Chapter 5

Question 1

Trait models of personality

Answer 1

• Personality trait
• Extraversion-introversion
• Eyseneck: extraversion, introversion, Psychoticism, Neuroticism
E,P,N alter with age
• Big Five (conscientiousness, agreeableness, openness, extraversion, neuroticism
• C,A icrease with age, O declines
• E not predictor of subjective well being
• Executive function: ability to plan and control mental processes

Question 2

Psychoanalytic and type models of personality

Answer 2

• Psychoanalysis
• id, ego, superego
• ego integration: Eriksson: acceptance that earlier goals have been resolved, no loose ends
• Rochester Adult Longitudinal Study (RALS)
• Authentic Road, Triumphant trail, Straight and narrow way, Meandering way, Downward slope
• Ego differentiation vs. work-role preoccupation retirement
• Body transcendence vs body preoccupation overcome physical discomfort
• Ego transcendence vs. ego preoccupationI will die
• Late adult transition early to mid-sixties
• View from the bridge ppl must come to terms with their past
• Personality types groups, not spectrum like personality traits
• Constructiveness, dependent/rocking chair, defensiveness/armoured approach , hostility, self-hatred

Question 3

• Integrated personality:

Answer 3

: reorganisers, focused, disengaged

Question 4

• Armoured-defensive personality

Answer 4

holding on, constricted

Question 5

• Passive-dependent personality

Answer 5

succourant seeking, apathetic

Question 6

• Type A personality

Answer 6

hard-edged, competitive

Question 7

• Type B personality

Answer 7

easy-going, carefree (B free)

Question 8

Dependency

Answer 8

• Healthy, dysfunctional, over-dependency (Baltes)
• Dependency ratio: ratio of older ppl to adults of working age within population
• Correlation between suicide rate and dependency ratio

Question 9

Attitudes to Ageing

Answer 9

• Self-esteem declines
• Explicit attitudes: time to prepare answer
• Fraboni Scale of Ageism
• Knowledge changes but not attitude towards ageing
• Implicit attitudes
• Nurses, ppl who work with old ppl: implicit: bad attitude, explicit: good attitude

Question 10

Cross-cultural differences

Answer 10

• Dispositional optimism: tendency to expect positive rather than negative outcomes
• Quality of life (QOL)
• Double jeopardy: ppl in ethnic minority will be treated prejudicially because of age and because of ethnicity
• Triple jeopardy: also can’t get help they need

Question 11

Retirement

Answer 11

• Important if someone retires deliberately or is forced
• Role theory: ppl play different roles throughout life, including hat of retired person, this role is less prestigious than otherspsychologically damaging
• Continuity theory of retirement: retirement as continuation of same sense of identity as before, thus not as stressful
• Health problems because of age, not retirement per se
• No link between mortality and age of retirement

Question 12

Bereavement

Answer 12

• Strong societal and cultural influence

Question 13

Well-being

Answer 13

• Monetary worries big factor of bad well-being
• Two-factor theory of well-being
• Friendships important
• Women less satisfied
• General factors: health, finances, bereavement, environment and retirement (and more)

Question 14

Psychosocial factors and health

Answer 14

• Ppl rarely take up bad habits in later life
• No exercise
• Social network good
• Education predictor for mobility disability
• Hostility: negative orientation towards others high levels in young and old adults (not middle)

Question 15

Marriage

Answer 15

• Subject well being of wife predicts subject well being of husband but not vice versa

Question 16

Sexuality and ageing

Answer 16

• Men bigger sex drive
• Might be good to have less sexual interest to prepare
• Higher risk for STDs like AIDS

Question 17

Disengagement and activity theories

Answer 17

• Disengagement theory: as ppl get older, their contact with the world lessens, preparation for death
• Activity theory: old ppl should get bigger social involvement, only beneficial

Question 18

The role of the family

Answer 18

• No higher depression if child moved away
• Golden age myth: in past, extended family was norm, all living togethernot true
• No cultural differences
• Influence of grandchildren n life satisfaction relatively minorhealth (and education for women)

Question 19

• Double ABCX model

Answer 19

: analysis of family intervention, A: event causing crisis, B: familial resource for coping, C: familial perception of the crisis, X: perceived stress
• Event-stressor-appraisals-mediator-outcome

Question 20

Religion and ageing

Answer 20

• Strength of faith negatively correlated with depression

* Regular church attendance lower mortality

Question 21

Summary

Answer 21

• No personality type unique to later life
• Personality traits do not follow predictable patterns
• Some personality types better for coping
• Criticism of personality testing
• Much is relative
• Paradox of well-being: many older adults have string sense of well-being in spite of material or emotional problems