...MIDLIFE: A TIME OF CRISIS OR THE NEW PRIME OF LIFE EPSY 5460 Introduction The concept of a “midlife crisis” has been a well-known way of describing a time of stress and difficulties that may occur during middle adulthood. This study discusses views of the concept of midlife crisis in the past and the present. It will also compare and contrast Carl Jung, Elliott Jaques, Erik Erikson and Robert Peck’s view of middle age development. One of the most popular contradictions in society has been whether middle age is a peak period of life or the beginning of a downward slide. Many people change careers at midlife. Is this change because of a decrease in self-esteem or because one wants to find a new outlook on life and greater satisfaction? This paper will argue that middle age is not a time of loss and crisis but of new possibilities and fulfillment. The most common view of a midlife crisis has been a male in his 40’s who leaves his wife for a younger woman and runs off in a sports car; or a woman in her 40’s or 50’s that gets a face lift, breast lift and tries to reinvent herself. These views have been promoted in magazines, television shows and movies. Our society as a whole has promoted youth and beauty as one of the most important things in life. The purpose of this study is to provide information contrary to this popular belief. This paper proposes that the knowledge and confidence that comes with age is actually more important to most middle age people than physical...
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...Crisis in Pension Systems. Many countries are experiencing the pension crisis which means that they don’t have enough money to pay future pensions for old people. This essay analyzing two possible solutions which can resolve pensions system problem. There are number of possible reasons of the pensions system’s problem. Firstly, earlier there can be noticed low birth rates in plenty of countries. As a result in present time the number of people of working age reduced which resulted into low tax revenues. In addition, it can be seen that people’s life expectancy increased and therefore there is higher proportion of elderly people comparing with a total population which can lead to the increased strain on pension funds. Another reason for poor performs of pension funds can be international financial crisis which has significantly resulted into uncertainty in stock market and it has led to the weakness of financial institution. One solution, which is common, is to increase retirement age of people. Public sector workers and people receiving state pensions must work longer. In order to receive their pension they should reach the statutory retirement age. For example, many European countries, including the UK and France, have increased retirement ages. Due to the fact that this solution delays the pension funding, it gives governments more time to adjust economic policies and hope the economy will be stronger in the future. As this solution produces considerable saving it can be...
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...Middle adulthood, or mid-life, is usually defined as ages 40 to 65. Experience Human Development authors Papalia and Martorell explain that during this phase, for the first time in life, development actually begins to deteriorate. Mid-life adults begin to lose height due to shrinkage of the discs in the spinal column and their bones become more fragile. Skin becomes less elastic and smooth, hair may gray due to declining melanin levels, and the senses begin to dull. Health risks such as hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes also become more common, even in previously healthy people. Sexual functioning also tends to change as hormone levels in both men and women decrease. Women lose the ability to conceive and some men may experience...
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...development stage. A young child will experience this passing differently than an elderly person. What differentiates the process are the skill sets that each individual has in their “toolbox”. I will be addressing these coping skills and developmental milestones in several grouped categories to show the differences and the similarities amongst the different age groups. Children 3-5 years old A child in this age category is focused primarily on his/herself. They have difficulty seeing the world from someone else’s point of view. This is called being egocentric. With this in mind, when faced with the death of someone close to them, they feel that they are the cause of the death. Emotions at this stage of development can vary from sadness, anger, anxiety and guilt. If the death was the result of a disaster or crisis, the child may feel abandoned and their participation in age-appropriate activities may be interrupted. Children 6-12 years old Children at this stage are learning basic skills and they are also in the process of attaching their cultural values to it. When faced with a death, the child in this age group may not want to leave home and in doing so, he/she hopes to reassure the safety of others in the family. The grief...
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...Midlife crisis or transition is a very common effect usually followed by an event. The age is generally 37 to 50 years old, and it is my opinion that a transition or crisis is mostly inevitable. Everyone goes through significant events, some tougher or less common than others, but all the same we have to adjust to these events. The terms midlife crisis or midlife transition is both appropriate for this time in an adult stage of life. I see a transition being more for someone who is adjusting to their children going off to college. Meanwhile, midlife crisis is termed more for a man going out and buying a sports car. Therefore, I see that midlife “crisition” is an appropriate slang I will use now that I have been more informed of the criteria. Some adjustment during midlife is normal; adjustments throughout every stage of life are normal. During this time in life there are many significant events that occur and are the cause to our actions and thus, a “in general” timeframe of common events that occur for everyone, so I do personally believe that it is inevitable to experience some kind of midlife crisis or transition. I hope to fulfill each need as a woman and also as a person that I wouldn’t react in a negative way when the inevitable event comes of my children going off to college or something unexpected occurs. We can never truly prepare ourselves for every event because our lives are not written out on manual though we do have a basic understanding and path that we expect...
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...Emerging Emerging Adulthood Kelley Walker Psych/600 November 23, 2015 Susanne Beier Emerging Adulthood Erickson describes a number of further stages of personality development. In young adulthood, the healthy individual has to achieve the capacity for closeness and intimacy through love, or else suffer a sense of isolation that will permit only shallow human relationships (Berk, 2010). In early middle age, she has to develop a sense of personal creativity that extends beyond her own self. This includes a concern for others, for her work, for the community in which she is part. And towards the end of her life, there is a final crisis during which each person has to come to terms with his or her own life and accept it for what it was, with a sense of integrity, rather than despair. The term adolescence is derived from the Latin for “growing up.” It is a period of transition in which the individual changes from a child to an adult. Biological maturing ultimately leads to social and economic changes: from dependence on one’s family to ever increasing independence. And of course there are the numerous psychological changes that accompany the process of growing up. These include the progressive maturing of sexual attitudes and behavior that will ultimately allow the adolescent to start his or her own family, and the acquisition of various skills that will eventually enable him or her to become a fully functioning member of adult society. In effect, adolescence is simply...
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...internally FAS children are normal. ANS: B 4. Which of the following reactions is not present in newborns? A. stepping reflex B. sucking C. fear of heights D. startle reflex ANS: C 5. One way to gauge an infant’s interest in a stimulus is to see when responsiveness decreases, also called A. habituation. B. regression. C. deactivation. D. response repression. ANS: A 6. Which of the following is an accurate description of brain development during early childhood and infancy? A. The brain’s neurons have fully developed synaptic connections at birth. B. A baby’s neurons are as fully myelinated as an adult’s neurons. C. The overall size of the brain dramatically increases from age four to six. D. The amount of brain material in a region of the brain can nearly double in four year olds. ANS: D 7. The first stage of cognitive development noted by Piaget is the _____ stage. A. concrete operational B. sensorimotor...
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...(theories) of middle age, among which is the “crisis model” and the “transition model”. Which do you agree with more, based on what you know about these theories and what you have observed? The crisis model postulates that when an individual is faced with an overwhelming threat they cannot handle, they will either adapt by developing new coping skills or they will be overwhelmed by the crisis to the point of requiring external intervention (Baltes and Baltes, 2014). Failure to cope with this occurrence can result in a crisis that lasts between 4 -6 weeks. Similarly, the transition model seeks to understand how a person responds to changes in their life or environment and postulate most of these changes involve transition periods that lasts between 6 and 12 months. The transition periods present window periods for growth or pose serious hazards to the concerned individual. Most people reacting to changes in their lives or immediate environment (positive or negative) to require and adjustment period that can last up to a year as I have observed and thereby concur with the transition model. 56. What changes in physical functions are associated with the middle adult years? Do you think men or women are affected most by these changes? People at this stage of life often experience a decline in strength, reaction time, fine motor skills as well as a decreased sensation. They develop skin wrinkles, have sagging skins in their arms, face and legs as well as develop age spots. Men gain fat...
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...development suggest that it is an individual, as well as a social, phenomenon and changes are related to that individual’s biological status and social context. The article also includes views from Erik Erikson and American psychologist Daniel J. Levinson. According to Erikson, individuals are confronted by certain psychological demands at distinct parts of life. The example used is that young adults are faced with the expectation of getting married and starting a family, middle adulthood brings the crisis that develops between the sense of generativity and stagnation, while maturity, or old age, brings the crisis regarding the sense of ego integrity versus the sense of despair. Daniel Levinson also breaks up adult life, in men, into five periods called eras that, together, constitute an entire life-cycle structure. These eras are preadulthood (birth to age 22), early adulthood (age 17 to 45), middle adulthood (age 40 to 64), late adulthood (age 60 to 85), and late late adulthood (age 80 and over), with each era made up of different developmental periods and transitions. The article also describes the different transitional stages and includes a study that not only disagrees with Erikson and Levinson, but provides evidence for both change and constancy. The end of this section simply lists different studies that also focus on development, just with different parameters. The main reason I chose this article was because it seemed to be very credible. It included information that...
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...The demographics of the aging population consist of persons age 65 and older. Moreover, the aging population represents 12.9 percent of the American population. Basically one out of eight Americans belongs to the aging population. The projected growth rate by 2030 of the aging population is 19 percent or 72.1 million people in the United States (Administration on Aging, 2011). The following paper will discuss the general impact that the changing population may have on the health care market, also how and why changes in the demographics of this population will affect health care, identify two health care related challenges to the aging population, explain the marketing needs or services for the aging population and address how individual patients, the community and society as a whole can address such challenges. Healthcare Challenges Demographics on aging clearly indicate that long-term care will remain a critical issue in our society. In 2020, the number of older Americans in need of long-term care service will jump to 12 million. The aging population is growing larger and living longer, a phenomenon felt around the world. As they face scarce health resources, nations must develop policies associated with the provision of care and the quality of the dying process. Never before in human history has our planet contained so many older people or such a large percentage of them. This has not always been the case, as late as 1930, America’s older population numbered less than...
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...`THE DEVELOPED WORLD IS AGEING AND IS THERFORE FACING A PENSION CRISIS` WORDS COUNT: 797 DATA: 10/03/2012 Going back through human history elderly people were only tiny minority of the population. In 1935 when Social Security Scheme was introduced to prevent poverty in old age elderly people accounted for only 3 to 4%of the population. Nobody suspected that in the future the developed world would face pension crisis caused by shifting demographic. Rising longevity and falling birth rates would cause a lower ratio of workers per retire,which will result in difficulty in paying for state or federal pension. Nowadays people are living longer than ever before and retirement pensions have become a problem. At present “developed countries are experiencing a dramatic and unprecedented demographic transformation” (Jackson and Howe, 2008) which may lead to pension crisis in the nearer future. This essay highlights two key problems that are causing development world aging and emphasise the importance for solution to prevent developed countries from pension crisis. The fact that developed countries are aging is a result of two fundamental trends like falling fertility and rising longevity. Falling fertility is reflected in a decrease in the number of young people. Declining birth rate is a result of changes in women`s life styles. Nowadays women in developed countries getting higher education and taking paid jobs; career comes before having babies. This means getting married...
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...According to Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development, there are eight stages in life. The stage I chose was Gerativity-vs.-stagnation (middle adulthood). This stage happens around the ages of 40-60 yrs. old. During this stage of life, people typically experience a midlife transition, which the notion in life is not under ending becomes more important. In some cases they may lead to midlife crisis although, the passage to middle age is typically relatively calm. Have you ever heard of the word “midlife crisis”? Men and women in their late 30s through late 50s suffer from it. The word midlife crisis is the most common phrase we use to describe middle-aged adulthood. Midlife crisis in men As men approaches middle aged some men may go through life changes. Men feel they are limited in life fearing that they are close to death. They also have the fear of aging and wonders if their marriages had run its course. This is the time men start to feel that they have not accomplish their dreams, and starts to wander off in their careers and marriages. When a man hit their midlife stages they tend to dress young, maybe buy a toupee buy big flashing red cars, and start having affairs with women half their age. Middle age is the time when people should be a positive time of life and full of new possibilities. • Job changes • Fear of aging • Not satisfied to accomplish their dreams I would choose this topic in this article to write a research paper because it was very interesting....
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...Pension Crisis Solutions Crisis in Pension Systems. Many countries are experiencing the pension crisis which means that they don’t have enough money to pay future pensions for old people. This essay analyzing two possible solutions which can resolve pensions system problem. There are number of possible reasons of the pensions system’s problem. Firstly, earlier there can be noticed low birth rates in plenty of countries. As a result in present time the number of people of working age reduced which resulted into low tax revenues. In addition, it can be seen that people’s life expectancy increased and therefore there is higher proportion of elderly people comparing with a total population which can lead to the increased strain on pension funds. Another reason for poor performs of pension funds can be international financial crisis which has significantly resulted into uncertainty in stock market and it has led to the weakness of financial institution. One solution, which is common, is to increase retirement age of people. Public sector workers and people receiving state pensions must work longer. In order to receive their pension they should reach the statutory retirement age. For example, many European countries, including the UK and France, have increased retirement ages. Due to the fact that this solution delays the pension funding, it gives governments more time to adjust economic policies and hope the economy will be stronger in the future. As this solution produces considerable...
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...and most controversial theories of aging, views aging as a process of gradual withdrawal between society and the older adult. This mutual withdrawal or disengagement is a natural, acceptable, and universal process that accompanies growing old. It is applicable to elders in all cultures, although there might be variations. According to this theory, disengagement benefits both the older population and the social system. Gradual withdrawal from society and relationships preserves social equilibrium and promotes self-reflection for elders who are freed from societal roles. It furnishes an orderly means for the transfer of knowledge, capital, and power from the older generation to the young. It makes it possible for society to continue functioning after valuable older members die. Weakness: There is no base of evidence or research to support this theory. Additionally, many older people desire to remain occupied and involved with society. Imposed withdrawal from society may be harmful to elders and society alike. This theory has been largely discounted by gerontologists. Activity Theory The Activity Theory, developed by Havighurst and associates in 1953, asserts that remaining active and engaged with society is pivotal to satisfaction in old...
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...Every human goes through these stages throughout their life in which changes occur. -Infancy -Childhood -Adolescence -Adulthood -Elderly Infancy After around nine months inside the mother’s womb a child is born. During the infant stage the individual is extremely dependant, the adult would have to feed, nurture and look after the infant. Infancy occurs from birth to around two or three years old. Although every individual goes through the developments, they occur at different rates. The physical developments that occur in the first two years are rather dramatic. The infant’s weight will double from birth to five months, triples by twelve months and quadruples by the age of twenty four months. During this stage the individuals length does not change as rapidly as the infant’s length at birth is already 75% of what it will be at two years old. The head grows the fastest followed by the rest of the body downwards. The brain triples in weight and size by the age of three. During the first year the child masters a number of gross motor skills. One to two months old, the individual will hold up his head, four months may involve rolling from side to side. Between seven and nine months the child may sit up without assistance begin crawling and pulling himself up to standing. Around eleven to twelve months the infant will attempt walking. The social and emotional developments of infants are broken down in months. During the first few months infants learn to identify to...
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