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according to developmental
psychologist Schaie people pass through 5 stages in the way they use information: acquisitive, achieving, responsible, executive, and reintegrative.
1.Acquisitive stage: childhood and adolescence cognitive development
2.Achieving stage:young adulthood. the intelligence is applied to specific situations involving the attainment of long-term goals (careers, family, societal contributions)
3.Responsible stage: middle adulthood- relates to personal situations, including
protecting and nourishing their spouses, families, and careers.
4.Executive stage: middle adulthood. people take a broader perspective than earlier, including concerns about the the world
5. Reintegrative stage:late adulthood. the focus is on tasks that have personal meaning
-the most common reasons for having children are psychological. parents expect to derive pleasure from helping their children grow, fulfillment from their
accomplishments, and enjoyment from forging a close bond with them.
-for some their might be a self-serving purpose hoping that the child will provide for them in their older age, offer companionship, or help with the business.
-there is also a strong societal norm: more than 90% of married couples have at least one child.
-In some cases children are unplanned due to failure or absence of birth control. (more common in poorer, younger, and uneducated couple). the incidence of undesired
pregnancies has declined in recent decades due to the effectiveness and access to contraceptives
-today most families seek to have no more than 2 children although they say that 3is ideal if money is not an issue. the rate in the US is currently 2.1 per woman, less than the replacement-rate (# needed for generation to replenish its numbers). as a point of comparison in some underdeveloped countries the rate is 6.9. increasing numbers of women have joined the work force which might have
convinced them to have fewer children. many women developing their careers choose to have children later (30-34). in the mid 60s only 17% of mothers with 1-yr-olds worked full-time. now more than 50% do.in the majority of families both parents work. the availability of 2 incomes brings economic benefits but also takes a toll, particularly on women. men's chores (lawn mowing, home repairs) are more easily scheduled in advance while women's tend to need immediate attention (child care, meal prep)
causing anxiety and stress.
-the arrival of a child alters family life. spouses are placed in new roles. those roles place physical, psychological, and economies demands on each spouse. often women bear the brunt of child-rearing. as a result it is often the lowest level of marital satisfaction, particularly for couples who were already dissatisfied. for satisfied couple it can lead to great satisfaction
-about 20% of gay men and women are parents (usually through adoption or
insemination). the evolution of homosexual couples when children arrive appears similar to the evolution in heterosexual couples. childrearing tends to fall more on one partner than the other. those children fare as well as those of heterosexual couples, but may face greater challenges from societal prejudice.
-about 10% of people spend their entire life in singlehood.