BESC1120 Study Guide - Final Guide: Vaginal Lubrication, Coronary Artery Disease, Suicide Methods
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EXAM NOTES - Developmental Psychology
Late Adulthood:
Lecture 11:
Chapter 16: Physical and cognitive development in late adulthood:
How many people are we talking about?
- Max lifespan is aprox 120 years
- Increased life expectancy means more people are approaching that limit
- Adults over 65 years of age – make up 13% of population (2004) increasing to 27% by 2051
- Gender and mortality – number 1 for both (heart diseases/attack), stroke in top 3 for both,
tranchea and lung cancer in top 5, Breast cancer / prostate cancer top 5
- Men have higher rates of mortality from most of the leading causes of death, but women and men
die from largely the same causes
- Aboriginal Australians – life expectancy short by 11.5 years for males, 9.7 for females
- Adults over 65yrs = 3% of population^^
Ageing and ageism:
Ageism: treatment, stereotyping, discrimination
Systemic stereotyping of and discrimination against people because of their age (common for old
people)
May impact on treatment recommendations and expected outcomes
Cultural
Slow, feeble, grey-haired, cranky, repetitive, sweet, caring, pleasant, storytellers
Impacts on how older people are perceived and treated in variety of everyday contexts – like
workplace, criminal justice system, health care
Physical Development
Older adults experience range of changes in physical development
Including physical functioning (skin, bone, muscle), cardiovascular, respiratory and sensory systems
and sexual functioning
Also a time when many experience chronic health conditions
And some suffer from mental health issues
Physical functioning in late adulthood:
time of loss in efficiency of body systems
also a time of compensation
most significant age related changes are diminished – started earlier
ageing process does not only result in a loss of functioning
body is an organism that repairs and restores itself as damage occurs
in different cases, regeneration, compensation, growth due to the plasticity of the system can occur
not possible for the body to prevent eventual death, but possible to work towards enhancing life
Slowing with age:
behaviour slows with age
slowing occurs as a result of primary ageing in the central and peripheral nervous system
CNS (brain and spinal cord) PNS (sensory receptors and nerves that transmit things to the CNS)
Slowing in the CNS more than PNS
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Physical fitness serves to minimise age differences in speed
Skin, bone and muscle changes:
Most noticeable changes occur to skin
Ageing skin becomes more wrinkled, dry, sagging, less regular pigmentation
Especially on face, hands, neck (which are exposed to sun and wind)
Very old skin likely to bruise more easily, heal slower and more injuries to it
Several age-related changes cause wrinkling, thinning of the skin, changes in blood vessels that
impede circulation to skins surface, loss of skeletal and muscle mass, loss of fat below skin surface
Age related decrease of melanocytes (which give skin its colour) cause pigmentation changes – skin
more pale, irregular pigment deposits- age spots
Demineralisation- lighter bone mass in older adults
Bone becomes more porous and brittle as supporting bone matrix breaks down, minerals such as
calcium are lost at a faster rate than they are replaced
This is called osteoporosis
Bone loss of about 0.5% per year
Women experience greater gradual bone loss because bones contain less calcium
Rate of bone loss accelerates after menopause for women bc of the reduction in oestrogen
Calcium rich diet, weight bearng exercise – can help prevent this
Puts old people at risk of vertebral wrist and hip fractures
Smoking increases bone loss
Progressive loss of muscle strength and speed is part of ageing – reduce muscle mass and increase
fat
Cardiovascular system changes:
Heart is a muscle too
Like all muscles it changes with age
Begins in early adulthood and continues
With increasing age, muscle cells of heart contract at slower rate and respond less well to
pacemaker cells that synchronise the contractions
Fewer muscle fibres, more fat and connective tissue heart
Eject a lower volume of blood
Left ventricle becomes weaker and less expandable
Reduced maximum cardiac output (volume of blood pumped every min) and aerobic power
(oxygen carried by blood)
Good nutrition and aerobic exercise can minimise these changes
Respiratory system changes:
Less efficient as a function of age
Some changes due to primary ageing, some secondary
Nutrition, smoking habits, exercise patterns, sleep related disorders all effect this system
Bc brain cell functioning relies on oxygen and nutrients, decreased efficiency of heart and lungs
increases risk of stroke or loss of brain functions
May have difficulty breathing or become fatigued
Hair like structures in the air passages become fewer in number, less effective in removing foreign
particles
Declining muscle strength makes coughing less efficient
These changes make older people more susceptible to chronic bronchitis, emphysema, pneumonia
Rate of ageing of this system strongly influenced by lifestyle factors
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Chapter 16: physical and cognitive development in late adulthood: Gender and mortality number 1 for both (heart diseases/attack), stroke in top 3 for both, Increased life expectancy means more people are approaching that limit. Adults over 65 years of age make up 13% of population (2004) increasing to 27% by 2051 tranchea and lung cancer in top 5, breast cancer / prostate cancer top 5. Men have higher rates of mortality from most of the leading causes of death, but women and men die from largely the same causes. Aboriginal australians life expectancy short by 11. 5 years for males, 9. 7 for females. Systemic stereotyping of and discrimination against people because of their age (common for old people) May impact on treatment recommendations and expected outcomes. Slow, feeble, grey-haired, cranky, repetitive, sweet, caring, pleasant, storytellers. Impacts on how older people are perceived and treated in variety of everyday contexts like workplace, criminal justice system, health care.
