HUMDEV - Early to Middle Adulthood

• Emerging Adulthood

  • period of transition between adolescence and adulthood
• Early Adulthood

  • 20s to 30s
  • Highlights: marriage, childbearing
• 5 Characteristics of Emerging Adulthood

  • Identity exploration - figuring one's self out
  • Instability - brought about by identity exploration
  • Feeling in between - adult, but not quite (still dependent on parents)
  • Self-focus - free from the structure of school, parents, home, etc.
  • Possibilities - a time of possibility; outlook on life is very optimistic
• Physical development (Early Adulthood)

  • peaks at 19 to 26 years old
• Biological Aging

  • determined by genetics, environment, events causing stress, etc.
  • when you get older, you biologically age (gradually deteriorating: brought about by genetics development, time of traumatic events, stress)
  • peak: young 20s
  • biological changes are gradual
  • many of the changes occur/most noticeable during middle adulthood
• Health and wellness (EA)

  • may vary per country/culture
  • ex. homicide is prevalent in the US due to lenient gun control
• Eating and Weight (EA)

  • obesity
  • can be managed by: regular exercise, planing meals, weighing
• Substance Abuse (EA)

  • men are most likely to abuse substances
  • alcohol is the most common due to its accessibility
• Sexuality (EA)

  • sexual activity further increases in adulthood
  • may exhibit in earlier or later stages
  • depends on the culture (conservative/progressive)
• Cognitive development (EA)

  • qualitatively: similar to adolescence
  • quantitatively: increases due to more experience
  • in formal operational stage
• Changes in Structure of Thought: Postformal thought (EA)

  • experiences and effort combine for more rational, flexible, and practical thinking
  • personal effort + social experience
• Changes in Structure of Thought: Perry's Epistemic Cognition (EA)

  • Dualism - knowledge as separate units to be weighted; black & white thinking = there is no in between (good or bad)
  • Relativism - all knowledge is a framework of thought; nothing is 100% right/wrong; considers other perspectives; flexible thinking; accepts other opinions
  • Commitment (to relativism) - formulating rational criteria for judgement; based on personal belief; committing one's thinking considering the situation; go beyond your thinking; weighing options
• Changes in Structure of Thought: Labouvie-Vief's Theory (EA)

  • hypothetical thought leads to Pragmatic thought
  • Pragmatic thought: using logic to solve real-world problems; accepts contradiction, imperfection, and compromise
  • Cognitive-Affective Complexity - integrate emotion with cognition; awareness of conflicting emotions (anxious and fantastic at the same time)
• Expertise (EA)

  • experts remember and reason more quickly and effectively
  • expertise at an occupation
  • adults are still choosing their expertise at this point
• Creativity (EA)

  • requires expertise and a move from 'problem solving' to 'problem finding'
  • depends on person
  • more artistic people have their creativities achieved earlier compared to people like science-oriented ones
• College Experience (EA)

  • in some countries, college years are shorter (SLP in Belgium is 2-3 yrs only)
  • K-12 - should be employable; some occupations require a longer education and knowledge base
  • post-secondary education brings about a lot of things
• Developmental impact (EA)

  • Better reasoning - with college experience, acquire more experience that allow you to better reason
  • broaden attitudes and values with this exposure
  • Affected by:
  • academic explorations
  • extracurricular activities
  • interacting with diverse peers
• Selecting a vocation (EA)

  • changing professions at a young age - may change due to financial nature; start to consider interests; become more practical
• Factors Influencing Vocational Choice: Personality

  • Investigative: sciences; scientific occupation (physicist/engineer)
• Factors Influencing Vocational Choice: Personality

  • Social: human services; counseling, social work, teaching
• Factors Influencing Vocational Choice: Personality

  • Realistic: mechanical occupation; construction, plumbing
• Factors Influencing Vocational Choice: Personality

  • Artistic: writing, music, visual arts
• Factors Influencing Vocational Choice: Personality

  • Conventional: well-structures tasks and values material possessions and social status
• Factors Influencing Vocational Choice: Personality

  • Enterprising: sales and supervisory (sales/politics)
• Factors Influencing Vocational Choice: Family

  • having family business, work, or empires passed down to you
• Factors Influencing Vocational Choice: Teachers

  • during high school or college days most prominent
• Factors Influencing Vocational Choice: Gender Stereotypes

  • gender-led professions
  • nursing: female
  • engineering: male
• Work (EA)

  • provides financial support, something that can define you
  • Work during college: working while studying
  • Unemployment: can be emotionally distressing; influence relationships with other people
  • Dual-earner couples: dual-income
• Socioemotional Development: Erikson's Psychosocial Development (EA)

  • Intimacy vs. Isolation
  • intimate relationships, sexual intimacy, marriage
  • intimacy without fear of losing yourself
  • you explore to find your identity
  • identity is important in forming intimacy
• Socioemotional Development: Erikson's Psychosocial Development (EA)

  • Secure identity - leads to fidelity and love
  • Intimacy - good friendship and work time
  • brought about by preceding successful resolutions
• Stability and Change from Childhood to Adulthood: Temperament

  • Easy children = well-adjusted adults
  • Difficult children = not well-adjusted adults
• Stability and Change from Childhood to Adulthood: Temperament

  • Inhibited - less likely to be assertive/experience social support, more likely to delay entering a stable job; withdraw in trying new things and new environment
  • Disinhibited - career stability in middle adulthood; self-efficacy
• Stability and Change from Childhood to Adulthood: Temperament

  • Emotional control
  • Good control of emotions: resilient; good emotion regulation as an adult
  • Low emotional control: depression; likely to commit crime
• Stability and Change from Childhood to Adulthood: Temperament

  • Context
  • there can still be changes depending on context (parenting, physical environment, peers, schools)
  • they can change depending on intervening contexts
• Attachment (EA)

  • influence relationships that the individual may have
  • attachment styles can bring about these things (not true all the time)
  • the way you attach yourself to someone may be affected by succeeding or previous engagements and relationships
• Attachment (EA)

  • Secure attachment: easy to get close to others, comfortable with others getting dependent
• Attachment (EA)

  • Avoidant attachment: somewhat comfortable being close to others but does not trust completely
• Attachment (EA)

  • Anxious attachment: others are reluctant to get close, and worries about getting close with others/partner because it may scare them away
• Attraction (EA)

  • can be physical, familiarity, same interests
• Familiarity and Similarity (EA)

  • Familiarity: important factor in close relationships
  • opposites attract