PSY 240 - Final Questions

PSY240 Winter 2019

Final Exam

Answer 10 of the following questions (20 points each).

You must answer at least 5 from questions 1-7 and 5 from questions 8-14.

1) Describe the process that triggers onset of puberty as well as the major changes in males and females at puberty. (p.332-338)

At a certain age, the hypothalamus is triggered starting the chain production of hormones via the Hypothalamus-Pituitary gland-Gonad axis (HPG axis). The hypothalamus stimulates the pituitary gland, which in turn stimulates the gonads. The gonads then release hormones that cause puberty.

·      In males: Gonads release androgens

·      In females: Gonads release estrogens

·      In both: Secretion of thyroid (metabolic rate), adrenal glands (adrenarche – stimulates sexual attraction), and growth hormone (growth…)

The trigger causes are a combination of genetics and environmental factors. Genetics determines the age brackets of puberty. However, environmental factors such as the presence of sexually mature mating partners, individual nutrition, and health determine the specific age for the onset of puberty. For females in particular leptin, a protein produced by fat cells acts as an important signal for puberty so that girls with heavier weight tend to begin puberty earlier.

The result of all the hormones on the body vary depending on the sex:

·      Males: Growth of testes and scrotal sac (10-13.5), growth of pubic hair (10-15), body growth (10.5-16), growth of penis (11-14.5), voice change (~11-14.5), facial and underarm hair ((10-15)+2), oil glands, sweat, and acne (~(10-15)+2).

·      Females: Growth of breasts (7-13), the growth of pubic hair (7-14), body growth (9.5-14.5), menarche (10-16.5), underarm hair ((7-14)+2)), oil glands and sweat (~(7-14)+2)).

In addition to secondary sex characteristics that change phenotype, there are changes in psychological and social sectors as well such as delayed phase preference and external responses to puberty.

2) Describe the major ways in which thinking changes during adolescence, and how Piagetian theory and information processing theory account for these changes. (p.352-357)

There are 5 major changes in thinking:

·      Able to imagine different possibilities to an event (hypotheticals).

·      Able to understand concepts without physical attributes.

·      Better at metacognition (thinking about thinking, meta = thinking ).

·      Better at looking at the same issue from different viewpoints (supposedly).

·      Start to see gray instead of purely black and white.

Piaget explained these changes in cognition of adolescence as the formal operational stage. At this higher stage of thinking deductive reasoning, hypothetical thinking, abstraction, metacognition (leads to adolescent egocentrism from the imaginary audience and personal fable), and open-mindedness become possible or are strengthened. The transition from concrete operational stage to the formal operational stage takes place in two steps. In the first step thinking repeatedly shifts between the concrete operational stage and the formal operational stage. In the second step, usually in middle/late adolescence, the formal operational stage becomes the standard foundation of thinking.

Another perspective of cognition changes is presented with the information processing theory, the idea that changes in specific information processing areas of attention, working memory, processing speed, organization, and metacognition are responsible for the change in adolescent thinking. Improvements in all five of these areas occur rapidly until age 15 when the gains start to level out and stop altogether at age 20. That does not mean that cognitive development stops at 20, improvements in other cognitive skills such as judging cost/benefits and better balancing emotion and cognition continue on into young adulthood.

3) Discuss Erikson’s theory of adolescent identity development. How do scientists assess identity formation? How does it differ in ethnic minorities from Caucasians (in the US)? (p.374-379)

Erikson saw adolescence as a crisis of identity versus identity diffusion, in which the adolescent struggles to form his or her own coherent identity. The formation of identity is especially important considering that in the rapidly modernizing world people are no longer linked to their necessities and thus are more likely to struggle to understand how they fit in. The inherent complication and struggles of identity development are called a psychosocial moratorium. Thus, adolescence is a time of trial and errors in experimenting with identity.

Scientist categorized adolescence formation into 4 identity statuses (James Marcia’s work) based on the degree of exploration and commitment: identity achievement, moratorium, identity foreclosure, and identity diffusion.

·      Identity achievement – Both Exploration and Commitment Present à solid established identity (solid new character).

·      Moratorium – Exploration Present, Commitment Absent à still experimenting with identity (liberal exploration of life).

·      Identity foreclosure – Exploration Absent, Commitment Present à chose an already existing identity to cling onto (super conservatives).

·      Identity diffusion – Both Exploration and Commitment Present à completely withdrawn from exploring his or her own identity or committing to one (social outcasts).

Ethnic minorities have separate struggles trying to accept the majority culture with their ethnic heritage. Psychologist Jean Phinney described 4 possibilities for minorities:

·      Assimilation – Accept majority culture, reject the ethnic.

·      Marginality – Living in majority culture, feeling like an outcast or estrange.

·      Separation – Reject majority culture, accept only ethnic culture.

·      Biculturalism – Accept and maintain both majority and ethnic culture.

6) List/describe adult attachment styles and how they affect intimate relationships in young adulthood. (p.447-448)

4 types of adult attachment styles based off cumulative experience from earlier attachment:

·      Secure – Low avoidance of intimacy, Low anxiety about rejection (Best situation)
60% of population (hope for humanity) are caring and are capable of withstanding the negative rejection. Despite facing troubles from time to time, they are capable of depending on others. Relationships are the picture perfect ones imagine in movies with lots of fun and open mindedness.

·      Preoccupied – Low avoidance of intimacy, High anxiety about rejection (Needy)
Want love, but is constantly scared of being rejected. The clinginess expected in this relationship might annoy the opposite party. If not treated or without constant assurances, high chance of developing stalking like tendencies. Relationships are borderline annoying for others because the constant need for assurance.

·      Dismissive-avoidant – High avoidance of intimacy, Low anxiety about rejection (Prideful)
Could careless about what others think about them. Do not want to share secrets or weaknesses. High self-regard makes a possible combo perfect for megalomania. Relationships are high tilted on power dynamics of order and control.

·      Fearful-avoidant – High avoidance of intimacy, High anxiety about rejection (Misanthropy/Pariah)
Uncomfortable about getting close with others because expect high probability of rejection. The sad outcast of society that cannot attach with others because unwilling to share more about themselves and also scared of rejection. Relationships are cold if the person has any relationships at all.

7) Discuss the factors that affect marital satisfaction in young adulthood. (p.451-452)

Martial satisfaction declines after the first few years of marriage. There are specific factors that contribute to martial quality such as spouse behavior during conflicts and external stressors.

Spouse behavior is usually based on an accumulation of life events, but can be possibly controlled through counseling. There are 4 specific negative behaviors to look out for in particular criticism (attacking spouse’s values), contempt (attacking spouse’s sense of self), defensiveness (deflecting complaints by playing victim), and stonewalling (silent treatment). External stressors are completely uncontrollable and can vary from sudden unemployment to illness. Unlike behavior, which can be managed, external stressors require coordinated social services to help mitigate the possible damage caused by stress. Even if only one spouse is exposed to stress, the stress can carry over through the stress-crossover effect.

The vulnerability-stress-adaption model combines all these factors into an organized narrative. Each spouse’s personal weaknesses + stressors = Positive/negative marital behaviors. The martial behaviors, in turn, affect the martial quality, which if poor enough can lead to marital dissolution.

9) How do the three processes of developmental regulation (selection, optimization, compensation) affect middle-aged adults? (p.440-441, 504-505)

·      Selection – Narrowing down the list of life goals to a manageable number.
Early in life choices are more often based on how attractive the goals are (elective selection). However, later in life decreases in resources and or capacity means that goals are selected base on how attainable they are (loss-based selection). Example: Shift from “I want to learn coding and software to get a higher salary more than riding a motorcycle.” To “I do not want to get hurt so I’ll call off the motorcycle dreams and focus on being a good driver.”

·      Optimization – Using resources and or increasing efficiency of reaching the goals.
In middle age adults, resources and energy are more often than not spent on trying to maintain gains and prevent losses. Example: “I should spend my money on getting all types of insurance incase things go south. I’ll take the ones with the best coverage.”

·      Compensation – Finding alternative routes when faced with failure and a decline in function. With declining capacity middle age adult have to work on keeping skills relevant else they might get the ax from corporate. Usually they compensate by performing higher quality work or by pointing out other people’s poor quality work.

10) What are the sources of satisfaction and what are the challenges presented by work-life to middle-aged adults? (p.520-526)

After spending more than two decades in the workforce, most adults see employment as meeting 4 of their basic needs:

·      Social à Work provides a social network to regularly interact with.

·      Personal à Work provides a feeling of pride and self-worth.

·      Financial à Work provides $$$ needed for other stuff.

·      Intrinsic generational generosity à The desire to pass down knowledge to the next gen.

Work with all 4 of these aspects provides job satisfaction, doubly so when a middle age adult has experience, higher salary, and a promotion.

However, not all jobs are sunshine and roses, discrimination based on age, sex, and race can make work feel futile.

Women and minorities challenges at work:

·      Glass ceiling – limited opportunity for promotion to a higher position.

·      Income difference

·      Impact of childbirth on career trajectory

                       1.         Regular career pattern – Continuously staying in employment right after school.

                       2.         Interrupted career pattern – Leave employment after having kids, return when kids grow older.

                       3.         Second career pattern – Have kids first and wait till they get older. Then, enters a career.

                       4.         Modified second career pattern – Work part time when kids are young, switch to full time when kids are older.

Age related challenges at work:

·      Age discrimination – Unfair practices of hiring, firing, compensation, or working conditions.

·      Pretty rampant throughout many sectors due to the perception of old people being less productive, stagnant, or married to conventional ideas – hence the quote, “out with the old in with the new.”

·      Older workers also removed for financial reasons because they cost more in terms of salary and health insurance.

·      Older workers face a tough time with interviews as well since “appearing old” might cause job application rejections.

Changes in the economy have also presented a challenge due to the changing type of work (Manufacture à Service).

·      Increase in cognitive and computer involved work.

·      Transition difficulties for some from physical à cognitive work.

·      Need to learn new skills to stay on the job à application of selection, optimization, and compensation.

Inability to adapt can lead to unemployment.

11) Compare and contrast normal and pathological changes in memory that may occur in late adulthood. (p.557-566)

Types of memory:

·      Sensory memory – 1 to 2 sec registration of info from the senses, fades unless passed on to working memory.

·      Working memory – Short-term memory that holds info for ~15-20 seconds to use.

·      Long-term memory – As it sounds like, storing information for a long period of time.

§  Episodic memory – Memory about a specific event in life.

§  Semantic memory – Memory about facts and general knowledge.

§  Procedural memory – Memory about specific skills learned.

Normal changes in memory in late adulthood:

·      Sensory memory – Little change.

·      Working memory – More complex tasks harder.

·      Long-term memory – Episodic memory greatest decrease, Semantic and procedural memory remain constant.

These normal changes in memory are caused by:

·      Speed-deficit explanation à Speed of cognitive processes decline with age.

·      Processing-resources-deficit explanation à Decline in multitasking skill.

·      Sensory-deficit explanation à Sensory issues lengthen the time for sensory input.

·      Inhibition-deficit explanation à Harder time sifting the useful information.

·      Recollection-deficit explanation à Less likely to use memory strategies.

Pathological changes in memory in late adulthood:

·      Dementia – Irreversible cognitive decline that become severe enough to interfere with activities of daily living (ADL).

§  Alzheimer’s disease – Common dementia with cognitive, behavioral, and motor deficits that worsen over time. Early signs are loss of long-term memory followed by losses in episodic memory. Next the behavioral defects occur that make ADL all, but impossible to do unassisted. Finally motor defects kick in causing loss of control over body functions. No known cure, only confirmed through brain autopsy.

§  Vascular dementia – Dementia caused by brain damaged inflicted by a stroke. Symptoms similar, but onset is abrupt due to the sudden nature of stroke.

·      Delirium – Reversible cognitive impairment that can be treated. Can be caused by a variety of ways such as vitamin deficiencies, medication side effects or surgical complications. If the underlying cause is treated appropriately and promptly, cognitive function can be repaired.

12) Discuss how older adults make the decision to retire and how they then cope with retirement. (p.592-596)

The decision to retire relies on multiple different factors:

·      Current state of health – After toiling away at work for more than 20 years how is their body holding up? Has the years of cortisol and lifting destroyed their general health? Manual laborers tend to suffer from more bodily long-term harm and usually end up retiring earlier. High stress jobs of any type (both physical/cognitive) also tend to push workers into retiring. Having good health allows the worker to hold back on retirement until they decide it is time (more power of control over retirement = better self esteem).

·      Financial situation – What is their retirement plan like? Do they have a pension? Have they lost all their 401k savings in a bad turn on the stock market? The United States has a national Social Security benefit for elderly only once they hit the age of 67. Many people wait until they hit this age to retire. It is risky to rely solely on the Social Security safety net (a weak safety net at best) so many workers supplement their income with pension plans provided by their employer, if they have one available. Changes in the economy has led from defined-benefit plans (ones with guaranteed income) to defined-contribution plans (employer contributes to an investment plan that employee choses) as the latter has more risk and puts less skin in the game for the employer.

·      Spouse’s plans – Couples usually plan to retire at the same time. If one spouse continues to work while the other retires, martial quality dips (especially if the male retires and the female keeps working because the male’s pride is hurt).

·      Job characteristics – Types of responsibilities at jobs. Is the job more cognitive/physical? Cognitive (white collar) jobs tend to leave workers in better health and more productive longer in contrast to physical (blue collar) jobs.

After retiring, researchers believe that retirees undergo 3 steps:

·      “Honeymoon period” – Newfound freedom of being able to explore and not be burdened by work.

·      Disenchantment – The pretty glow of retirement wears off and the reality of the situation sinks in. “This was not what I expected when I reached this age” – Every person ever.

·      Reorientation – Retirees move to adapt to the social and economic realities of retirement as they look for new meaning in their lives to continue on.

When retirees reorient their lives by increasing their community participation through volunteer work and religious involvement. They mostly decide to stick to their communities because 2/3 of older adults live in their own homes.

14) Define/discuss the difference between passive and active euthanasia. What are the arguments for and against euthanasia? (p.611-615)

·      Passive euthanasia – Instead of directly killing the person, medical treatment is withheld to allow the person to die. Example: Not giving a person suffering from respiratory failure any ventilator.

·      Active euthanasia – Directly killing the person by employing methods that deliberately induce death.  Example: The lethal injection.

§  Physician-assisted dying – Helping terminally ill patients bring about their own deaths via prescription of lethal medication.

As would be expected, passive euthanasia has more support than active euthanasia and physician assisted dying due to the nature of the actions. Passive euthanasia, as an absence of action, is easier to accept than active euthanasia, performing the executioner’s action.

Arguments for euthanasia:

·      A person has the right to decide his or her own death.

·      Compassionate action for those in pain to bring an end to their suffering.

·      System of safeguards employed including screening with at least 2 physicians.

Arguments against euthanasia:

·      Possible slippery slope of euthanasia being performed on “unintended individuals,” such as those with mental illness.

·      Morally wrong to kill an individual as physicians have obligation to preserve life.

·      Possible misdiagnosis of desire for euthanasia due to mental illness such as depression.