Development Through Life: A Psychosocial Approach - Essay Example

Chapter 9 In this chapter, Barbara & Philip Newman (2009) explore the challenges that youths of adolescence, 19 years old and younger, face. Issues such as teenage sexuality and its effects such as teenage pregnancy and STIs are examined. In addition, this chapter also highlights teenagers’ desire for freedom manifested through going to college, development of personal identity, parenthood, depression, and revision of teenager’s relationship with their parents. According to Barbara & Philip Newman, early adolescence is a period of development of growth towards maturity. During this period, young children experience rapid growth, development of sexual identity, and a desire to be independent of parents. At the early stages of this period of development, being accepted and being able to fit in is instrumental in teenagers’ lives. However, as the youths age, they become concentrated on things that they value most. Finding value is often associated with experimenting. Teenagers who feel unaccepted at this stage face depression and being unwanted. In the United States, a high percentage of teenagers experiment with drugs, sex, and alcohol at this time. In some cases, especially for girls, adolescents face the problem of unwanted sexual attention. In the national survey, 7.5 percent of students in grade 9 and 12 reported that they had had sexual intercourse (p.349). At least 25 percent of teenagers of this age who were sexually active contacted STIs in the same year; 451,000 infants were born to women of the age of 19 or younger in the US (p.350). During this age, it is required that teenagers are natured by the society so that they do not grow up as delinquent adults but rather as productive adults. Emphasizing integrity and responsibility should be the focus of parents. Parents should spend time with their children, so they understand them while creating time for leisure and promoting productive activities. Teenagers should feel love to defend them away from the pressure of falling prey to drugs, depression, and irresponsible sexual activity. Chapter 10 In this chapter, Barbara and Philip Newman explore the development stages of later adolescents usually experienced between the ages of 18-24. Development processes that occur during this stage include attachment and identity formation, gender identity, deeper attraction to the opposite sexes, developed sense of independence, and the growing relevance of ego in shaping relationships between individuals with others. At this stage of development, a logical and functional identity formation occurs. This process occurs when young people distance themselves from the expectations of their parents and other family. Moreover, creation of values is most often shaped by values acquired in the environment. If the young person is in college, the identity is shaped by the college environment and by the values acquired through learning and from the peers. This development of new identity often accrues from a developed autonomy caused by leaving home. However, this often depends on the culture and structure of the family (p. 394). The experience of college creates room for new ideas to be developed. The ideas formed here are lasting and can influence the future aspects in career, relationships, religion, and even political opinions. Even students who do not leave their parents for college create a mental independence that separates them from their parents. In addition, a renewed attachment with parents can be created or destroyed depending on the correlation of values. If the young person’s values correspond with those of the parents, the deeper attachment is possible; however, if the values differ, then attachment is destroyed. During the ages of 14-21, young people become conscious of finances. Financial problems play a deciding role in leaving home as well as creating deeper relationship with a member of the opposite sex for marriage. Late adolescence is the time of self-discovery and the initiation to adulthood. Values become influential in shaping relationships. Chapter 11 The life stage defined as early adulthood refers to people between the ages of 24-34; according to Barbara & Philip Newman, this stage of life is normally full of vibrancy, activity, healthiness, friendships, romance, child bearing, and work or career. However, these characteristics are not uniform for every member of this group. Because of the need of self-actualization, self-acceptance, and competence, unfulfilled dreams can lead to alcoholism, drug abuse, depression, and broken marriages. Emotionally, young adults are capable of finding solutions for complex situations and arguments. They are emotionally stable and are aware of the absence of fixed values. Development of careers is a key priority. Work instead of school starts to play a key role in life. Young adults are mostly on the verge of acquiring balance between independence and attachment to the family such as parents and siblings. In the early adulthood, relationships become deeper and multifaceted. Most heterosexual relationships are designed to acquire a lifetime partner. Sexual and emotional relationships are defined by the need for self-realization that is characterized by three phases. The first stage is original attraction that comes from physical attraction and valued behaviors. Deeper relationships occur because of positive self-disclosure and other forms of homogeneity. The relationships are solidified by feelings of empathy, compatibility, security, and harmony (p. 442). Married young couples struggle while adjusting with the expectation of new babies or the decision not to have babies. The arrival of a baby can also result into changes that can be stressful to young adults. The arrival of babies leads to a change in lifestyle to accommodate the new member of the family. Young adults can be overwhelmed with the pressure of having a new member of the family if they are not adequately prepared for this task. The early adult stage in life requires preparedness. Individuals should be prepared to handle the pressure that comes with having a new person in your life. I think that courting should be encouraged. This way, people will learn each other before they commit themselves to permanent relationships. While having a baby is an indication of creating a family, families should be encouraged to have babies only if they cannot afford them or are emotionally ready. Divorces or giving up children for adoption eventually harms the children’s development. The children should not be punished for crimes that they do not commit. I think parents should take responsibility on this one. Chapter 12 Middle- adulthood is the age bracket of 34-60. During this stage, changes that occur to the life include physical development, career, marriage, and the redefinition of the meaning of life. It is common for middle-aged adults to take a closer look at features of their lives such as work, relationships, family, and finances. During middle-adulthood, adults have a view of their careers. Middle age adults have settled on careers and have probably advanced to higher levels. In general, career accomplishment is often high among members of this group. Financially, retirement planning becomes an issue of concern. College payments and the hustle of maintaining a self-sustaining household became major challenges. For single parents, the burden of raising children alone can be gruesome and challenging. Emotionally, intimacy, marriage, and family are the main concerns during middle adulthood. Adults of this age bracket are concerned about raising their children and seeing them grow. Many have had fulfilled relationships in the form of marriage or fulfilling intimate relationships. Others are divorced and struggling with the pain or the fulfillment of satisfaction. Remarried middle adults agree that new marriages bring a new set of challenges that include staring new families, raising children, and splitting finances. For middle age adults, the struggle in life is between generativity vs. stagnation (p. 512). Chapter 13 According to Barbara & Philip Newman, late adult stage of life is marked with individuals coming to terms with their lives and reflecting on life in a positive manner. The psychological debate that late adults face in life is the struggle between integrity and despair. Achieving integrity refers to accepting one’s life, accomplishments, and realizing morality. Conversely, individuals at this stage look back on their lives with a sense of doubt over their lives’ worth. Resolving the debate between despair and integrity cultivates wisdom (p. 530). Adults in the late stages of lives vary across cultures and societies. However, most adults spend their time with friends and family. A common stress for late adults is the absence of close family members to provide company and love. Late adulthood marriages are marked with the struggle of retirement. This often caused by the need to adjust life to fit without a regular work schedule. However, most adults at the late stages of life who are married are happier that single persons at this stage of life (p. 555). At this stage, physical changes such as a decline in hearing, visionary problems, change in taste, smell, and memory are common problems of victims of old age. Physical challenges such as falling organs, blood pressure problems, and hypertension and heart problems are common amongst members of this age group. Memory loss is also common amongst individuals of this age group (p. 555). Regardless of race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic class, individuals at the late adult stage must find ways of staying active through leisure, classes, volunteer activities, and other fun activities. Research points that staying active reduces stress, hopelessness, and gives older people a sense of enjoyment in life. Chapter 14 Elders are true nonconformists of contemporary times. The existence of elders in modern society offers proof that adulthood does not last forever. There is always life after adulthood, although exceptionally few people live to see this other side of life. Elders prove that there is life beyond retirement and the regular hustles of life. In a way, elders also remind that happiness in life is not limited to activities such as careers, sports, and intense activity. Elders are reminders of the existence of solitude in lives, and the happiness that can be derived from that solitude. Regardless of the beauty of the elderly in the society, many elders are away from the society and are denied adequate care and love. In this chapter, Barbara & Philip Newman remind us of the challenges of the elderly in the society. The challenges that elders face in the world today include gender gap between women and men. Many elders are women, indicating that men die earlier. Elders also face challenges such as behavioral changes, extreme physical challenges, loneliness as well as the lack of attention from family due to fast-paced lifestyle. Barbara & Philip Newman’s message was to remind the need to care for the elderly, show them love, and bring happiness in their lives. Elders remind us the beauty of life and the happiness that we receive from living a purposeful life. In some cases, elders see joy seeing generations multiply and the pride of passing on family traditions. The culture of supporting the elderly in the society should be encouraged and not shunned. Chapter 15 This was a fascinating chapter to read. I asked myself how I could understand death. After reading this chapter, I have realized that an individual can be prepared for death by a systematic psychological process that brings reassurance. I also did not know that the pain of death could be lessened. One way of doing this is preparing individuals to die since they can find ways of taking care of their partners. The role of rituals in death varies from different cultures. While other cultures celebrate death, others treat it as a reason for grief. According to Barbara and Philip Newman, death marks the end of human development that begins when and the individual is born and ends when that individuals finally succumbs to the forces of nature. Death marks the final stage of life and should be treated as an important stage in life. Unnecessary fear of death is not helpful to the society simply, because it causes fear, which is not helpful. Grieving is a helpful time for the affected families, because it gives the affected family a chance to forget the pain of death. It also fosters a possibility of life in the absence of the dead family member. In general, old people and bed ridden people are more aware of their closeness to death, and this forces them to begin prepare for death. The rest of the population has extremely little awareness of death unless they have faced it through a close family member or friend. Personally, I think people’s view on death depends on a person’s humanity. The more love an individual has for humanity, the more gracefully the individual will die. While death is painful, it can be constructive if it takes away individuals who face too much pain, are abandoned, or depressed due to hopelessness in life. References Newman, B., & Newman, P. (2010). Development Through Life: A Psychosocial       Approach. Belmont, CA: Wordsworth Cintage Learning. Read More