This lecture contains all the information from the first lecture of the course Neuropsychology of ageing at the VU. The summary is supplemented with pictures from the slides and extensive notes from the professor.
True or false?
Old people are less happy and content than young people
o False: old people are more happy than younger people and more content
Most older people will develop dementia
o False
With ageing all cognitive functions will deteriorate
o False: not all the cognitive functions will deteriorate
Why is ageing important to study?
Scientific reasons: ageing is neglected!
- Present complete view of development:
o Developmental psychology: focus on children or young adults
o Ignored continuation development in adulthood
o Popular assumption in developmental psychology: gradual, predictable
decline psychological functions with ageing – two stage model
Two stages of life model: physical and psychological functions develop (growth) up to a point
(maturity), followed by a gradual and predictable decline (senescing):
Biological functions: model is mostly correct with ageing, you develop more diseases
Psychological functions: model is outdated it is not at all true that there is a decline, some
functions will get better and better with age.
- Life span perspective” changes between birth and death regarded as development
o Changes in functional capacity are part of the life span
o Maturation continues until death
o Relevant for studying psychological ageing
o Changes are not predictable, not necessarily
deterioration of functions
Erikson’s 8 stages: strikes the whole life (one of the few classical
theories that does)
- Practical reasons
o Strong increase in number of older persons
worldwide:
Increase in diseases associated with
ageing
Increase demands for treatment and
care
Prevention of age-related disorders
- Over 55s wealthiest age groups: the wealth in the
European Union and the USA the peak is 55-74 in
both groups. And with wealth comes influence.
, What age?
Chronological age: the number of years since birth
Biological age: age relative to the years one can expect to live (or relative to
physical appearance and bodily functions, e.g., blood pressure) = how fit/healthy is
your body
Functional age: person’s competence in carrying out specific tasks relative to
persons of the same chronological age (Charles Aznavour)
Psychological age: how well can a person adapt to changing conditions, flexibility,
attempt new activities
Social age: views held by most people in society about what a person of a particular
chronological age should do and behave (how others expect you to behave at a
certain age)
Chronological age is the most common measure in studies of ageing. Older adulthood
typically starts at 65 (retirement age). Further distinction: young-old (65-74), old-old (75-84)
and oldest-old (> 85). These borders start to shift now! The retirement is for example now 67
so adulthood will also shift. For the moment it is typically like this.
Who is ageing? Persons over 65 no homogeneous group: inter-individual differences & intra-
individual differences. So, another misconception is that all older people all the same, they
are interpreted as a homogeneous group, but this is not the case. The individual differences
usually become bigger at older ages than in younger groups. So, the difference between
people at those higher age groups become larger with some being very well and others
being very disabled.
Increase in number of older persons because of the baby boom: at the root of the process
of population ageing is the exceptionally rapid increase in the number of older persons, a
consequence of the high birth rates of the early and middle portions of the twentieth century
and the increasing proportions of people reaching old age.
Nowadays there is better hygiene and better medical care. People used to die at 50s early
60s, but now people reach the age of 80 easily. But the increasing life expectancy is not
something phenomena in the West. This was a report from 2013: the trend is clear in
different parts of the world. The least developed countries to the most developed countries
the trend is the same. In ALL countries people tend to live longer. More people live
longer! People who reach the age of 80 is not a minority anymore.
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