Abstract
An adult female, Rebecca, is
interviewed at the age of 53. While in the developmental stage of middle
adulthood, she is presented with the psychosocial crisis of generativity versus
stagnation. Rebecca depends on her Christian faith to deal with the stressors in
life. Reading scripture and engaging in daily quiet time help reduce her stress levels. When a problem appears, she prefers to gather information
to try to solve the problem. Rebecca is facing challenges related to the
physical stamina of her job and the care of her elderly mother. In her current
developmental stage, she finds parts of her job, being a parent, and dating to
be rewarding. The Generativity Model is discussed and can be used to explain gernerativity
in middle adulthood (Ehlman & Ligon, 2012). Finally, recent research on
neuroscience reports that reductions in brain activity can lead to slight reductions
in cognitive functioning as we grow older (Grady, 2008).
Praying
to Diminish Stress
Interview
For
my interview, I talked with an adult female, who will be called Rebecca. At the
age of 53, Rebecca is in the middle adulthood stage of development. According
to the stages of psychosocial development proposed by Erikson, middle adulthood
presents the psychosocial crisis of generativity versus stagnation.
Throughout
Rebecca’s life she faced the death of her father when he was only 56, the end
of her marriage, and becoming a single parent. Currently, she is dealing with
the declining health of her mother after a recent stoke. In past stages of
life, as well as now, Rebecca depends on God, her Christian faith, and prayer
to help her cope with daily stressors and difficulties in life. When stressed,
Rebecca reads scripture to relieve anxiety and gain perspective. She makes an
effort to have a quiet prayer time daily to minimize her level of stress. Also,
when a problem arises, she tries to gather information that will help her stay informed
and find a solution to the issue.
In
middle adulthood, Rebecca faces challenges related to her job and the health of
her mother. As a dental assistant, she is standing most of the work day, which
is physically demanding. This work condition is becoming more tiring as she
ages and her level of energy is declining. The biggest challenge that Rebecca
is facing is being the primary care provider for her mother. After a stroke and
a temporary stay in a nursing home, Rebecca’s mother is living with her. Her
mother can no longer be by herself, so Rebecca and her brother must arrange for
her care. This has changed her daily living, how she makes plans, and her
amount of free time. She is also dealing with the change in the relationship
between her and her mother. Although her job is becoming physically demanding,
she is satisfied with her job and enjoys working with her colleagues. Rebecca
had the joy of raising her daughter, who is now in college. She still finds
being a parent rewarding and remains close with her daughter. Rebecca is also
in a stable relationship that could lead to a successful marriage.
Generativity vs. Stagnation
Recent
research regarding the developmental stage of generativity versus stagnation
includes an examination of the Generativity Model presented by Ehlman and Ligon
(2012). According to Ehlman and Ligon (2012), the Generativity Model consists of
seven features. Inner desire and cultural demand are the first two features,
and they relate to the motivation to engage in generative behavior (Ehlman
& Ligon, 2012). The next three features of concern, belief, and commitment relate
to the task of contributing to society and passing knowledge to the younger
generations (Ehlman & Ligon, 2012). Ehlman and Ligon (2012) report that the
sixth feature is action, which is the rate of generative behaviors. Finally, narration
is the seventh feature and it refers to how one incorporates generative actions
into one’s life story (Ehlman & Ligon, 2012). According to Ehlman and Ligon
(2012), this model can be used to explain the process of generativity in middle
adulthood.
There
has also recent research on neurobiology in middle adulthood. Grady (2008) reports
that as we age we seem to retain basic neural processes. However, as we age, we
do seem to have reduced activity in some areas of the brain (Grady, 2008). Grady (2008) also reports these reductions in
brain functioning can lead to slight reductions in cognitive functioning as we
grow older.
References
Ehlman, K., & Ligon, M. (2012). The application
of a generativity model for older adults. International Journal of Aging
& Human Development, 74(4), 331-344.
Grady, C. L. (2008). Cognitive neuroscience of aging.
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1124, 127-144.
doi:10.1196/annals.1440.009
When looking at your story of rebecca's life i love seeing that she was very honest about dealing with her mother during this difficult time. I am sure trying to take care of her financially, physically, and emotionally could take quite the toll on any person let alone work another job full time and have a daughter in college. She clearly has a lot of love for her family. I'd be very interested to hear exactly how she copes with that stress and how she manages caring for her mother and working. I am sure eventually most of us will get to a place in our life where this is us. Whether we are the one caring for our parent or our child is caring for us.
ReplyDeleteReading this story has opened my eyes to all of the struggles in life that many times, we as individuals overlook. I appreciate the honesty that was presented in the interview from Rebecca. Being only in my early twenties, I feel as if many times my life has become far too hectic for me to handle at time. Not only being a full time graduate student but working a full time third shift job many times leaves me feeling completely overwhelmed and stressed to say the least. However reading this story has helped me to put back into perspective my own lack of "stress" that I am actually facing at the time. I understand that we all have different levels of stress and work that we must complete in our own live, however, when compared to Rebecca and the struggles that she has faced in recent times, my stresses are far less. I believe that understanding the life span development as a whole, many times we as people become selfish and believe that our own crisis that we are dealing with becomes greater than any dealt with before. We become self-centered and lack the understanding that many people have already gone through such stages of their lives, and have already overcome the exact struggle that we ourselves are dealing with. Having to go through the struggles, trials and triumphs that Rebecca has faced, I am sure has given her new perspective on life, and has caused her to refer to the greatest stress relief, and that is God. Through all of the difficulty that has come in her life, taking the time to pray, study and be in relationship with the Father shows ultimate maturity and hope in the love and compassion of the One who is always there for us. It is encouraging to see that even through all of the trials and struggles that Rebecca has faced, her mission in life is to continue to live a rewarding and productive life, both in her accomplishments and relationships.
ReplyDeleteGenerativity-versus-stagnation stage according to Erikson is the stage during middle adulthood in which people consider their contributions to family and society and this is evident in the life of Rebecca. I admire her for being family oriented and for taking good care of her mother and daughter. I remember my mother in the life of Rebecca. She also works tirelessly to support our family. She works as a teacher but every time I speak to her she always complains about the stress and the declining level of her energy. We tried to convince her to apply for early retirement but she said that she still happy and finds her job rewarding especially when she sees the smile in the face of her students. With Rebecca being so stressed with her job, death of her father, divorce and the condition of her mother, I just thought that it is too much to handle. But I am sure that she is also learning from her experiences and being in the middle adulthood stage, she is mature enough to handle these challenges unlike people who are in the early stages of life. But I hope that she can also manage it well and takes good care of herself because stress at this stage can have significant impact on health and can probably lead to or affect serious health conditions. I also hope that her new relationship will work out as this also can help her in many ways.
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