Middle Age and Midlife Development Essay

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The Importance of Midlife Development
Duane Aponte
PSY304: Lifespan Development (COE1227A)
Instructor: Dorie Richards
07/30/12

Historical and Contemporary
It is fortunate that we will all grow old at one point or another as our midlife stage can be crucial in our aging progress. We all grow old differently this may connect through our genetics, our society and behaviors. The aging process in a physical perspective is a time where wrinkles start, our hair thins and midlife crises for men and for women menopause begin. However we are more established during mid-life as many have already developed our own identities. Many actions will happen during midlife that can either make us happy or sad these may include marriages, deaths, divorce, becoming a parent, loss of jobs, and most of all the feeling of not contributed to a society.
These are all factors that can affect our development. The lengths of well-being over our life span can increase and decrease in satisfaction through personal growth, purpose in life, independence, self-acceptance, environmental mastery, optimistic dealings (Santrock, 2010).
Contemporary life-events approach is well-defined as a method that highlights how life influences the individual’s development as it rest on not only on the life event itself, but also on interceding factors, the individual’s alteration to the life experience, the life-stage setting, and the socio historical context (Santrock, 2010). For an example during the midlife stage we will be better-off and in good health if we enter our mid-life focusing more on our daily problems and less on significant happenings.

Life-Events Framework
During midlife development our socio historical framework can lead up to different variables which are Life-Events which include our physical health, intelligence, personality, family, support systems, income, and life events. These events will eventually have an impact on a person’s actions throughout their life-course. The current life approach stresses on how life events influence the development and on factors such as physical health and family support (Santrock 2011). Life events such as death of a love one, marriage, divorce, aging, and personal worthlessness can cause pain and stress in an individual’s life as this effect of that stress will be showed by a person’s health and living conditions. As for Levinson midlife crisis is the stage when an adult is caught between the past and the future. Nonetheless there have been many middle aged adults that have had healthier control in their work, and better financial security. Although throughout history the concept of life events has changed. The period in which an individual has grown up in, can have an impact on their values, attitude and even their behavior.
Some of life events such as marriage, new job, accidents, can be instrumental there are many influences that can help how an individual deals with such changes. Physical health, intelligence, personality, family support and income can help relieve the stresses of such situations. Individuals must recognize the posing threat than assess it use tactics for dealing with it (Santrock 2011). Also in midlife development when the six dimensions are present their can be more positives in your life and less stress. The six dimensions are being happy with yourself, engaging with positive people, mastering your environment, improving overall knowledge, and having self-control with independence (Santrock 2011).
Self-acceptance
During midlife there are many concerns on making significant contributions to your family and society. As for Erikson’s psychological conflict on generativity versus stagnation middle-aged adults re-evaluate themselves and the world while making modifications in areas that are not suitable. However, self-concept may change during middle age. Adults can become more absorbed and self-acceptance, independence, environmental mastery, and coping tactics improve.
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