Running head: OBSERVATION STUDY

Observation Study
Name
Institution

OBSERVATION STUDY

Observation Study
Introduction
The observation study was important in order to establish how the particular age group
would develop and progress in terms of physical and cognitive development. Testing was
conducted in order to evaluate the individuals language, motor, perceptual, and intellectual
abilities. In essence, the observation study used specific terms that are related to cognitive and
development psychology. It is worth noting that the actual test relied heavily on the age of the
individual being interviewed because the age determined the specific terms that were applicable.
In this regard, reasoning and formal logic were the key assessment areas where the old man was
asked to solve various problems.
I interviewed an old man named Ronnie Smith was in his late sixties but still going
strong. My main concern was to assess his physical and intellectual development given his
advanced age. Smith was 68 years old and I met him by the roadside while I was doing my usual
evening rounds. Although the old man was hesitant about my request, he later agreed to answer
my questions. I decided to take him for coffee as I interviewed him. The assessment was
essentially an interactive interview. It is worth mentioning that tape-recorded the interview in
order to present accurate assessment because I was able to verify the information that I received.
Concerning the background of Ronnie, Smith, it is worth noting that Smith is a MexicanAmerican retired factory worker. He stays with his wife alone because his children work in
various States. The old man studied up to sixth grade but his education was good during the time
the factory employed him because few people had college degrees. I established many facts
about cognitive and physical development, especially in old men, from the observation study,
which was in line with my initial objectives.

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Physical Development
Typically, people reach the top of their physical endurance and strength while in their 20s
and then begin to gradually decline as they age. When they are in their late adulthood-65+ years,
they are bound to experience a myriad of physiological changes including a decrease in their
neural process rates, as well as shrivel of the brain. Their circulatory and respiratory and
circulatory systems also weaken and become less efficient. Changes and atrophy in their
gastrointestinal tract may also result in constipation (Papalia, Olds, & Feldman, 2006). Bone
mass, especially in women, diminishes resulting in various bone density disorders such as
osteoporosis. Their muscles also weakened, especially in those people who do not follow
exercise programs. Most visibly, people in this stage of live have less flexible and dry skin,
experiences some sort of hair loss, and experience decreased sensitivity in almost all the sensory
modalities such as touch, olfaction, vision, taste, and hearing.
Senescence was evident in the old man because his skin was sagging because of old age.
It occurred because his skin cells were not actively dividing leading to the formation of wrinkles
in his skin. One could identify Smith as an old man from his outlook because of senescence.
Additionally, thinning and bowing were evident signs of secondary aging in Smith and I noticed
them when he was walking and when seated. Perhaps he looked relatively weak because he had
lived a sedentary lifestyle for a long time. When it comes to the activities of daily living (ADL),
it is worth noting that Smith is still strong can he can bathe, eat, walk, and clean without needing
assistance. However, he appears to be aging rather fast and he may soon need long-term care. It
means that Smith may soon need assistance when it comes to instrumental activities of daily
living (IADL) such as using a computer and doing laundry.
Cognitive Development

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Studying cognitive development in late adulthood population is multifarious; however,

common changes for people in this stage include decline in response speed, both motor and
neural, and a decrease in working memory, which has been considered to be the main factor
underlying elderly peoples performance on cognitive tasks (Papalia et al., 2006). Observing and
interacting with Ronnie Smith was aimed at ascertaining and confirm whether these changes
truly occur to people in their late adulthood.
Ronnie Smith is going to be 69 next and his life seems to be pretty interesting. He
regularly sees his children and grandchildren and often plays bridge with his friends; generally,
he has a good life. However, sometimes Ronnie worries that something is wrong. He does not
seem to be able to concentrate as well and as much as he used to, and his memory is not that
sharp as when he was younger. He is rightly within his social clock in the sense that he married
his wife at a young age and he has grown up children who can fend for themselves without any
assistance. Besides being a loving father and husband, Smith worked hard during his hey days in
order to feed his family and educate his children. When it comes to practical intelligence, I
realized that Ronnie Smith was still creative despite his advanced age. I challenged him with a
jigsaw puzzle to arrange and simple arithmetic to solve. Surprisingly, he got everything right,
proving that his practical intelligence and cognitive skills were still intact. Furthermore, Ronnie
Smith has exceptional crystal and fluid intelligence. He had crystal intelligence in the sense
that he could though clearly about practical ideas such as business ideas. In addition, his abstract
thoughts on life proved his high fluid intelligence.
I particularly found Erikson's psychosocial theory applicable to Smiths case in the sense
that he had just passed his midlife crisis and he was having the dilemmas of early old age. The
stage after middle adulthood that has numerous dilemmas is known as

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generativity versus stagnation stage and it is the seventh stage. However, Integrity versus
despair applies to Smith since he is 68 years and he had accepted his life as it was and decided
to age gracefully. Ronnie Smith performance was exceptional as far as control processes in
memory are concerned since he could remember his childhood events in a vivid manner. Smith
belongs to the young-old population (60-69 years) since he is 68 years old. It means that he
does not belong to the sandwich generation because both of his parents are dead and he has no
older parent or guardian to take care of.

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References
Papalia, D., Olds, S. W., & Feldman, R. D. (2006). Physical and Cognitive Development in Late
Adulthood. In Human Development (10th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Education.