LATE ADULTHOOD

LIFE’S FINAL CHAPTERS

1
Chapter Outline
1. Why we age and die.
2. Theories proposed to explain why we age.
3. Key aspects of physical development among the elderly.
4. How social relationships develop during late adulthood.
5. Major factors affecting the older worker.

2
 Must we age and die?

 Life expectancy
◦ 79 years for men; 83 years for women
 We are not yet sure why we age
◦ Not all living things die
 Ageism
◦ Not everyone fulfills the prophecies, assumptions, and
stereotypes about aging
 Gerontology
◦ Field of science that focuses on older adults

3
Life Expectancy

 Thenumber of years that a person born in a

specific year is expected to live.

4
 Physiological theories of aging
Why do we age?
 Aging by Program
 Homeostatic Imbalance
 Cross-Linkage Theory
 Autoimmunity
 Genetic Theories

5
Sensory abilities
Decline most obvious in vision & hearing
 Adjusting to light changes
 Depth perception
 Macular degeneration
 Glaucoma
 Cataracts
VISION
 Most obvious in the 70’s
 Many hearing problems can
be helped by hearing aids
 Difficulties with high and
low frequencies
HEARING
6
 Loss of bone density  Arthritis
and osteoporosis
 Cataracts
 Back problems
 More accidents/falls
◦ Resulting more frequently in bone
fractures and breaks
 Prostate cancer (men)
 Breast cancer (women)
 The majority of seniors
have at least one chronic
disease or condition
 Yellowing of teeth  Leading causes of death:
 Thinning of hair Heart disease, cancer, stroke
 Thickening of

fingernails

Other Body Systems General Health

7
Substance Abuse
Many Older Adults:
 Misuse or abuse of prescriptions & OTC drugs
 Negative interaction with alcohol
 Cause serious health problems
 Difficult to detect alcoholism in elderly

8
Substance Abuse (con’t)
 20% of hospitalizations are due to problems
with medications

9
 Alzheimer’s disease
 Progressive, irreversible loss of neurons
 Leading cause of dementia
 Impaired:
◦ Memory
◦ Judgment
◦ Decision-making
◦ Orientation to the environment
◦ Language
 Terminal
◦ No treatment or cure

10
Mental health
 Effects of physical decline
and/or death of spouse
increase risk for suicide and
depression

 In 2008, people 65 years and

older, particularly men, had
the highest suicide rate of any
other group
◦ Men 90 years and older have
the highest rate of all

11
Social development
Erikson’s Theory: Integrity vs. Despair
 Last stage of development
 Integrity: Feel their lives have been well

spent
 Despair: Feel as though they have made

wrong decisions or have not made any

decisions at all

12
Social development
 An individual who has dealt with crisis well
during their life is more likely to achieve ego
integrity

13
Aging and the family
 Most couples go through four basic phases in
the life cycle:
1. Child rearing
2. Childlessness before retirement
3. Retirement
4. Widowhood or widowerhood

14
Caring of elderly parents
1 in 4 providing care to seniors are seniors
themselves
 Caregivers suffer from stress and depression

and a multitude of health issues

 For elders with no kin, a close friend usually

substitutes as caregiver

15
The role of the grandparent

 Playing bigger role as day-care providers

 Many are raising their grandchildren alone

16
 Relationships with others: getting old
does not mean being lonely!

 Activity theory:
◦ Humans beings flourish through interaction with other
people and physical activity
◦ Associated with lower morality rates in late adulthood

17
Patterns of work
 Older workers are valued by employers for several
reasons:
 Older workers have:

◦ more experience
◦ higher rates of job satisfaction
◦ more positive work values
◦ lower rates of:
 Absenteeism
 Turnover
 Illness
 Accidents
18
Retirement
 For most people, retirement a welcome relief
 Requires changing the habits of a lifetime
 Following financial crisis in Canada, growing numbers

expect to continue working part- or full-time at age 66

 8.3% of older adults are in the labour force
 The Canadian government prohibits mandatory

retirement age

19
The role of death in life
Prior to the 20th century:
 Death was a part of life

◦ Half of all children died before age 10

◦ 1/3 of infants died before their 1st birthday
Over the last 100 years:
 Mortality rates have dropped

◦ Causes for death have changed

 Average life expectancy at an all-time high
◦ Death comes mostly to the elderly
Death became less a part of life

20
Subject of Death

 Asdeath rates fell over the past century, death

became less a part of life and the subject of
death became taboo

21
Four Types of Death
 Clinical Death

 Brain Death (cerebral cortex

shows a flat line EEG)

 Biological Death

 Social Death

22
Dying with dignity
Two alternatives to dying with physical or
emotional pain:
Euthanasia (Assisted Dying)
 Passive euthanasia (failing to resuscitate)
◦ living will or health-care power of attorney
◦ Living will may reduce the burden on one’s loved one
Assisted-dying (Legal in Canada)
 Active euthanasia (Not legal in Canada)

23
Children /Adolescence and Death
The best way to help a child cope with the death
of a loved one, is to let them express their
feelings.

Adolescents’ may reduce their risky behaviour

if they can see how it relates to them.

24