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Lifespan Case Study Project Guidelines 2
Lifespan Case Study Project Guidelines
A case study is an in-depth look at the life experiences of a single person. For
this assignment, you will interview a single individual who has made it to the late
adulthood developmental period (i.e., they are at least 65 years of age) and
explore various topics that we have covered in this course.
This project (worth 100 points) is designed to:
Give you a ‘taste’ of what it’s like to be a developmental psychologist
Apply and discuss various concepts and key terms from a lifespan
perspective.
Provide you with an opportunity to compose a project using APA-style, a
style of citation and referencing that is adhered to in psychology as well as
numerous other fields
General Assignment Requirements:
Title Page and APA-style reference page is required (abstract & running
heads not required)
Font requirements: Times New Roman, Arial, or Calibri, size 12-point
Double-space between lines
One-inch margins all the way around
Five Pages Minimum of body/content
Utilization of at least four scholarly resources (the textbook and class
notes DO count as sources) (two must be from scholarly outside sources after 2005)
Wikipedia is not considered a reliable source and therefore is not
acceptable for use in this class.
APA-style in-text citations ARE required.
Remember that when using outside research, you must paraphrase the
information while still citing. You do not have permission to simply cut and
paste others’ works into your own.
Use of direct quotes should be kept to a minimum, but are perfectly
acceptable if citing dialogue from your interview
File must be uploaded in the proper location
Acceptable file formats include: .doc .docx or .pdf
Must be completed by the date and time indicated in the course schedule in
order to be eligible for full credit.
Twenty percent will be deducted from the final score of late
submissions for each day they are late until they no longer worth any
points.
Specific Paper Requirements:
Your paper will be divided into four parts (in your final paper, please label each
part as Part One, Part Two, Part Three, and Part Four):
Part One: Case Background (one paragraph minimum in length):
This section should include:
The person’s name (for confidentiality purposes, please use only first
names), age, and relationship to you
City/country where the person was born, city/country where they currently
reside, and with whom they currently live. Do they live in a house,apartment, assisted living facility, retirement community, etc..?
Current or former occupation, marital status, # of children/grandchildren
Part Two: Topical Investigation (two pages minimum in length):
This section should explore and apply various topics that we have covered this
semester to the person’s life. Below are some possible questions you can ask
your person (feel free to include the questions in this portion of the paper). Feel
free to explore topics beyond this list as appropriate.
How would you describe your friendships currently and how have your
friendships changed/evolved over the years?
What was work like as a young adult, middle adult, and older adult?
How has your level of stress changed or stayed the same over the years?
How have you coped with stress over the years?
What was your highest educational achievement and how did
school/academics influence you as a person?
How have your romantic relationships evolved over the years?
What is/was your relationship with your parents like over the years? How
about siblings?
How has your personality evolved over the years – has it been relatively
stable or has it changed?
How has your level of intelligence and/or cognitive thought evolved over
the years?
Do you have any areas of expertise?
Do you speak any second languages and if so, in what ways might it have
benefited you?
How have you changed morally over the years?
How have you changed emotionally over the years?
How would you describe your mental health over the years?
How would you describe your self-esteem now (that is, how do you feel
about yourself) and how might that differ or be the same as in earlier time
periods?
How has culture/religion/race/ethnicity/gender influenced your
development and have you ever experienced discrimination based on your
group membership?
How might your life be different/unique when compared to your peers?
Were you particularly impacted by any major historical events?
How has your memory abilities changed throughout the years?
Have you experienced any physical challenges in the past and how are
you doing physically now?
When it comes to children and/or grandchildren, how have those
relationships evolved over the years? If you don’t have any children or
grandchildren, how might this have impacted you positively and/or
negatively?
How has your diet/exercise changed over the years?
In your opinion, what is your greatest accomplishment?
Is there anything you still wish to accomplish in this lifetime?
What advice do you have regarding how to live a happy and healthy life?
Part Three: Theories (two page minimum in length, APA-style in-text
citations are required in this section):
This semester, we have explored many developmental theories. Select at least
two psychologists and/or theories from the list below and apply to your case. In
this section, you need to incorporate scholarly information from at least 2 sources
(your textbook and class notes each count as one source).
Mary Ainsworth
Jeffrey Arnett (see: Early Adulthood)
Noam Chomsky
Dexter Dunphy (see: adolescence, socioemotional development)
Erik Erikson
Joan Erikson
Sigmund Freud
Howard Gardner
Daniel Golman (see: Middle Childhood, socioemotional Development)
G. Stanley Hall (see: adolescence, storm & stress theory)
Lawrence Kohlberg
Gisella Labouvie-ViefDaniel Levinson
James Marcia (see: adolescence, identity)
Robert Peck
Jean Piaget
Robert Sternberg
Harry Stack Sullivan
George Vaillant
Lev Vygotsky
Continuity/Discontinuity Issue (see Chapters 1, 2)
Nature/Nurture (see chapters 1, 2, 3)
Neural network vs. information-loss view of aging
Original Sin/Innate Goodness/Tabula Rasa (see Chapters 1,2)
Parenting Styles
Personality
Social theories of aging including: disengagement, activity, continuity, and
socioemotional selectivity
Stability/Change Issue (See Chapters 1,2)
Temperament
Wear and Tear vs. Genetic Adaptation vs. Cellular view of aging
Part Four: Summary (1/2 page minimum in length):
This section should include a summary of your findings and overall impression of
this person’s life. In addition, I would like for you to answer the following
questions:
How would you describe this person’s development in terms of trajectory?
Would you say that his or her life is cyclical in nature? That is, is he or she
on a path to end up right where they started? Or is his/her life more of a
straight line, in which they are ending up in a completely different place
from where they started? Or would you consider a different trajectory
altogether?
What lessons did you learn from interviewing this person that you aregoing to apply to your own life so that you can be happy and healthy for as
long as possible?
Here’s a poem to inspire you in this section:
The Little Boy and the Old Man
By: Shel Silverstein
Said the little boy, “Sometimes I drop my spoon.”
Said the old man, “I do that too.”
The little boy whispered, “I wet my pants.”
“I do that too,” laughed the little old man.
Said the little boy, “I often cry.”
The old man nodded, “So do I.”
“But worst of all,” said the boy, “it seems
Grown-ups don’t pay attention to me.”
And he felt the warmth of a wrinkled old hand.
“I know what you mean,” said the little old man
Lifes disappointments
Life’s disappointments
Contents
TOC o “1-3” h z u Introduction PAGEREF _Toc381195462 h 1Coping with disappointment PAGEREF _Toc381195463 h 1Conclusion PAGEREF _Toc381195464 h 2
IntroductionIn life one is likely to face disappointments. Life’s disappointments come in different sizes and shapes and they occur to people of different ages though at the core exists a similar principle. Disappointments exist as a result of the difference between what one expects and what is there in reality. Depending on how deep the disappointment is one might experience a wide range of emotions such as sadness, hurt, jealousy or anger over a period of time.
Coping with disappointmentIf one is already in the throes of disappointment they should not be depressed instead one should sit down and the alternatives that may present themselves in the situation. Denial is very powerful therefore accepting the situation as it is very crucial. For instance if the disappointment is someone that has not come through in the intended way then one should let go and focus on things that they will get positive returns.
One should also draw inspiration fro their role models after being disappointed. Very many people around us can be role models as they come through difficult situations successfully. This can be friends, family members or even celebrities. Gaining strength from their life journey’s of this people enable one to move forward towards their future as well as from disappointing situations.
Talking to friends or family can help one get cope with the situation easily. Letting out the disappointment is very important this is by letting people around you know how one feels. People can give their ideas on how best one can handle the situation. One should not allow themselves to be victims but instead one should be ready to talk of about disappointments, acknowledge them and forgive those that disappointed them and move on. Holding on resentment that is negative will only weigh someone down .one should not look back but forge forward.
One should find hope and optimism in their life. If the particular situation that lead to the disappointment has failed then should look forward to other options that can work out. Creation of other goals and objectives as well as finding people that will cheer one also helps the situation. In life there are always positive things to aspire to therefore one should not be afraid of taking risks simply because of one or two disappointments that someone has been through.
Some disappointments have the potential of hitting someone hard and it often takes time before working them through and moving forward. One should therefore be patient with themselves as they go through that phase of recovery. Knowing that at the end of the day there is hope in every situation and therefore approaching a situation differently ensures that one gets through the situation and any other disappointment that they might come across.
ConclusionCoping with disappointments is just the same as coping with loss. Disappointments help one build their character and patience if one deals with them appropriately. When one copes with the disappointment in a healthy way then one will reach a point where they not only accept the situation but also learn from it. Coping with disappointment is very difficult but if one words through it then other opportunities present themselves.
The article Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder a review of the essential facts by Daley D
Life Span Development
Author
Institution
Date
Introduction
The article “Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: a review of the essential facts” by Daley D examined the various issues pertaining to the condition. It explains that ADHD refers to a complex disorder that results from genetic and environmental influences or factors. Daley explains that while there has been modification in the name for the last five decades, ADHD’s current diagnosis shares the core inattention, impulsivity, motor restlessness, and symptoms with the earlier terms. The earlier terms include hyperactive child syndrome, minimal brain dysfunction and attention deficit disorder. In addition, the writer states that the etiological explanations of the disorder are either environmental or biological. Biological explanations of the disorder include brain structure and genetics, as well as their bearing on neuropsychology. The predisposing environmental factors include diet and parenting. As concerning intervention methods, the writer focuses on psychosocial intervention and the use of medication. However, he acknowledges that the use of medication has been known to have side effects especially in the case of children below school going age. He also examines asserts the fact that very little is known concerning the relationship between the later expression of ADHD disorder and the early hyperactivity.
It is noteworthy that the writer has been very thorough in examining the predisposing factors and the causes of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. However, the intervention section has been virtually neglected in this journal. Unlike the other sections, the writer has not examined any specific methods of interventions that are used in treating Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, but only goes on to generalize in the form of medication and psychosocial intervention methods.
In addition, the writer has ignored the significance of dietary methods of treating Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Supplementing or modifying one’s diet would in fact remedy the symptoms that are associated with the disorder. In any case, he had acknowledged that the condition could also be caused by the diet of the individual. Would it not follow that changes in the diet would be effective in treating it? Studies show that an individual could eliminate toxic additives in the diet and consume more organic whole foods in order to remedy the problem (Selikowitz, 2009). Food dyes, synthetic sweeteners, processed foods and artificial additives have been shown to trigger abnormalities in the brain, which spurs uncontrollable behavior and inattentiveness. Given that diet plays a significant role in enhancing focus, behavior, and metal capacity, the writer could have done more than mention it among the causes.
In addition, the writer opines that parenting has a bearing on the occurrence of children as well as their parents. While this may be the case, it is noteworthy that the writer does not provide a clear relationship between parenting and the occurrence of ADHD. In addition, that assertion would raise question as to whether the disorder is an ailment or just a result of the environment. It is noteworthy that ADHD has been shown to have a relationship with an individual’s genetic makeup. In this case, the assertion that the condition would arise as a result of parenting raises questions as to whether parenting would have any impact on the genetic make-up of a child or even the parent. Science has shown that this is impossible, which raises questions as to the assertion that parenting causes ADHD (Selikowitz, 2009)
Conclusion
Much is unknown about ADHD, not only as pertaining to it very nature but also on its causes and even the possible remedies. Much still remains to be done on the issue in order to offer a clear explanation to these issues.
References
Mark Selikowitz, 2009. ADHD. London: Oxford University Press.
D. Daley. (2006). Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: a review of the essential facts
Child: Care, Health and Development journals, Volume 32, Issue 2, pages 193–204
<http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2214.2006.00572.x/full>