same qualifications, earning 87% of what men earn (hourly measure) (Statistics NZ, 2005a) Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 10-12

13. . Expanding family connections at mid-life Families are smaller than 50 years ago Later childbearing: - Mothers aged 30 to early 40s starting a family are no longer unusual Current NZ birth rate increased 2005-2009 (Statistics NZ, 2009d) This affects the family life cycle - Mid-life adults may have longer involvement with children at home who are youth or young adults - Mid-lifers may also have responsibilities for ageing parents Mid-lifers may feel a ‘sandwich’ pressure’ between the two generations (e.g. Hillcoat-Nallétamby & Dharmalingam, 2004) Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 10-13

14. . Diversity in adult lives Erik Erikson’s theory - Crisis for mid-lifers: generativity vs stagnation Kotré’s (1984) extension of Erikson’s views on generativity: - Biological and parental generativity may differ - Work generativity may involve mentoring - Cultural generativity could help whole communities e.g. whānau, hapū and iwi development Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 10-14

15. . Mid-lifers without partners Being single increasingly common for NZ adults Many adults never live with a partner NZ’s divorce rate has dropped over last 15 years - Partly due to change in pattern of relationships away from marriage to serial monogamy (sequence of committed relationships) Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 10-15

16. . Single parenting With more mid-life adults living without a partner, single parenting has become more common NZ society more accepting of single parents than in previous decades though there is still prejudice against families that do not fit a stereotypical norm (Pool, 1996; Ritchie & Ritchie, 1997) How would the generational ‘sandwich pressure’ affect single parents? Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 10-16