In Brief Show July/August 2003, Vol 34, No. 7 Print version: page 14 2 min read Comment: While many may suspect that people's personalities are fixed in childhood, new research suggests that most people's personalities evolve throughout their lives. Personality changes in men and women older than 30 were demonstrated in a study conducted at the University of California, Berkeley, and published recently in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (Vol. 84, No. 5). The researchers, who evaluated data from 132,515 adults, ages 21-60, looked at overall life span trends in the "Big Five" personality traits--conscientiousness, agreeableness, neuroticism, openness and extraversion. "One of the major theories of personality asserts that personality traits are largely set by genetics, and, by consequence, changes in personality traits should slow as other functions of maturation slow," says lead researcher and psychologist Sanjay Srivastava, PhD. "We set out to test that." What he and his team found contradicted long-held assumptions about when personalities are set. Conscientious-ness, a trait marked by organization and discipline, and linked to success at work and in relationships, was found to increase through the age ranges studied, with the most change occurring in a person's 20s. Agreeableness, a trait associated with being warm, generous and helpful, bucked the theory that personalities don't change after 30. On the contrary, people in the study showed the most change in agreeableness during their 30s and continued to improve through their 60s. This even happened among men, which debunks the concept of "grumpy old men," Srivastava says. "The levels of change in these two traits seem to model what would make sense with adult roles," Srivastava says. "Conscientiousness grows as people mature and become better at managing their jobs and relationships, and agreeableness changes most in your 30s when you're raising a family and need to be nurturing." Most of the observed personality changes were generally consistent across gender lines, except for neuroticism and extraversion, with young women scoring higher than young men. However, the gap between men and women diminished over time. "When people talk about the 'Big Five,' neuroticism is probably the biggest sex difference--it's something that's been demonstrated before," Srivastava says. The difference in neuroticism is only apparent in youth and young adulthood and narrows as people age, Srivastava says. Openness showed small declines in both men and women over time, a change that indicates less interest in forming new relationships, and may infer greater interest in spending time with a small group of well-known relatives and friends as people age, Srivastava says. The large data set--collected over the Internet--allowed for the traits to be studied across many age groups, Srivastava says. Future research on the same data set will look into personality differences across regions, climates and population densities. Psychologists Oliver P. John, PhD, and Samuel D. Gosling, PhD, and computer scientist Jeff Potter contributed to the research. --K. KERSTING Comment: Recommended textbook solutions
 Myers' Psychology for the AP Course3rd EditionC. Nathan DeWall, David G Myers 955 solutions A Concise Introduction to Logic13th EditionLori Watson, Patrick J. Hurley 1,967 solutions
Understanding Psychology, Student Edition1st EditionRichard A. Kasschau 820 solutions Psychology1st EditionHOUGHTON MIFFLIN HARCOURT 1,007 solutions Top-Dog The circumstance of moving from the top position in elementary school to the lowest position in middle or junior high school Menarche A girl's first menstruation, comes rather late in the puberty cycle. Normal if it occurs between age 9 and 15. Personality - Big 5 Factors (Costa & Mcrae) Openness Openness Imaginative or practical Conscientiousness Organized or disorganized Extraversion Sociable or retiring Agreeableness Softhearted or ruthless Neuroticism (emotional stability) Calm or
anxious Personality - Big 5 Factors (Costa & Mcrae) Older adults more conscientious and agreeable than middle-aged and younger adults. Transition into late adulthood was characterized by increases in impulse control, reliability, and conventionality. Perceived social support predicted increased conscientiousness in older adults. More depression in older adults was associated with higher neuroticism and lower extraversion and conscientiousness. Personality - Big 5 Factors (Costa & Mcrae) Some personality traits are associated with mortality rates: Higher score on Big Five = lower risk of earlier death from childhood through late adulthood. Personality - Big 5 Factors (Costa & Mcrae) Higher levels of conscientiousness, extraversion, and openness related to lower risk of earlier death Personality - Big 5 Factors (Costa & Mcrae) Higher level of conscientiousness predicted greater longevity in older adults. Narcissism Extreme selfishness, with a grandiose view of one's own talents and a craving for admiration, as characterizing a personality type. Self-centeredness arising from failure to distinguish the self from external objects, either in very young babies or as a feature of mental disorder. Amenorrhea Lack of menstruation in girls who have reached puberty Usually one of the four main characteristics of adolescent girls or women suffering from anorexia nervosa Corpus Callosum (brain) The Corpus Callosum is the part of the mind that allows communication between the two hemispheres of the brain. It is responsible for transmitting neural messages between both the right and left hemispheres. It consists of about 200 million axons that interconnect the two hemispheres. The primary function of the corpus callosum is to integrate motor, sensory, and cognitive performances between the cerebral cortex on one side of the brain to the same region on the other side. Cohorts A cohort is a group of people who are born at a similar point in history and share similar experiences as a result, such as living through a war or growing up in the same city around the same time. Cohort Effect In life-span developmental research, cohort effects are due to a person's time of birth, era, or generation, but not to actual age. A cohort's shared experiences may produce a range of differences among cohorts (e.g., people who were teens during the Great Depression are likely to differ from people who were teens during the booming 1990s in their educational opportunities and educational status, etc.) Age identity Questions such as, "To which age group do you belong?" and "How old do you feel?" reflect the concept of age identity. A consistent finding is that as adults become older their age identity is younger than their chronological age. A study found almost half of adults age 65-69 consider themselves middle-aged (younger than they are). British study revealed people over 50 years believe middle-age begins at 53. Amygdala and its functions
The amygdala is an almond-shaped section of nervous tissue located in the temporal (side) lobe of the brain. Amygdala is in the limbic system (seat of emotions and where rewards are experienced) that is responsible for emotions, survival instincts, and memory. However, this inclusion has been debated heavily, with evidence that the amygdalae function independently of the limbic system. There are two amygdalae per person normally, with one amygdala on each side of the brain. Cellular clock theory ... Leonard Hayflick (1977) Theory that cells can divide a maximum of 75 to 80 times and that as we age our cells become less capable of dividing. Based on this cell-division theory, Hayflick puts human life-span potential at 120-125 years of age. Last decade scientists are discovering why cells die. Each time a cell divides - telomeres (DNA sequences that cap chromosomes) become shorter. After 70-80 divisions telomeres aren't able to reproduce and they die. Erikson's Intimacy Intimacy is finding oneself while losing oneself in another person. Task to balance intimacy & independence in adulthood; need for sense of self AND close relationships. Intimacy = close familiarity & closeness Egocentrism The heightened self-consciousness of adolescents. They show a sense of invincibility or invulnerability. This can lead adolescents to believe they themselves are invulnerable to dangers and catastrophes that happen to other people. This can result in engaging in risky behaviors (drugs, suicide, unprotected sex, drag racing, etc.) David Elkind (1976), two key components (egocentrism) Imaginary audience and personal fable Imaginary Audience Misguided belief that others are as interested in them as they themselves are. "On stage" can be both attention seeking (attention-getting behavior), as well as anxiety producing (boy who thinks all eyes are on his pimply face). Personal fable A sense of uniqueness and invincibility (or invulnerability). They believe no one else can understand them and how they really feel. Adolescents can believe they won't get hurt, or "it" won't happen to them - so they engage in risky behaviors (drag racing, drifting, drinking, sex, etc.) Facebook / Social Media is only INCREASING self-interest Temperament An individual's behavioral style and characteristic way of responding emotionally (i.e., Does it take much to get you angry, or make you sad? One person is happy all the time while another is typically unhappy., etc.) Temperament refers to individual differences in how quickly the emotion is showing, how strong it is, how long it lasts, and how quickly it fades. Important to not classify a child or pigeonhole them with one temperament. It is best to think of a child as having multiple dimensions Chess and Thomas' Classifications (temperament) Easy child (40%): generally positive mood, quickly establishes regular routines in infancy and adapts easily to new experiences Difficult child (10%): Reacts negatively, cries frequently, engages in irregular daily routines, slow to accept change Slow-to-warm-up child (15%): Low acitvity level, somewhat negative, displays a low intensity of mood. 35% No classification Kagan's Concepts (temperament) Differences between shy, subdued, timid children and sociable, extraverted, bold children Rothbart and Bates' Effortful control (Self-Regulation) Self-regulation is an important component to temperament. High effortful control in children indicate ability to maintain self-regulation and better temperament. Low effortful control indicates inability to maintain self-regulation and more irritability Temperament is formed from biological, gender, and culture Physiological differences linked with different temperaments HIgh and stable heart rate, high levels of hormone cortisol, and high activity in right frontal lobe may be tied to excitability of the amygdala (fear and inhibition). Heredity also plays some influence on differences in temperament. Gender and Culture because of how parents and others in the culture react to the child (i.e., mothers more responsive to irritable girls than boys), an active temperament is valued in some cultures and not others. Goodness of Fit refers to the match between a child's temperament and the environmental demands the child must cope with. Example of poor goodness of fit - An active child who is made to sit still for long periods, and a slow to warm up child is constantly pushed into new situations. Decreases in infant's negative emotionality linked to higher levels of parental sensitivity, involvement and responsivity. More involved and responsive parents = lower negative emotionality Lack of fit can produce adjustment problems. Three strategies for temperament-sensitive parenting: Attention to and respect for individuality - what works for one kid won't necessarily work for another. Be flexible. Structuring the child's environment - What environment best fits your child and how can you slowly change the environment to help your child, if necessary. Avoid applying negative labels to the child - Acknowledge some kids are harder to parent, however, don't label a child as "difficult" to reduce the label becoming self-fullling. Cognitive flexibility Cognitive flexibility is the human ability to adapt the cognitive processing strategies to face new and unexpected conditions in the environment (Cañas, Quesada, Antolí and Fajardo, 2003). Puberty p. 250-252 A brain-neuroendocrine process occurring primarily in early adolescence that provides stimulation for the rapid physical changes that occur in this period of development. Puberty is NOT the same as adolescence - puberty ends long before adolescence and is a marker of the beginning of adolescence. puberty It is not a single sudden event - most notable elements are the signs of sexual maturation and increases in height and weight puberty (males) Males (Begin between 10-13.5 and end between 13-17) Develop in this order: increase in penis and testicle size, appearance of straight pubic hair, minor voice change, first ejaculation, appearance of kinky pubic hair, onset of maximum growth in height and weight, hair in armpits puberty (females) Females (Begin between 9-13 and end 11-17) Either breasts enlargement or pubic hair appearance first. Later, armpit hair, height changes, and wider hips. Menarche comes later in the cycle. puberty Girls outweigh boys at the beginning, but it flips by end of puberty. Same thing typically happens on height. puberty US children mature up to a year earlier than European, Urban chinese develop earlier than rural Hormones Hormones are powerful chemical substances secreted by the endocrine glands and carried through the body by the bloodstream. The endocrine system's role is to control eating, growth, and regulates other glands (gonads - testes in males and ovaries in females). Concentrations of hormones increase dramatically during adolescence: Testosterone for boys height increase and voice change Estradiol, or a type of estrogen for girls breast size increase, uterine, and skeletal development hormones Hormonal effects do not by themselves do not account for adolescent psychological development (social factors account for 2-4x as much variance) hormones Behavior and moods can affect hormones (stress, eating patterns, sex, tension, depression) Menopause (hormones) Late 40s/early 50s a woman's menstrual period ceases completely, estrogen declines dramatically, but Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) augments declining hormone levels by ovaries. Middle-aged men (hormones) During middle adulthood, most men experience a modest decline in sexual hormone level and activity (50s and 60s), but nothing like what women go through in estrogen drop. Testosterone production shows a slow decline. Testosterone declines can reduce sex drive, and can lead to erectile dysfunctions (ED) and can be addressed through drug treatment (Viagra, Levitra, Cialis - 60-85% success range). Along with Viagra, identify at least 2 other common medications that are used in treating erectile dysfunction Viagra Metabolic syndrome Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of conditions — increased blood pressure, high blood sugar, excess body fat around the waist, and abnormal cholesterol or triglyceride levels — that occur together, increasing your risk of heart disease, stroke and diabetes. Metabolic syndrome is closely linked to overweight or obesity and inactivity. Having just one of these conditions doesn't mean you have metabolic syndrome. However, any of these conditions increase your risk of serious disease. Having more than one of these might increase your risk even more. If you have metabolic syndrome or any of its components, aggressive lifestyle changes can delay or even prevent the development of serious health problems. Your risk of metabolic syndrome increases with age. Stability The debate about the degree to which early traits and characteristics persist through life, or change. Those who emphasize stability argue stability is the result of heredity and possibly early experiences in life. For example, if shy throughout life, this stability is due to heredity and possibly early experiences in which the infant or young child encountered considerable stress when interacting with people. Unless infants experience warm, nurturant caregiving in first year or so their development will never be optimal. Psychosocial Moratorium During a psychosocial moratorium, a person has the opportunity to try on multiple identities and/or roles before firmly committing to one. They also finalize their sense of ethics and morals in this stage. Psychosocial Moratorium This is Erikson's term for the gap between childhood security and adult autonomy (intended for it to be the final stage of identity development, which takes place in late adolescence.) Psychosocial Moratorium During this period, society leaves adolescents free of responsibilities and able to try out different identities. Adolescents eventually discard undesirable roles. Commitment with regards to Identity Commitment is James Marcia's term for the part of identity development in which adolescents show a personal investment in forming an identity, through all of the negations and affirmations of various roles and faces. Plays out in four statuses of identity, according to Marcia (Identity Diffusion to Identity Foreclosure to Identity Moratorium to Identity Achievement) Developmental Crisis What is important about identity development in adolescence, especially late adolescence is that for the first time, physical, cognitive, and socio-emotional development advance to the point at which the individual can begin to sort through and synthesize childhood identities and identifications to construct a viable path toward adult maturity. Define crisis as it relates to identity development According to James Marcia, a crisis is the term for a period of identity development during which the adolescent is exploring alternatives. Identity foreclosure and parenting - Know about identity foreclosure and how it relates to parenting adolescents Identity foreclosure is the status of individuals who have made a commitment but have not experienced a crisis. This occurs most often when parents hand down commitments to their adolescents, usually in an authoritarian way, before adolescents have had a chance to explore different approaches, ideologies, and vocations on their own. Identify the age range of emerging adulthood 18-25 years Adaptively integrating emotional experiences into enjoyable relationships with others on a daily basis. Forming new attachments (which give you corrective emotional experiences) or receiving interpersonal feedback from longstanding attachments Benefits of a good marriage Tend to live longer, healthier lives Positive effect on lifespan Less likely to feel physical and emotional stress (heart disease, high blood pressure, anxiety, depression, substance abuse) Affectionate love vs. Companionate Love vs. Passionate Love Romantic Romantic Passionate love (eros) Affectionate love (love is more than just passion) Companionate love Common myths about gay and lesbian couples (p. 325-326) Stereotype - one partner is masculine and one is feminine :: Truth - masculine/feminine roles are relatively uncommon Common myths about gay and lesbian couples (p. 325-326) Stereotype - gay males have large number of sexual partners :: Truth - only a small segment of the gay male population has a large number of sexual partners
Common myths about gay and lesbian couples (p. 325-326) Stereotype - short flings :: Truth - gay/lesbian couples prefer long-term, committed relationships Half of committed gay couples do have an open relationship that allows sex (but not affectionate love) outside of relationship; lesbian couples generally do not have this open relationship Common myths about gay and lesbian couples (p. 325-326) Many individuals in same-sex relationships see stigma as bringing them closer together and strengthening relationship Weight set point The set point theory believes that a person's body will fight to maintain that particular weight range. Ultimately the set point is the weight range in which your particular body is programmed to function at its best. Every person, male or female, has a set point, and just as we do not have control over our eye color, hair color or height, we have no control over our set point. The body itself is genetically determined to weight in a certain weight range. Anorexia and control Relentless pursuit of thinness through starvation - controls eating by restriction Anorexia and control 10 times more likely in girls than boys Anorexia treatment Family involvement and therapy is the best mode of treatment Bicultural identity Ethnic identity is an enduring aspect of the self that includes a sense of membership in an ethnic group, along with attitudes and feelings related to that membership. Most adolescents from ethnic minorities develop a bicultural identity, or when they identify in some ways with their ethnic group and in other ways with the majority culture. Adolescence is the first time they confront their ethnicity. Know why people tend to decrease in height as they get older Decrease in height is due to bone loss in the vertebrae. On avg., men 30-50 yrs. of age lose about a half-inch in height, and another ¾ inch from 50-70 yrs of age. On avg, women can lose 2-inches from age 25-75 yrs age passion refers to physical and sexual attraction in Sternberg's triarchic theory of love. Which adolescent group is most likely to be dissatisfied with body image as pubertal change continues? Girls are less happy with their bodies and have more negative body images than boys throughout puberty (p. 252) Both boys and girls body images become more positive as they move from the beginning to end of puberty (p. 252) Know about the formal operational stage as it relates to the adolescent's verbal problem-solving ability (p. 264) Formal operations → more abstract thought and no longer limited to actual, concrete experiences; can conjure up make-believe situations, abstract propositions, and hypothetical events to reason logically about them Increased tendency to think about thoughts Think more like scientists: devise plans to solve problems and systematically test solutions Hypothetical-deductive reasoning (formal operational stage): creating a hypothesis and deducing its implications, which provides ways to test the hypothesis common developmental tasks during adolescence Main developmental task: identity formation (Note: identity formation is a lifelong process that doesn't begin or end during this phase; just development has gotten to a point that the child can actively explore) common developmental tasks during adolescence Physical, cognitive, and socioemotional development advance to a point in which the child can begin to sort through and synthesize childhood identities and identifications to construct a viable path to adult maturity Erikson's fifth developmental stage: identity vs. role confusion ( common developmental tasks during adolescence) Adolescents are faced with deciding who they are, what they are all about, and where they are going in life Search for identity is aided by psychosocial moratorium: gap between childhood security and adult autonomy Marcia's 4 statuses of identity Crisis period of identity development during which the individual is exploring alternatives Many researchers use "exploration" rather than crisis Commitment personal achievement in identity Four statuses: identity diffusion Identity diffusion: not yet experienced a crisis or made any commitments; undecided about occupational and ideological choices and unlikely to show interest in such matters Identity foreclosure: made a commitment but yet to have experience a crisis; most often occurs when parents hand down commitments to children (think authoritarian way) before child has a chance to explore different choices Identity moratorium: midst of a crisis but have absent or ill-defined commitments Identity achievement: undergone a crisis and made a commitment Push for autonomy ... Friendships: prefer to have a smaller number of friendships that are more intense and intimate than those of younger children Developmental changes in dating and romantic relationships: Enters romantic attractions and affiliations at age 11-13 Intensely interested in romance and talks about it frequently with same-sex friends; crushes; dating generally occurs in a group setting Developmental changes in dating and romantic relationships: Exploring romantic relationships age 14-16 Two types of romantic involvements have occurred: Casual dating emerges between those that are mutually attracted short-lived relationships Dating in groups; reflects the importance of peers in adolescent's lives Developmental changes in dating and romantic relationships: Consolidating dyadic romantic bonds at 17-19 More serious dating relationships develop strong emotional bonds resembling adult relationships more stable bonds that typically last a year or more
Be familiar with mental health issues regarding the aging population and their families ... Compare and contrast the developmental theories between Freud, Erikson, & Piaget ... Freud's Psychosexual Theory Erikson's Psychosocial Theory Piaget Theory of Development Dementia: global term for any neurological disorder in which primary symptoms are deterioration of mental functioning Lose ability to care for the self May become unable to recognize familiar surroundings and people (including family members) Broad category Alzheimer's Disease: progressive, irreversible brain disorder characterized by gradual deterioration of memory, reasoning, language, and eventually, physical function Estimated 5.4 million adults have it Women more likely to develop because they live longer Discuss 3 things you learned in class, 2 things that surprised you or confused you, 1 remaining question you still have, and 1 thing you would change about the class going forward ... Identify some developmental issues or tasks if given a clinical case study of a new client. ... What Big 5 personality trait increases with age?Agreeableness demonstrated a fairly linear increase with age whereas the pattern for Conscientiousness was curvilinear: scores increased up to a peak somewhere between the ages of 50 to 70 and then declined. Average levels of Neuroticism generally declined with age but increased slightly starting around age 80.
Which of the Big 5 personality traits tends to increase all the way through late adulthood?-the transition into late adulthood was characterized by increases in the following aspects of conscientiousness: impulse control, reliability, and conventionality.
What are the big five personality factors that influence mortality of older adults?Most investigations of the Big Five personality traits (i.e., Neuroticism, Extraversion, Openness to experience, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness) focus on Conscientiousness, which reflects the propensity to be goal-directed, responsible, and in control of impulses, because of the consistent finding that higher levels ...
Do the Big Five personality traits change across adulthood?As in the cross-sectional studies, significant mean-level change in all trait domains was found at some point in the life course, and statistically significant change was found in 75% of personality traits in middle age (40–60) and old age (60+). Clearly, personality traits continue to develop in adulthood.
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