PSY 3123 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Baby Boom, Menopause, Midlife Crisis
28 Apr 2018
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February 14, 2018
The Middle Years of the Family and the Not-So-Empty
Nest
The Canadian Midlife
Current midlife generation: baby boomers (born 1940s to 1960s)
-45-64 years in age
-At nearly 4.39 million, outnumber those in 15-24 age group (4.37 million)
Median age of Canadian population is 39.9 years
-Expected to rise to 44 as baby boomers age
Baby boom cohort has a profound effect on Canadian society
-Never before have so many been close to retirement
-Expected to place extreme stress on resources (ex. Retirement home, healthcare, etc.) as this generation ages
The Parent Generation at Midlife
Middle years have now joined child-rearing as the longest stages in life
Midlife group is diverse - hard to make generalizations that cover the entire group
-Includes first-time parents as well as great-grandparents
-Some begin midlife at peak of careers or nearing retirement
These years of the family life cycle are transitional
-Period often marks splitting of one family into two or more as children leave families of origin and form their own
nuclear families of procreation
-Midlife occurs when children are transitioning to independence and parents are near retirement
Empty nest syndrome: homemaker mothers are sometimes described as suffering the empty nest syndrome,
depression, and a sense of uselessness when the last child leaves home
-In fact, empty nest often brings couple increased happiness and marital satisfaction - more time and energy to
focus on the relationship
During midlife, individuals typically consider whether their lives (especially work and family lives) have been fulfilling
-Erikson stated that the key issue in middle age is generativity (focus on one’s legacy) - manifested by having
children and passing on something of value to younger generations
•Can also take on other forms (ex. Mentoring a relative or anything young person, creation of artistic works,
bettering the community through advocacy or involvement in service organizations)
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February 14, 2018
-Family leisure time is often used to teach young people skills and knowledge, as well as transmit family history and
values
Middle-aged people experience sense of confidence and competence - particularly in their jobs
Growing sense of mortality
-Death of parents and people their own age
-Shift to becoming grandparents
-Physical aging: in spite of minor complaints, most feel vigorous
•Women do not regard menopause as a major crisis
•Both sexes more likely to worry about health than physical appearance, especially when over 50
At midlife, many individuals want something different from life
-Experience both a push towards excitement and a pull towards security
•Women hoping to return to a career they had before children may experience problems because of “mommy
track”
-A sizeable minority of middle-age adults do not reach their financial or work life goals
Midlife crisis: extreme strain as a person re-evaluates his or her life in middle age
-Quire rare - more common in people who lost parents as children; have now outlived their parents and think they
may be close to death
-Rather, most adults enter a quest for meaning in life
Relationships with friends and family are often viewed as the most satisfying parts of life
Marriage: individuals are often faced with the prospect of spending the rest of their lives with their partners without
children as a buffer
-Some conclude that this relationships is not rewarding and separate
-Couples who stay together may have to renegotiate some aspects of their relationship
•Tend to shift towards greater androgyny - men become more concerned with relationships, women become
more interested in achievement
•Couples who modify their relationships usually experience increased marital satisfaction
-Other factors influencing midlife couple happiness:
•Those who had warm and trusting relationships with their parents during adolescence are usually happy with
their partner in midlife
•Those with secure attachment to their partners have more stable relationships
•Middle-aged parents with a teenager at home are more likely to be depressed than those with older children
-Presence of a child cuts into could time
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Document Summary
The middle years of the family and the not-so-empty. Current midlife generation: baby boomers (born 1940s to 1960s) At nearly 4. 39 million, outnumber those in 15-24 age group (4. 37 million) Median age of canadian population is 39. 9 years. Expected to rise to 44 as baby boomers age. Baby boom cohort has a profound effect on canadian society. Never before have so many been close to retirement. Expected to place extreme stress on resources (ex. Retirement home, healthcare, etc. ) as this generation ages. Middle years have now joined child-rearing as the longest stages in life. Midlife group is diverse - hard to make generalizations that cover the entire group. Includes rst-time parents as well as great-grandparents. Some begin midlife at peak of careers or nearing retirement. These years of the family life cycle are transitional. Period often marks splitting of one family into two or more as children leave families of origin and form their own nuclear families of procreation.
