Growth and Development from a Middle Age Point of View

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Abstract

The term generativity focuses on the concentration of individuals to care for, teach, and help younger generations, whereas stagnation refers to a lack of care or support of younger generations. It is also said that people in middle age have had experiences that they are ready to share with the younger population (Wojciechowska, 2011). Middle aged people still function similar to young adults, but in other areas resemble those who are older in age. Cognitive function is maintained, but mechanics of cognition such as speed of processing and memory decline. The decline usually happens gradually (Lachman, 2004). The co-worker that I interviewed is the stage of middle adulthood, and as mentioned earlier, that puts her in the generativity verses stagnation stage, and the ego quality is care. For the most part her life is definitely in line with the stages Erikson created, even in dealing with previous situations in her life.

Growth and Development from a Middle Age Point of View

            The term generativity focuses on the concentration of individuals to care for, teach, and help younger generations, whereas stagnation refers to a lack of care or support of younger generations. It is also said that people in middle age have had experiences that they are ready to share with the younger population (Wojciechowska, 2011).  Adults need to create or nurture things that will outlive them, they need to feel useful and accomplished (Feldman, 2014).  Cognitive functioning changes also occur during this developmental period. There are mixed patterns of intellectual growth and decline at this stage. Middle aged people still function similar to young adults, but in other areas resemble those who are older in age. Cognitive function is maintained, but mechanics of cognition such as speed of processing and memory decline. The decline usually happens gradually (Lachman, 2004).

In my interview with a co-worker I had earlier in the week, we talked about what stage she felt as though she was in her life. Of course she is not aware of the developmental stages that Erik Erikson developed, but she mentioned concepts in her life that aligned with those stages. She is fifty-one years old, so she falls in the generativity verses stagnation stage. When I asked her what was the most important thing in her life at this time she told me that it was raising her children. She explained to me that she has three children: one is in college, and the other two are still in high school. She mentioned that she wanted to show her children a better life than the life she had and to raise them to become whomever it is that they desire to be; she wants to encourage them to grow up a make a difference in someone’s life the way she is trying to do for them. She believes that her children are now at the age where they understand what she is trying to do for them and she talks to them a lot about it.

      I also asked her throughout her life what struggles or hardships did she encounter and she mentioned to me the death of her mother when she was fifteen years old. She told me that it was so tragic for her that she started to use drugs to cope with the unbearable feeling of missing her mother. At the time she told me that she was struggling with where she fit in the world and her friends had a heavy influence on the things that she had done, especially the drugs. She told me that after years of doing drugs she started to realize that she was doing the wrong thing and that she was not living “right”. She told me when she got a little older she began to understand that she needed and wanted more out of her life. She met a man on her journey to recover from the use of drugs and her life completely changed again, but this time for the better.  
       The co-worker that I interviewed is the stage of middle adulthood, and as mentioned earlier, that puts her in the generativity verses stagnation stage, and the ego quality is care. At this point in her life she feels that the most important thing is to care for and raise her child appropriately. She said that her children are “the only thing she has” as a sign of how significant her relationship is with her children. She also said that they are not all completely grown yet, so they still need their mother for help and guidance. I found it very interesting how without even knowing the stages she definitely related to her current stage. She is displaying parental generativity which is a continuation of caring for and supporting at the adolescent stage in development (Wojciechowska, 2011). She also mentioned that she did not remember a lot of specific details about the wrong things she did while on drugs, but she did generally remember. I began to wonder if that was the result of her aging and the cognitive decline, or the use of the drugs and using a defense mechanisms such as repression. Feldman (2014) also mention that drug use in adolescences is very high and is use to deal with everyday stressor or tragic events, which was also displayed and discussed by my co-worker. She has a great understanding of her life and her experiences that she is willing to share with the younger generation, which she showed when she agreed to talk to me about her life. For the most part her life is definitely in line with the stages Erikson created, even in dealing with previous situations in her life.

References

Feldman., R. S.  (2014). Development across the life span (7th ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall. 

Lachman, M. E. (2004). Development in midlife. Annual Review of Psychology, 55, 305-31.

Wojciechowska, L. (2011). Basic hope and generativity in middle adulthood. Polish Psychological Bulletin, 42(4), 188-197.