GUÍA PRIMER PARCIAL Basic terms

• Life expectancy: stadistic, statistical probable time on

PSYCHOGERANTOLOGY organism can live according to age and other circumstances
• Longevity: descriptive and observable, life durability, life
expectancy in based on this term
UNIT 1: Psychical functioning on older adults • Life circle: longest period the members of a specie can live
Professional and occupational cycle Changes during senescence’s
• After their 65 years old they like their jobs, it’s not stressful Biological aging theories
• More product than younger ones
Generic programming
• Work that requires precision, at constant rhythm and Programmed senescence theory:
theories genes
mature judgement

Retirement Endocrine theory: hormones

Immunological theory: failures
• First stablished in many industrial countries, end of lath
century and beginning of the 20th Evolutionary theory: reproduce
• Obligatory retirement at 65 years old Variable rate theories Wear theory: wear out (desgaste)
• Obligatory retirement declared illegal in some countries
Free radicals’ theory: accumulated
Gender damage
Life rate theory: metabolism
• Men: “honeymoon”, then continues retirement (+metabolismo-mueres)
• Women: retirement with a lesser influence, mood affected
Autoimmune theory: attack itself
• In both, self-control was the key to predict their mood = specific conditions (cancer)
Styles Pshysical changes

• Focus on family lifestyle: daily activities | non cognitive Skin • Wrinkles

• Balance investment: there are balance between work, • Moles
family and… • Liver spots
• UV rays
• Serious recreation: they learn cognitive activities
Organic systemic • Chronical stress
(recreation, carpentry
• Depress the immune functioning
• Voluntary work: activities that bring personal satisfaction
• Which makes elder
• People susceptible to infections
 Height and bones • Kyphosis • Chronic insomnia (not good)
• Osteoporosis • Depression or drugs (med drugs)
Brian • Decrease on the capacity to inhibit • Easily wake up
irrelevant or non-wanted thoughts
• Gets smalls Sexuality later life
• Cognitive functions decrease Men • Keep any active sexual expression 70-80
• Main thing a higher sexual activity than
Social and cognitive consequences due to brain changes women
• More time have erection y ejaculate
• Cognitive functions decreases: decrease on the capacity to Women • Have psychical ability all life
inhibit or non-wanted thoughts • Excitation signals are less intense (ex:
• The amygdala shows a lesser response towards negative breast engorgement)
events, but not towards positive (las respuestas hacia lo Important factor: good sexual functioning = continuous sexual
negative se polarizan) activity

Sensory and psychomotor functioning UNIT 2: Cognitive functioning in older adults

• Hearing: hearing loss Intelligence

• Vision:
Classic aging patter / Weschler Scale
o More light required
o Problems to perceive depth and color • Decrease of performance scale– new information
o Accidents as consequences • Maintain of verbal scale– same information
o Cataracts and muscular degeneration
Seattle’s study
o Glaucoma

Strength, resistance, balance, and reaction time • Perceptual speed declines

• The long they live, the most decline of performance
• Usually, adults lose from 10% to 20% of their strength at 70 • Variation among individuals
years old • Training helps
• Resistance also diminishes among women
• The strength and muscle power decrease because is a result Primary mental • perceptual speed
of natural aging activity decrease and illness habilities • inductive reasoning
• space orientation
Sleep • number / calculation
• fluency
• Sleep and dream less • verbal meaning
• Deep sleep hours restricted
Problem solving • Semantic: a lesser deterioration after 60´s, general
knowledge
• Efficient / flexible way
• Procedural: relatively little affected, steps
• Age differences reduced
• Solving problems: don’t diminish, there had been progress Brian structures
at them
• Quality has a modest relation with tases performance not
with age

Changes on processing capacities

• Processing speed – first to deteriorate

• Switch attention – tends to become slower
• Knowledge and ingrained habits – better performance
• Training – increase speed to process information Wisdom
Cognitive capacities and mortality • Jung and Erickson talked about as end of personal growth
• Has been studs as cognitive ability
• Implies insight and paradoxical awareness of reality
Reaction
IQ • Paul Baltes and Cols: research
time
Categories wisdoms • Life context in social changes
as expert knowledge • Life uncertainties
• Study 15 points below = 75% die before 70´s • Factual (pragmatism)
• Reaction Time = proves efficiency at information processing • Procedural
• Relativism on ethical valves and life
Memory

Short term memory • Meaning of life and human condition

• Sensory memory (+): it remains, what it captures now • Levels od knowledge, reason and advice
• Working memory (-): más difícil acomodar nueva • Associated with depth and balance (concrete situations)
información • Combines mind and virtue (character)
Wellness: personal / humanity
Long term memory • Not easy to get, but to recognitive
• Episodic: highest probability of deterioration, original
memory
 Unit 3: psychosocial functioning in older people

Integrity of self us hopelessness

8th stage

• Integrity
• Acceptance
• Wisdom
• No regress
• Hopelessness inevitable

Paternity

• Bonds with keep strongers

• Differences between traditional and Scandinavian European
countries
• Bond between mother and daughter tends to be really close
• Offspring provide help
• Some elder parents continue with economical help and
worry very much if their offsprings have a mental or physical
illness
• Senior people that had to take care of children feel pressure

Grandchildren

• Satisfying (comrade)
• Pamper the grandchildren

Friends

• Healthier
• Happier
• Hanlie change
• Intimacy
• Fun and pleasure
• Immediate
• Joyful pressure