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Biological and psychosocial theories of aging
Biological and psychosocial theories of aging
Ethical issues in elderly home health care
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It is a well-known fact that everyone gets “old” we all grow up to take on responsibilities and become adults as it is a part of life. What individuals may not know, is that there are many ways to approach adulthood and going through a positive aging process. There are many models that discuss the aging process, however, the Selective Optimization with Compensation Model of Aging is one that should be viewed as most helpful in understanding the aging process and how to be a successful, positive adult. The Selective Optimization with Compensation Model of Aging is a model that has the basic assumption that individuals engage in adaptation throughout their lives, individuals adapt through life being capable of learning and changing. There …show more content…
Selection can direct development, due to personal goals that guide and organize one 's behavior. Optimization focuses on behaviors that maximize the quality of life-based on the completion of desired goals and or the desired outcome of a goal. Optimization is goal-relevant, the means of a goal need to be acquired, applied and refined to be able to reach the desired goal. Optimization is very important in older adults because once a goal is accomplished, the older adult feels more accomplished and is happier with themselves than those who do not accomplish their desired goals. Lastly, compensation, which is essentially finding new strategies or ways around something if a loss were to occur or if a plan did not go as planned. An example of compensation would be hearing the loss in older adulthood, a new strategy would be to seek out medical attention and get a hearing aid. In being educated as to what the SOC Model of Aging is, applying the model to an aging plan can be executed. In my family, there are many biological/physical and social/psychological occurrences. A hurdle I’ve been living with for some time is depression, I am twenty-three and have had depression for about three years, which is not …show more content…
I myself am guilty of saying a few of these terms, and hearing other statements like these and laughing. Prior to this course, my views of older adulthood was simple, ‘we get old, we retire, we become reliant on others.” A term coined by Robert Butler is often used to describe the judgments about the actions, characteristics, and desires of people based on their age are referred to as ageism. Ageism is something many people have in regards to young adults/teenagers as well as older adults/elderly. One of the most common myths about older adults is that they are all senile. “The word senile means to grow old”, which technically is true, older adults grow old, however, the context this term is used in refers to them as being forgetful or have dementia. I now find myself more aware of these myths and stereotypes towards older adults and challenge each stereotype I’ve mentioned. Mentioned above I have stated that all old people are the following: forgetful, slow, and senile. I am now aware that the word senile actually means to grow old, which can no longer be a myth. Yes, individuals become ‘senile’ in the sense that they are growing older. Again, the context it is used in is completely wrong and I will use my awareness of the word to encourage others to use other terms as well as preventing them from describing individuals in an ageist
There are many environmental influences as well as human behaviors that contribute to one’s expected life span. Health and lifestyle are two major factors that play a role in determining what life would be like during the senior years of life. There are many advantages to having a strong social support network that consists of caregivers paid and unpaid. Seniors with this tend to live longer, remain independent and stay active in their later years. Citizens in today’s society are living longer due to technology, medications and an overall healthier lifestyle. Many reach the age of 100 but the maximum human life span is 120 years old. One’s personal data, career choices, environmental influences and amount of active interactions will determine how those of the older population will experience the aging process.
There are two theories of ageing. The disengagement theory is when the elderly unfortunately start to give up with activities or social life. They become withdrawn from society. This is when you disengage from any way of contact or interaction. The reason for disengagement theory may be because physical functions deteriorate. There are three phases of disengagement theory. These are shrinkage of life space is when you are not working or have no contact with friends and family. You don’t get to meet new people. You decide not to take up any hobbies or activities. The second phase is increased individuality. This is when you become independent and what others do does not matter to you. The third phase is acceptance. You start to accept things the way they are. You accept that it is the last stage of life and don’t try to fight it.
are old.” Individuals should have some understanding of the of what the term ageism but maybe
These three myths are assuming older people will not learn new things, the assumption of intellectual decline, and older people are conservative and not receptive to new trends. Businesses assume that the elderly cannot learn technology, but older adults are now taking computer courses and excelling in them. They are found to be out working the younger generations even though they are supposed to be more tech savvy. They are able to learn new things and due to the learning of new things they are keeping their mind active so that their intelligence is not declining. Another myth is that older people are naturally more conservative, but that is not true. They retain the political views that they had when they were younger. Even though they stick to the political views they had when they were younger, they are always open to new ideas. If a view does not go against what they already believe in, they are open in to adopting the ideals as one of their political
There are a number of benefits to be found from thinking about ageing as a lifelong process and not just one that affects older people. This essay will define some of these benefits whilst backing up this reasoning with reference to the K118 material. It will then explain briefly which experiences I have had personally which have led me to responding to the question in this manner.
The concept of successful aging is also termed as super aging or optimal health, coined by Rowe & Kahn in 1987. Fundamentally, successful aging in the elderly illustrates neither usual aging (a gradual decrease in biological and psychological functioning) nor pathological aging. Instead, it illustrates a form of aging connected to a reduced possibility of disability or disease, increased physical and cognitive functioning, including autonomy maintained. Aging and old age for a long time presented as dominated by negative traits and states such as sickness, depression and isolation. The aging process is not simply senescence; most people over the age of 65 are not senile, bedridden, isolated, or suicidal (Aldwin & Levenson, 1994).
Becoming older is a natural progression of life. Late adulthood is the period of life in every individual that follows the period of his or her life after he/she turns 60 years of age. Being active, eating healthy foods and handling stress have been shown to greatly improve the quality of life for senior citizens.
The thought of aging is not void of hesitance given it produces questions deprived of answers in the absence of a crystal ball. Subsequently, aging parallels the unknown; thus, faced with uncertainty adopting a positive perspective remains elusive. Although, it’s preferred to view aging optimistically one cannot escape its negative connotations. Will I be an active agent or isolated burden remains a noteworthy unknown that enervates my optimism. Another consideration leading to my vacillating view on aging is, not knowing to what degree personal competencies and capacities will carry forward, thereby affording autonomy in the elder years. However, as research suggest, the aging process transforms healthy adults into frail ones; thus, dashing one’s hope that such traits will endure (Friis, 2010). Incidentally, at age 48, these lingering questions will soon be answered. In the interim, there is an inherent responsibility to prepare physically, psychologically, and financially for entry into the aging population. Ideally, the goal is to
Czaja, Sara J., and Joeseph Sharit. "The Aging of the Population: Opportunities and Challenges for Human Factors Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. N.p., Spring 2009. Web.
According to DeBrew, author of “Can being ageist harm your older adult patients?” stereotypes and discrimination are evident in various aspects of patient care. “Ageism [is] defined as stereotyping or discrimination aimed at older adults and a lack of knowledge about normal changes of aging and presentation of illness in older adults (. . .)” (DeBrew, 2015). DeBrew (2015) states, “research findings suggest that ageism is common in healthcare” (DeBrew, 2015). Ageism is not only an issue in the healthcare setting, but also among older adults as well as their families. When ageism is present in the healthcare setting it poses
Ageing is a continuing life cycle, it is an ongoing developmental event that brings certain changes in one’s own psychological and physical state. It is a time in one's own life where an elderly individual reminisce and reflect, to bask and live on previous accomplishments and begin to finish his life cycle. There is a significant amount of adjusting that requires an elderly individual to be flexible and develop new coping skills to adapt in the changes that are common in their new life. (Dhara & Jogsan, 2013).
305). Society is constantly bombarded by messages informing us about how to reduce the signs of aging, instead of accepting the natural process (Germov, 2014, p. 305). These beliefs have lead to ageism being very common in society. Ageism is best defined as the negative attitudes, which are associated with the aging process (Novak, 2006, p. 3). Ageism involves an individual or group being stereotyped and experiencing discrimination due to their biological age (Novak, 2006, p. 3). This discrimination can be direct or indirect discrimination, victimisation or harassment (Johnson, 2013, p. 27). Unlike other individuals and groups who are stereotyped and discriminated against, those who are making these comments will one day themselves be of old
Late adulthood should be a time in a person's life where they feel fulfilled. They can look back on their memories and be happy with the way they have lived their life. Now, too many elderly people are not satisfied and look at this stage as depressing. Most fear death of either a loved one or for themselves. This topic is interesting to me because elderly people should make the best of their last stage of life. This topic discusses about getting older, the life changes that they go through physically, emotionally, and mentally. We should know more about it so that we can help our family and friends get through one of the best, yet toughest part of our mortal life.
Aging and being old was dominated by negative characteristics and conditions such as illness, depression, and isolation for a long time (Eibach, Mock, & Courtney, 2010). At first glance the terms “success” and “aging” seem to be in conflict to each other. When asking people about aging, their answers have many facets that are also found in psychological definitions: successful aging is seen as health, maturity and personal growth, self-acceptance, happiness, generativity, coping, and acceptance of age-related limitations. In the psychological sense successful aging is also often seen as the absence of age-associated characteristics (Strawbridge, Wallhagen, & Cohen, 2002). It seems that successful aging means is not aging.
A term used for elders is aged, which is having reached a specific age (McKenzie & Pinger, 2015, p.273). Another term used by elders is aging, which means getting older. Some elders live in assisted-living facilities, which provide an alternative to long-term care in a nursing home. They also can live in retirement communities, which are areas that have been specifically developed for those in their retirement years (McKenzie & Pinger, 2015, p.288). For elders, health care is a major issue for them.