DEVELOPMENT IN MIDDLE AGE

Human DevelopmentInformation Technology

College of Public and Community ServiceUniversity of Massachusetts at Boston

©2009 William Holmes

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PHYSICAL CHANGE IN MIDDLE AGE

• Basal Metabolism Rate (BMR) declines 8%

• Food consumption doesn’t adjust

• Exercise doesn’t adjust• Life style doesn’t adjust

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PHYSICAL CHANGE IN MIDDLE AGE

• Weight gain• Fat gain• Muscle loss• Neural loss• Perceptual decline• Organ reserve declines

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RISK FACTORS IN MIDDLE AGE

• Omega 6 fatty diets• More than light consumption

of alcohol• Sporadic or limited exercise• Stress• Limited relaxation• Social isolation

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SEX IN MIDDLE AGE: 1

• Declining libido• Declining potency• Declining hormones and

pheromones• Increased stress

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SEX IN MIDDLE AGE: 2

• Cumulative effects of alcohol

• Effects of life style• Effects of attention• Reactions to changes

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COGNITIVE CHANGE IN MIDDLE AGE

• Fluid intelligence declines (Horn)• Crystallized intelligence is stable

or increases• Varies by race and ethnicity• Varies by achievement area• Varies by study design• Speed of processing tends to

decline7

LEARNING IN MIDDLE AGE

• Affected by goals• Affected by motivation• Colored by speed of response• Affected by new learning• Affected by new job demands

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WORK ISSUES IN MIDDLE AGE

• Job advancement/blockage• Shifts in labor pool• Shifts in business production• Shifts in job skills• New business alternatives• Job security/uncertainty

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WORK CHALLENGES IN MIDDLE AGE: 1

• Career reassessment• Discriminatory

harassment• Discriminatory

unemployment• Dead end jobs

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WORK CHALLENGES IN MIDDLE AGE: 2

• Equal pay and promotion• Work-family conflict• Travel risks and demands• Structural unemployment• Cyclic unemployment

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MIDLIFE CRISIS

• Awareness of aging• Death of consociates• Changes in relationships• Reassessed career goals• Sense of datedness• Burnout

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ADAPTATION IN MIDDLE AGE: 1

• Selye, Stress Adaptation Syndrome– Bodies response to hormones released

during stress• Alarm reaction• Resistance• Exhaustion

– Need to use released hormones

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ADAPTATION IN MIDDLE AGE: 1• Cicchetti, Resilience Theory– Risk factors• Low intelligence• Family Abuse/Isolation• Family unemployment• Low education

–Protective factors• Personality optimism/adaptability• Family support/cohesion• External support

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MARRIAGE CHALLENGES IN MIDLIFE

• Midlife crisis and second childhood

• Empty Nest Syndrome• Recommitment• Living as a couple• Multigenerational families• Economic and social stress

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PREPARING FOR TRANSITION

• Death• Separation• Job loss• Retirement• New career• Recreation• Partnership

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