1) Describe physical changes occurring during middle adulthood. By the forties, difficulty reading small print is a common experience. Around age 60 a condition called presbyopia, meaning, literally, “old eyes” develops. Throughout adulthood, the size of the pupil shrinks and the lens yellow. Consequently, the amount of light reaching the retina is reduced. Hearing is another change that occurs during middle adulthood. 14 percent of American adults between 45 and 64 years of age have a hearing loss. As we age, inner ear structures that transform mechanical sound waves into neural impulses deteriorate due to natural cell death or reduced blood supply as a result of atherosclerosis. Muscle mass declines very gradually in the forties and fifties. A common pattern of change is an increase in body fat and loss of lean body mass (muscle and bone). Reduction of bone density during adulthood is su
3) Describe cognitive development and cognitive abilities as they develop during middle adulthood. How is I.Q. different? Midlife is a time of great expansion in cognitive competence as adults apply their vast knowledge and life experiences to problem solving in the everyday world. Older adults are increasingly disadvantaged as situations requiring rapid responding become more complex. For unknown reasons, reaction time slows at a faster rate for women than for men. Research reveals gains from early to middle adulthood in skills that tap both crystallized intelligence (which depends on accumulate knowledge and experience) and fluid intelligence (which depends more on information-processing skills). Large individual differences among middle-aged adults remind us that intellectual development is multidimensional and multidirectional. Individuals who use their intellectual skills are likely to reta
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