Psychology Question

You have been given a grant to study one of these five personality traits: openness to

experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism.

● Define and describe the personality trait you chose.

● How might this personality trait be measured?

● What are the advantages and drawbacks of using the personality trait

approach?

Make sure to include terminology from the textbook and include citations.

Your paper should include and incorporate three scholarly sources. Your paper must be in

APA Style and include in-text citations and a reference list. Your textbook can be one of

the sources.

Rubric

PSYC_160_OL - Paper Rubric (1)

Criteria Ratings Pts

This

criterion

is linked

to a

Learning

Outcome

Content

25 to >22.25 ptsMeets or Exceeds ExpectationsThe writer clearly and effectively

responds to the assignment with details and specific examples. Content fully

addresses all aspects of the assignment. Main ideas are clear and are well

supported by detailed and accurate information. All content is accurate. All

opinions are thoroughly supported.

22.25 to >18.75 ptsMostly Meets ExpectationsThe response to the assignment is

generally adequate, but may not be thorough. May be lacking some details and

explanations. Main ideas are clear but are not well supported by detailed

information. Content addresses, or partially addresses, most aspects of the

assignment. Most content is accurate. Most opinions are supported in some way.

18.75 to >14.75 ptsBelow ExpectationsThe response to the assignment is vague

and/ or inaccurate. May be lacking several details and explanations. Main ideas are

not always clear or supported. Content addresses few aspects of the assignment.

Much of the content is inaccurate in some way. Few opinions are supported.

14.75 to >0 ptsDoes Not Meet ExpectationsThe writer does not respond to the

assignment or the response is far outside the parameters of the assignment. The

topic and main ideas are not clear. Most content is inaccurate.

25

pts

This

criterion

is linked

to a

Learning

Outcome

Organiza

tion

15 to >13.35 ptsMeets or Exceeds ExpectationsInformation is relevant and

presented in a logical order. Writing and integration of source materials is eloquent

and skillful. Connections among topics are clear without being repetitive or

redundant.

13.35 to >11.25 ptsMostly Meets ExpectationsWriting and integration of source

materials is adequate with lapses in structure. Most connections among topics are

clear without being repetitive or redundant.

11.25 to >8.85 ptsBelow ExpectationsWriting and integration of source materials

is awkward or confusing. Few connections among topics are clear. There is some

repetitiveness or redundancy.

8.85 to >0 ptsDoes Not Meet ExpectationsThere is no clear , structure. Writing

lacks skill. Sources are not present. Connections among topics are not evident.

15

pts

This

criterion

is linked

to a

Learning

Outcome

Mechani

cs and

APA

10 to >8.9 ptsMeets or Exceeds ExpectationsThe assignment consistently follows

current APA Style and is free from errors in formatting, citation, and references. No

grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors. All sources are cited and referenced

correctly. The paper meets all assignment criteria in length, structure, and source

criteria.

8.9 to >7.5 ptsMostly Meets ExpectationsThe assignment consistently follows

current APA Style with only isolated and inconsistent mistakes and/or has a few

grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors. Most sources are cited and

referenced correctly. The paper meets most of the assignment criteria in length,

structure, and source criteria.

7.5 to >5.9 ptsBelow ExpectationsThe assignment occasionally follows current or

outdated APA Style with multiple mistakes and/or grammatical, spelling, or

punctuation errors. Few sources are cited and referenced correctly. The paper

meets some of the assignment criteria in length, structure, and source criteria.

5.9 to >0 ptsDoes Not Meet ExpectationsThe assignment does not follow current

APA Style and/or has many grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors. Many

sources are cited and referenced incorrectly, or citations and references are

missing. The paper meets few of the assignment criteria in length, structure, and

source criteria.

10

pts

Total Points: 50

Content from the book : Module 27 Nature and Nurture: The Enduring Developmental Issue LEARNING OUTCOMES LO 27-1 How do psychologists study the degree to which development is an interaction of hereditary and environmental factors? LO 27-2 What is the nature of development before birth? LO 27-3 What factors affect a child during the mother’s pregnancy? How many bald, 6-foot-6, 250-pound volunteer firefighters in New Jersey wear droopy mustaches, aviator-style eyeglasses, and a key ring on the right side of the belt? The answer is two: Gerald Levey and Mark Newman. They are twins who were separated at birth. Neither twin even knew the other existed until they were reunited—in a fire station—by a fellow firefighter who knew Newman and was startled to see his double, Levey, at a firefighters’ convention. The lives of the twins, although separate, took remarkably similar paths. Levey went to college and studied forestry; Newman planned to study forestry in college but instead took a job

trimming trees. Both had jobs in supermarkets. One had a job installing sprinkler systems; the other installed fire alarms. Both men are unmarried and find the same kind of woman—“tall, slender, long hair”—attractive. They share similar hobbies and enjoy hunting, fishing, going to the beach, and watching old John Wayne movies and professional wrestling. Both like Chinese food and drink the same brand of beer. Their mannerisms are also similar; for example, each one throws his head back when he laughs. And, of course, there is one more thing: They share a passion for fighting fires. The similarities we see in twins Gerald Levey and Mark Newman vividly raise one of the fundamental questions posed by developmental psychology, the study of the patterns of growth and change that occur throughout life. The question is this: How can we distinguish between the environmental causes of behavior (the influence of parents, siblings, family, friends, schooling, nutrition, and all the other experiences to which a child is exposed) and hereditary causes (those based on an individual’s genetic makeup that influence growth and development throughout life)? This question embodies the nature–nurture issue. In this context, nature refers to hereditary factors, and nurture refers to environmental influences. Identical twins Mark Newman (left) and Gerald Levey (right), who were separated at birth and reunited 31 years later. They are shown with researcher Dr. Nancy Segal, co-director of the Twins Reared Apart study. AP Images Page 333 Although the question was first posed as a nature-versus-nurture issue, developmental psychologists today agree that both nature and nurture interact to produce specific developmental patterns and outcomes. Consequently, the question has evolved into this: How and to what degree do environment and heredity both produce their effects? No one develops free of environmental influences or without being affected by their inherited genetic makeup. However, the debate over the comparative influence of the two factors remains active; different approaches and different theories of development emphasize the environment or heredity to a greater or lesser degree (Gruber, 2013; Limberg, 2015; Clinton et al., 2022). For example, some developmental theories rely on basic psychological principles of learning and stress the role learning plays in producing changes in a developing child’s behavior. Such theories emphasize the role of the environment in development. In contrast, other developmental theories emphasize the influence of one’s physiological makeup and functioning on development. Such theories stress the role of heredity and maturation—the unfolding of biologically predetermined patterns of behavior—in producing developmental change. Maturation can be seen, for instance, in the development of sex characteristics (such as breasts and body hair) that occurs at the start of adolescence.

Furthermore, the work of behavioral geneticists, who study the effects of heredity on behavior, and the theories of evolutionary psychologists, who identify behavior patterns that result from our genetic inheritance, have influenced developmental psychologists. Behavioral geneticists are finding increasing evidence that cognitive abilities, personality traits, sexual orientation, and psychological disorders are determined to some extent by genetic factors (Krüger et al., 2017; Burt et al., 2019; Mahjani et al., 2021). Behavioral genetics lies at the heart of the nature–nurture question. Although no one would argue that our behavior is determined solely by inherited factors, evidence collected by behavioral geneticists does suggest that our genetic inheritance predisposes us to respond in particular ways to our environment and even to seek out particular kinds of environments (Barnes & Jacobs, 2013; Marjlesi et al., 2019; Harden, 2021). Study Alert The nature–nurture issue is a key question that is pervasive throughout the field of psychology. It explores how and to what degree environment and heredity produce their joint effects. Despite their differences over theory, developmental psychologists concur on some points. They agree that genetic factors not only provide the potential for specific behaviors or traits to emerge but also place limitations on the emergence of such behavior or traits. For instance, heredity defines people’s general level of intelligence and sets an upper limit that, regardless of the quality of the environment, people cannot exceed. Heredity also places limits on physical abilities; humans simply cannot run at a speed of 60 miles an hour or grow as tall as 10 feet, no matter the quality of their environment (Loehlin et al., 2015; von Stumm & Plomin, 2021). Figure 1 lists some of the characteristics most affected by heredity. As you consider these items, keep in mind that these characteristics are not entirely determined by heredity because environmental factors also play a role. FIGURE 1 Characteristics influenced significantly by genetic factors. Although these characteristics have strong genetic components, they are also affected by environmental factors. Table Summary: A table lists 9 physical characteristics, 5 intellectual characteristics, and 7 emotional characteristics and disorders in 3 columns. Physical Characteristics Intellectual Characteristics Emotional Characteristics and Disorders Height Memory Shyness Weight Intelligence Extraversion Obesity Age of language acquisition Emotionality

Tone of voice Reading disabilities Neuroticism Blood pressure Intellectual disabilities Schizophrenia Tooth decay Anxiety Athletic ability Alcoholism Age of death Activity level Developmental psychologists also agree that in most instances environmental factors play a critical role in enabling people to reach the potential capabilities that their genetic background makes possible. If Albert Einstein had received no intellectual stimulation as a child and had not been sent to school, it is unlikely that he would have reached his genetic potential. Similarly, a great athlete such as basketball star Stephen Curry would have been unlikely to display much physical skill if he had not been raised in an environment that nurtured his innate talent and gave him the opportunity to train and perfect his natural abilities. Clearly, the relationship between heredity and environment is complex. Therefore, developmental psychologists typically take an interactionist position on the nature–nurture issue by suggesting that a combination of hereditary and environmental factors influences development. Developmental psychologists face the challenge of identifying the relative strength of each of these influences on the individual as well as that of identifying the specific changes that occur over the course of development (Steinbeis et al., 2017; Thompson, 2021). Page 334 Determining the Relative Influence of Nature and Nurture Developmental psychologists use several approaches to determine the relative influence of genetic and environmental factors on behavior. In one approach, researchers can experimentally control the genetic makeup of laboratory animals by carefully breeding them for specific traits. For instance, by observing animals with identical genetic backgrounds placed in varied environments, researchers can learn the effects of specific kinds of environmental stimulation. Although researchers must be careful when generalizing the findings of nonhuman research to a human population, findings from animal research provide important information that cannot be obtained for ethical reasons by using human participants. Human twins serve as another important source of information about the relative effects of genetic and environmental factors. Identical twins are genetically identical; they share the same genes and look alike. If they display different patterns of development, those differences have to be attributed to variations in the environment in which the twins were raised. The most useful data come from identical twins (such as Gerald Levey and Mark Newman) who are adopted at birth by different sets of adoptive parents and raised apart in differing environments. Studies of nontwin siblings who are raised in totally different environments also shed some light on the issue. Because they have relatively similar genetic backgrounds, siblings who show similarities as adults provide strong evidence for the importance of heredity (Farnsworth, 2015; Wertz et al., 2019; Gómez‐Vallejo et al., 2021).

Researchers can also take the opposite track. Instead of concentrating on people with similar genetic backgrounds who are raised in different environments, they may consider people raised in similar environments who have totally dissimilar genetic backgrounds. For example, if they find similar courses of development in two adopted children who have different genetic backgrounds and have been raised in the same family, they have evidence for the importance of environmental influences on development. Moreover, psychologists can carry out research involving animals with dissimilar genetic backgrounds; by experimentally varying the environment in which the animals are raised, they can determine the influence of environmental factors (independent of heredity) on development (Beam & Turkheimer, 2013; Tosto et al., 2017; Kendler et al., 2021). Module 29 Adolescence: Becoming an Adult LEARNING OUTCOME LO 29-1 What major physical, social, and cognitive transitions characterize adolescence? Vonetta Johnson, age 13: “It’s not easy being 13. I feel like I have to be on social media constantly, seeing what my friends are doing and sending photos of myself that make me look, well, perfect. I am so afraid of missing out on something. It can be exhausting.” Elio Gomez, age 15: “I know, I know: my room is a mess. But it’s my room, and I just want to keep my parents out. I should have some privacy, and if stuff is all over the floor, what’s the big deal? I wish they’d stop hassling me and just leave me alone.” Omar Hassan, age 17: “I got into the National Honors Society, and the school made a big deal about it. But when my parents came to the induction ceremony, they just looked shocked the entire time, wondering how someone like me—with a nose ring and ear studs and hair dyed blue—could have been invited to the ceremony. I half-expected them to go to the teachers and tell them that they’d made some mistake.” Although Vonetta, Elio, and Omar have never met, they share anxieties that are common to adolescence—concerns about friends, parents, appearance, independence, and their futures. Adolescence is the developmental stage between childhood and adulthood, and it is a crucial period. It is a time of profound changes and, occasionally, turmoil. Considerable biological change occurs as adolescents attain sexual and physical maturity. At the same time and rivaling these physiological changes, important social, emotional, and cognitive changes occur as adolescents strive for independence and move toward adulthood. Because many years of schooling precede most people’s entry into the workforce in most American and European societies, the stage of adolescence is fairly long; it begins just before the teenage years and ends just after them. Adolescents are no longer children, yet society doesn’t quite consider them adults. They face a period of rapid physical, cognitive, and social change that affects them for the rest of their lives.

Dramatic changes in society also affect adolescents’ development. More than half of all children in the United States will spend all or some of their childhood and adolescence in single-parent families. Furthermore, adolescents spend considerably less time with their parents and more with their peers than they did several decades ago. Finally, the ethnic and cultural diversity of adolescents as a group is increasing dramatically. A third of all adolescents today are of non-European descent; by the year 2045, the number of adolescents who are of Hispanic, Black, Native American, and Asian origin collectively will surpass that of Whites (Frey, 2018). Physical Development: The Changing Adolescent If you think back to the start of your own adolescence, the most dramatic changes you probably remember are physical. A spurt in height, the growth of breasts in girls, deepening voices in boys, the development of body hair, and intense sexual feelings cause curiosity, interest, and sometimes embarrassment for individuals entering adolescence. Not since infancy has development been so dramatic. Beginning around age 10 for girls and age 12 for boys, a growth spurt leads to rapid increases in weight and height. Adolescents may grow as much as 5 inches in 1 year. The physical changes that occur at the start of adolescence result largely from a surge in levels of growth hormone, and they affect virtually every aspect of an adolescent’s life. Page 360 Puberty is the period at which maturation of the sexual organs occurs. Over the past century in Western cultures, the average age at which adolescents reach sexual maturity has steadily decreased, most likely as a result of improved nutrition and medical care. For girls, puberty typically begins at about age 11 or 12, when menstruation starts. However, girls vary widely (see Figure 1). For example, some begin to menstruate as early as age 8 or 9, or in some cases, even earlier. In fact, in the past several decades, puberty has started earlier for a significant minority of girls, who develop breasts as young as age 6 or 7. Although we don’t know why this happens, early puberty may be linked to obesity, stress, or exposure to certain chemicals in the environment (Cheng et al., 2022; Ghorayshi, 2022). FIGURE 1 The range of ages during which major sexual changes occur during adolescence is shown by the colored bars. Source: Adapted from Tanner, 1978. In contrast, some girls don’t start menstruation until as late as age 16. Furthermore, girls may become sexually attracted to others even before their sexual organs mature at around age 10 (Shanahan et al., 2013; Herting & Sowell, 2017; Huang & Roth, 2021).

For boys, their first ejaculation, formally known as spermarche, typically happens at the beginning of puberty. Spermarche usually occurs around the age of 13 (see Figure 1). At first, relatively few sperm are produced during an ejaculation, but the amount increases significantly within a few years. The age at which puberty begins has significant implications for the way adolescents feel about themselves—as well as the way others treat them. Preadolescents who start puberty considerably earlier than their peers may feel isolated and different, and they are at risk for mental health issues such as depression (Weir, 2016; Park et al., 2017; Sadeh et al., 2019). Page 361 In some cases, early maturation is favorable for boys. For example, early-maturing boys do better in athletics, are generally more popular with peers, and have more positive self-concepts. However, the picture differs for girls. Although early-maturing girls are more sexually desirable and have better self-esteem than do later-maturing girls, some consequences of early physical maturation may be less positive. For example, early breast development may set them apart from their peers and be a source of ridicule, or it may make them the target for sexual attention that they don’t know how to handle (Mensah et al., 2013; Natsuaki et al., 2015; Copeland et al., 2019). Although puberty begins around 11 or 12 for girls and 13 or 14 for boys, there are wide variations. What are some of the advantages and disadvantages of early puberty? Purestock/SuperStock Late physical maturation may produce certain psychological difficulties for both boys and girls. Boys who are smaller and less coordinated than their more mature peers tend to feel ridiculed and less attractive. Similarly, late-maturing girls are at a disadvantage in middle school and early high school. They hold relatively lower social status, and it may affect their self-esteem and perceptions of academic success. Moreover, both boys and girls may be delayed in the development of dating and romantic relationships (Mensah et al., 2013; Natsuaki et al., 2015; Copeland et al., 2019). Clearly, the rate at which physical changes occur during adolescence can affect the way in which people are viewed by others and the way they view themselves. Just as important as physical changes, however, are the psychological and social changes that unfold during adolescence. Moral and Cognitive Development: Distinguishing Right from Wrong In a European country, a woman is near death from a special kind of cancer. The one drug that the doctors think might save her is a medicine that a medical researcher has recently discovered. The drug is expensive to make, and the researcher is charging 10 times the cost, or $5,000, for a small dose. The sick woman’s husband, Henry, approaches everyone he knows in

hope of borrowing money, but he can get together only about $2,500. He tells the researcher that his wife is dying and asks him to lower the price of the drug or let him pay later. The researcher says, “No, I discovered the drug, and I’m going to make money from it.” Henry is desperate and considers stealing the drug for his wife. What would you tell Henry to do? KOHLBERG’S THEORY OF MORAL DEVELOPMENT In the view of psychologist Lawrence Kohlberg, the advice you give Henry reflects your level of moral development. According to Kohlberg, people pass through a series of levels in the evolution of their sense of justice and in the kind of reasoning they use to make moral judgments (Kohlberg, 1984). Specifically, Kohlberg suggests that changes in moral reasoning can be understood best as the three-level sequence described in Figure 2. Because of their cognitive limitations, preadolescent children who reason at Level 1 morality tend to think in terms of concrete, unvarying rules (“It is always wrong to steal” or “I’ll be punished if I steal”). At Level 2 morality, older children tend to focus on the broad rules of society (“Good people don’t steal” or “What if everyone stole?”). Those at Level 2 consider moral questions in terms of their own position as good and responsible members of society. FIGURE 2 Developmental psychologist Lawrence Kohlberg theorized that people move through a three-level sequence of moral reasoning in a fixed order. However, he contended that few people ever reach the highest level of moral reasoning. Table Summary: A table summarizes reasons in favor of stealing the drug and reasons against stealing the drugs of 3 levels listed in column 1. The second and third columns have a common header: sample moral reasoning. Sample Moral Reasoning Level In Favor of Stealing the Drug Against Stealing the Drug Level 1 Preconventional morality: The main considerations at this level are the avoidance of punishment and the desire for rewards. “You shouldn’t just let your wife die. People will blame you for not doing enough, and they’ll blame the scientist for not selling you the drug for less money.” “You can’t steal the drug because you’ll be arrested and go to jail. Even if you aren’t caught, you’ll feel guilty, and you’ll always worry that the police may figure out what you did.” Level 2 Conventional morality: Membership in society becomes important at this level. People behave in ways that will win the approval of others. “Who will blame you if you steal a life-saving drug? But if you just let your wife die, you won’t be able to hold your head up in front of your family or neighbors.” “If you steal the drug, everyone will treat you like a criminal. They will wonder why you couldn’t have found some other way to save your wife.” Level 3 Postconventional morality: People accept that there are certain broad principles of morality that should govern our actions. These principles are more critical than the particular laws in a society. “If you simply follow the law, you will violate the underlying principle of

saving your wife’s life. If you do steal the drug, society will understand your actions and respect them. You can’t let an inadequate, outdated law prevent you from doing the right thing.” “You can’t change your standards of honesty whenever it suits your needs. Others may not blame you for stealing the drug, but your conscience will blame you for betraying your own moral code.” Source: Adapted from Kohlberg, 1969. Module 30 Adulthood LEARNING OUTCOMES LO 30-1 What are the principal kinds of physical, social, and intellectual changes that occur in early and middle adulthood, and what are their causes? LO 30-2 How does the reality of late adulthood differ from the stereotypes about that period? LO 30-3 How can we adjust to death? As I passed through my 20s into my 30s, I really felt I was getting better in every way—physically stronger, intellectually sharper, just better. That feeling lasted until I moved into my late 30s and 40s, and then I began to have some physical issues. First it was my knees that began to hurt when I played tennis. Then some other kinds of physical things popped up as I moved into my 50s and 60s, culminating with the replacement of one of my hips. And eventually my thinking was not quite the same, as I struggled to find the right word every once and a while. No big deal, but it bothered me a little. At some point it dawned on me: I wasn’t the same person as I was in my 20s. I’m getting old. It’s no surprise that people change as they move through adulthood. Sometimes the changes are dramatic–for example, a major physical event such as a heart attack. But more often the changes are gradual, occurring over many years and decades, accumulating over time. Change and development are part of life, a normal process that affects all people as they move through adulthood. Psychologists generally agree that early adulthood begins around age 20 and lasts until about age 40–45, when middle adulthood begins and continues until around age 65. Despite the enormous importance of these periods of life in terms of both the accomplishments that occur in them and their overall length (together they span some 44 years), they have been studied less than has any other stage. For one reason, the physical changes that occur during these periods are less apparent and more gradual than those at other times during the life span. In addition, the diverse social changes that arise during this period defy simple categorization. The variety of changes that occur in early adulthood have led many developmental psychologists to view the start of the period as a transitional phase called emerging adulthood.

Emerging adulthood is the period beginning in the late teenage years and extending into the mid-20s. Although the brain is still growing and modifying its neural pathways during emerging adulthood, people are no longer adolescents. And these postadolescents typically face many questions as they approach the responsibilities of adulthood, still engaged in determining who they are and what their life and career paths should be. So this is a time of uncertainty and instability, as well as self-discovery (Wood et al., 2018; Pratt & Matsuba, 2019; Booker et al., 2021). The view that adulthood is preceded by an extended period of emerging adulthood reflects the new reality of the economies of industrialized countries. These economies have shifted away from manufacturing to a focus on technology and information, thus requiring increasing time spent in educational training. Furthermore, the age at which most people marry and have children has risen significantly (Arnett, 2011; Pessin, 2018). There’s also an increasing ambivalence about reaching adulthood. When people in their late teens and early 20s are asked if they feel they have reached adulthood, most say “yes and no” (see Figure 1). In short, emerging adulthood is an age of identity exploration in which individuals are more self-focused and uncertain than they will be later in early adulthood (Arnett, 2006; Verschueren et al., 2017; Mannerström et al., 2019). FIGURE 1 Evidence of a period of emerging adulthood is provided by the responses to a questionnaire asking, “Do you feel that you have reached adulthood?” Most people between the ages of 18 and 25 were ambivalent, responding “yes and no.” Later, this ambivalence disappeared, with most people ages 26–35 saying “yes.” Source: Adapted from Arnett, 2006. As we discuss the changes that occur through emerging adulthood, early adulthood, middle adulthood, and ultimately late adulthood, keep in mind the demarcations between the periods are fuzzy. However, the changes are certainly no less profound than they were in earlier periods of development. Page 371 Physical Development: The Peak of Health For most people, early adulthood marks the peak of physical health. From about 18‒25 years of age, people’s strength is greatest, their reflexes are quickest, and their chances of dying from disease are quite slim. Moreover, reproductive capabilities are at their highest level. Around age 25, the body becomes slightly less efficient and more susceptible to disease. Overall, however, ill health remains the exception; most people stay remarkably healthy during

early adulthood. (Can you think of any machine other than the body that can operate without pause for so long a period?) During middle adulthood, people gradually become aware of changes in their bodies. They often experience weight gain (although they can avoid such increases through diet and exercise). Furthermore, the sense organs gradually become less sensitive, and reactions to stimuli are slower. But generally, the physical declines that occur during middle adulthood are minor and often unnoticeable (Kekäläinen et al., 2019). The major biological change that does occur during middle adulthood pertains to reproductive capabilities. On average, during their late 40s or early 50s, women begin menopause, during which they stop menstruating and are no longer fertile. Because menopause is accompanied by a significant reduction in the production of estrogen, a female hormone, women sometimes experience hot flashes, sudden sensations of heat. Some doctors treat these with hormone therapy (HT), in which menopausal women take the hormones estrogen and progesterone. However, hormone therapy poses several dangers, such as an increase in the risk of breast cancer, blood clots, and coronary heart disease. These uncertainties make the routine use of HT controversial. Currently, the medical consensus seems to be that younger women with severe menopausal symptoms ought to consider HT on a short-term basis. On the other hand, HT is less appropriate for older women after menopause (McCarrey & Resnick, 2015; Shifren et al., 2019). Menopause was once blamed for a variety of psychological symptoms, including depression and memory loss. However, if such difficulties occur, they may be caused by women’s expectations about reaching an “old” age in a society that highly values youth. For example, women’s reactions to menopause vary significantly across cultures. The more a society values old age, the less difficulty its women have during menopause (Espinola et al., 2017; Bullivant Ngati Pikiao et al., 2021). Women’s reactions to menopause vary significantly across cultures. According to one study, the more a society values old age, the less difficulty its women have during menopause. Why do you think this would be the case? BananaStock/Alamy Stock Photo Page 372 For men, the aging process during middle adulthood is more subtle. Men have no physiological signals of increasing age equivalent to the end of menstruation in women; that is, no male menopause exists. In fact, men remain fertile and capable of fathering children until well into late adulthood. However, some gradual physical decline occurs. Men typically become less physically fit, especially after the age of 45. Sperm production decreases, and the frequency of orgasm declines. As is the case for women, though, psychological difficulties associated with

these changes are usually brought about more by an aging men’s inability to meet the exaggerated standards of youthfulness than by physical deterioration (Jackson et al., 2009; Kuosmanen et al., 2016). Social Development: Working at Life Whereas physical changes during adulthood reflect development of a quantitative nature, social developmental transitions are qualitative and more profound. During this period, people typically launch themselves into careers, marriage, and families. The entry into early adulthood is usually marked by leaving one’s childhood home and entering the world of work. People envision life goals and make career choices. Their lives often center on their careers, which form an important part of their identity (Bull et al., 2018; Fadjukoff et al., 2019). In their early 40s, however, people may begin to question their lives as they enter a period called the midlife transition. The idea that life will end at some point can become more influential in their thinking, which leads them to question their past accomplishments (Boylan & Ryff, 2015; Kurther & Burnell, 2019; Soares & Shea, 2021). Although some psychologists—and popular opinion—suggest that physical aging and dissatisfaction with one’s life mark a so-called “midlife crisis,” there is little evidence for such a “crisis.” In fact, the passage into middle age is relatively calm for most people. Most 40-year-olds view their lives and accomplishments positively enough to proceed relatively smoothly through midlife, and the 40s and 50s are often a particularly rewarding period. Rather than looking to the future, people concentrate on the present; their involvement with their families, friends, and other social groups takes on new importance. A major developmental thrust of this period is coming to terms with one’s circumstances (Whitbourne, 2010; Dare, 2011; Wojciechowska, 2017).