Bee & Boyd, Lifespan Development, Chapter 14

Editor's Notes

• #5: Psychological conflict of early adulthood
• #6: See Figure 14.1 on page 381. Each period of life presents adults with new developmental challenges As adults enter a period in which a new life structure is required, there is a period of adjustment called the novice phase. In the mid-era phase, adults become more competent at meeting the new challenges through reassessment and reorganization of the life structure they created in the novice phase. Stability returns in the culmination phase, when adults have succeeded in creating a life structure that allows them to manage the demands of the new developmental challenges with more confidence. Life Structures: all roles and relationships individual occupies-- and conflicts and balance that exist among them Regards formation of intimate relationship with another adult as central developmental task of early adulthood Cycle through periods of stability and instability Structures: novice, mid-era, culmination
• #8: New stage proposed by Arnett Covers ages 17-22 Must address tasks such as academic, friendship, conduct, work and romance Push limits with family Experiment with adult options and multiple tasks Parts of brain governing impulse control, decision-making not yet fully mature
• #9: New stage proposed by Arnett Covers ages 17-22 Must address tasks such as academic, friendship, conduct, work and romance Push limits with family Experiment with adult options and multiple tasks Parts of brain governing impulse control, decision-making not yet fully mature
• #10: Overview Focus on survival value Mating a selective process to ensure survival of the species Cross-cultural research findings Men prefer physically attractive, younger women Men lower their standards on the basis of availability Women prefer men whose socio-economic status is higher than their own, and who offer earning potential and stability
• #11: While this talks about minimum investments, both men and women realize it takes a large investment to raise a child. Therefore, men look for younger women and women look for an economic provider. Men value health and availability in mates Men less selective because of minimum physical investment in conceiving or bearing offspring Women’s investment starts with a 9 month commitment and giving birth Men seek to maximize the number of their offspring while women seek to minimize the number of their offspring
• #12: People are drawn by similarities in age, education, social class, ethnic group, religion, attitudes, interests, and temperament. High-income earning women select high-income earning males to provide economic support while they raise children and take a break from their careers Homogamy or assortive mating People are drawn to similar others
• #13: Average age of marriage in 1970: 21 for males and females Average age of marriage in early 21st century: 27 for males and 25 for females Unmarried couples – 89% are opposite-sex partners and 11% are same sex partners. In 2002, 8 in every 1000 adults married; 4 in every 1000 divorced. This reflects a cohort effect.
• #15: Parental attachment relationship contributes to the construction of an internal model of intimate relationships that children bring with them into marriage. Values Personality characteristics of the partners High degree of neuroticism in one or both partners leads to dissatisfaction Attitudes towards divorce Couples unopposed to divorce report more dissatisfaction with marriage The security of each partner’s attachment to his or her family of origin Once the marriage takes place, spouses must let go of their family of origin in order to build their new family unit. Arguments about in-laws is exceeded only by the frequency of disagreements about financial matters.
• #16: Percent of respondents saying each component is very important for a successful marriage
• #17: See Figure 14.2 Women may be more psychologically sensitive to relationship negativity than men. Women’s physiological responses to marital quality are important determinants of relationship quality. Higher-cortisol wives are more likely to divorce.
• #18: See Figure 14.2 Robert Sternberg proposes 3 key components of love Intimacy – feelings that promote closeness and connectedness Passion – feeling of intense longing for union with the other person, including sexual union Commitment to a particular other – over a long period of time
• #19: Sternberg’s theory postulates three components of love Relationships can be classified according to which of three components is present
• #20: Validating couples Have disagreements but rarely let them escalate Partners express mutual respect and listen to each other Volatile couples Squabble a lot, don’t listen BUT More positive than negative with high levels of laughter and affection Avoidant couples Conflict minimizers; agree to disagree - devitalizing
• #21: Couples likely to divorce: Hostile/engaged – frequent hot arguments with no balancing forces Hostile/detached – fight regularly, rarely look at each other, lack affection and support
• #22: Divorce associated with increased physical and emotional illness—higher rates of: Automobile accidents Suicide Lost days from work Depression Often, divorce accompanies serious economic hardships, especially for women Divorced men improve their economic base Divorced women have 40 - 50% decline in income; hardest on working-class women with low levels of education Disruption of sequence and timing of family roles Remarriage expands the number of years of childbearing for many divorced women
• #23: Differences in cohabited couples include: Race, religious beliefs, educational levels, socioeconomic status. On average, those cohabiting before marriage are: Less satisfied with their marriages More likely to divorce Two types of cohabiting couples Couples who are fully committed to a future marriage Couples in which the relationship between partners is ambiguous
• #24: Married women whose premarital cohabitation and sexual experiences were limited to a future husband are no more likely to divorce than women who didn’t cohabit
• #25: 600,000 U.S. households headed by partners of same sex
• #26: More dependent on each other for social support May be isolated from original family Build families of choice – a stable partner and a circle of close friends for support Power and tasks are equally divided by the couple More true of lesbians than of gay couples Lesbians insist on sexual exclusivity whereas gay men regard sexual fidelity as negotiable in most couples Expectations for monogamy among lesbian females is more like that of heterosexuals Gay males do not require sexual fidelity as often Males require sex more frequently (evolutionary perspective)
• #27: Many adults single by preference Associated with greater autonomy and capacity for personal growth Many adults participate in intimate relationships that do not involve cohabiting or marriage—”partnered” Close relationships with families of origin likely to be a source of support Close friends play prominent role in social networks 58% or adults between 20-34 never married; two-third married by mid 40s Choosing and affirming singlehood helps protect singles from the negative health consequences associated with singlehood.
• #30: Delayed marriage Majority believe best environment for raising children is within marriage
• #31: Even emotionally healthy mothers must adapt to parenthood New parents may argue about care-taking duties Many are sleep-deprived Less times for conversations, sex, simple affection or routine chores Extended families and cultural rituals may ease the transition.
• #32: 10 – 25% of new mothers Feelings of profound sadness for several weeks after birth More likely in women who produce large amounts of steroid hormones late in pregnancy More likely in unplanned pregnancies Presence of major life stressors increases the risk Depression during pregnancy is best predictor
• #33: See Figure 14.3 Sensation-seeking and risky behaviors decline. Marital satisfaction tends to decline and remain low until the last child leaves home
• #34: This pattern of change in marital satisfaction over the stages of the family life cycle is one of the best documented findings in family sociology research.
• #35: Women are more likely to have full-time continuous careers (but not necessarily advance more)
• #36: See Figure 14.4 Culture influences involvement with parents. Hispanic young adults value family ties. African Americans value family connections highly Young adults are less likely to marry Live in multi-generational households Report higher levels of warmth with parents than Whites Japanese are more connected to parents of origin than are Australian or Canadian young adults.
• #38: May have more friends as young adults than later in life
• #39: Women have more close friends More intimate More self-disclosure More exchange of emotional support Women often the “kinkeeper”, correspondence, family news Young men remain competitive with friends Do things together
• #40: Families who have high career aspirations for their children produce young adults who are intrinsically motivated as employees. Family and educational influences Choose occupations in the same social class as parents Educational goals influence choice Families influence choice through value systems Valuing academic and professional achievement influences professional-level job choices Achievement in working class families is associated with moving into middle class jobs Parental moral beliefs influence young adults’ willingness to enter various occupations.
• #41: Sex-role definitions still designate some jobs as “women’s jobs” and “men’s jobs” Male jobs are more varied, technical, and higher in status and income Female jobs are concentrated in the service industry, and offer lower status and pay 1/3 of women hold clerical jobs 1/4 of women are in health care, teaching, or domestic service
• #42: See Table 14.1 6 basic personality types Each of us tend to choose and be most successful at an occupation that matches our personality See Table 14.1 for summary of Holland’s Personality Types and Work Preference
• #43: Growth stage—learn about one’s abilities Exploratory stage—decide on job or career Establishment stage—early steps on the career ladder Maintenance stage—ends at retirement but may need to learn new skills on the job
• #44: At its lowest at mid-career; usually toward end of early adulthood period
• #45: Importance of work-life balance Involves innovations in how work is structured Telecommuting—connect to workplace through telephone, computer, fax Flextime schedules Job sharing On-site childcare
• #46: Women’s work satisfaction goes up with age Most women move into and out of the labor market at least once during adulthood Bearing and rearing children is a key However, most mothers also have work force jobs Our culture thinks of a man as simultaneously a worker, a parent, and a spouse but has difficulty seeing a woman as all three