Hannalee Billings

April 9th, 2014

Psych 250
Section A
1. How does class, ethnicity and culture effects psychological, physical and social
development during adulthood?
Class, ethnicity and culture have a direct influence on psychological, physical and
social development throughout the lifespan, especially in adulthood.
Depending on what culture or religion one may be belonging too it can be a major
factor towards whom and when a person may marry. Several Islamic cultures believe
in arranged marriages, many of whom which the two parties never meet until the
wedding date. More so, they typically marry at a young age (18-25) and often only
live together after both educational careers are completed. Many of these cultures do
not believe in divorce, which can definitely affect social development and
encourages coping and stress management to make the marriage work.
African Americans have twice the death rate of Caucasians, and minorities in
general have a higher likelihood of dying than the Caucasian majority. From ages 2034 the most frequent cause of death for black males is homicide, whereas it is third
most frequent amongst Caucasians and second amongst Hispanic males in the same
age range. African American males are also are at higher risk than any other race or
gender for hypertension that can lead to heart attack or stroke.
A healthy diet is important for ones wellbeing, but living in a lower class or
experiencing a sudden low income can put a strain on good nutrition. Healthy food
such as fruits, whole grains, milk, vegetables and lean meats tend to be more
expensive than fast food restaurants and snacks. Because only 61% African
American and 47% Hispanic attend college, knowledge about nutrition and a healthy
wellbeing may be limited.
More so, health insurance can be costly and although not needed for most young
adulthoods, as one ages chronic diseases, especially among the lower class with
poor nutritional habits, become more prevalent. Health care can even affect people
culturally because certain beliefs may limit medical procedures. For example,
Jehovahs witnesses, in the past, have refused vaccinations and still to this day refuse
blood transfusions. Furthermore, many people that their God or upper power will
influence and help cure their ailments and may not seek medical treatment.
It has also been said that the lower a families income, the more likely it is that a
member will experience a disabling illness. This seems to be because people living in
a lower socio economic status are more apt to work in occupations that are

dangerous, such as mining or construction. More so, the crime rates and
environmental pollutants are generally higher in lower-income neighborhoods.
Section B
3. Take at least three concepts and/or theories in the second half of the course and
explain them and give at LEAST one example how you can use this knowledge in
your own life (present or future) and how you might use it in the work place.
There are several concepts or theories for developmental psychology of the life
span, which once researched and understood, can be applied to our daily lives and
work place.
Developmental psychologist K. Warner Shaie offers another perspective on post
formal thought following where Piaget left off, in that Shaie focuses more on the use
of information during adulthood rather than on the changes like Piaget did. There are
4 stages: acquisitive (childhood and adolescent), achieving (young adult), responsible
(middle adulthood), and reintegrative (late adulthood). Currently at the age of 19
going on 20 I am in the acheiving stage, which Shaie states as a time where young
adults must confront and resolve major issues and the decisions they will make about
them; such as what job to take or whom to marry, which require the ability to
establish long-term goals to achieve success. For example, I am currently working on
getting my associates in liberal arts so I can transfer to Salisbury University to
achieve my ultimate goal of becoming a social worker. I will use my intelligence to
achieve long-term goals to further my educational and professional career. But I can
also use this in my own personal life by confronting the issue of marriage: should I
marry soon? Or should I not? And I can do this by putting my goals in perspective
and evaluating if this is the right time for marriage.
Paul and Margaret Baltes as developmental psychologists have come up with a
strategy theory for older adults called selective optimization. Selective optimization
means that the process by which people concentrate on particular areas to
compensate for there loses in other areas. Therefore when I get older, although my
reaction time will be longer, I will have more knowledge to keep up with my
coworkers. For example, working in the social work field, I will have to do a lot of
paper work and typing and if my typing speed decreases I will be able to keep up
with younger coworkers by already knowing what I am going to type before they do.
This can also be applied to my personal life because I use computers for leisure as
well. Furthermore, whilst driving, the older I am the more area I know and therefore
even though my reaction time is slower I know my surroundings better to
compensate.
Another concept during the lifespan that pertains to the work place is burnout,
which usually occurs during middle adulthood. Burn out is a situation that occurs
when workers experience dissatisfaction, disillusionment, frustration, and weariness

from the job. For example, if someone is working as a social worker and they feel
that not enough of their time is available for each child or patient they might feel
inadequate in their job. A way to fix this is the thought of being able to be there as
much as you possibly can is more than not being there at all to help. Personally, I
tend to burn out often from schoolwork; I can fix this problem by working on my
time management skills.