CLA 1101 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Menopause, Midlife Crisis, Baby Boom
28 May 2018
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Feb 14, 2018
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Chapter 7: The Middle Years of the
Family and the Not-so-Empty Nest
The Parent Generation at Midlife
- Current midlife generation: baby boomers (born 1940s to 1960s)
- 45-64 year in age
- At nearly 4.39 million, outnumber those in 15-24 age group (4.7 million)
- Median age of Canadian population is 39.9 years
- Expected to rise to 44 as baby boomers age
- Baby boom cohort has a profound effect on Canadian society
- Never before have so many so close to retirement
The Parent Generation at Midlife
- Middle years have now joined child rearing as the longest stages in life
- Midlife group is diverse
- Includes first-time parents as well as great-grandparents
- Some begin midlife at peak of careers or nearing retirement
- These years of the family life cycle are transitional
- Period often marks splitting of one family into two or more as children leave
families of origin and form their own nuclear families of procreation
- Midlife Crisis
- Extreme strain as a person re-evaluates his or her life in middle age
- Quite rare
- Rather most adults enter a quest for the meaning in life
- During midlife, individuals typically consider whether their lives (especially work and
family lives) have been fulfilling
- Midlife occurs when children are transitioning to independence and parents near
retirement
- middle -ages people experience sense of confidence and competence - particularly in
their jobs
- Homemaker mother are sometimes described as suffering the empty nest syndrome,
depression and a sense of uselessness when the last child leaves home
- In fact, the empty nest often brings couple increased happiness and marital
satisfaction
- Growing sense of mortality
- Death of parents and people their own age
find more resources at oneclass.com
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Document Summary
Current midlife generation: baby boomers (born 1940s to 1960s) At nearly 4. 39 million, outnumber those in 15-24 age group (4. 7 million) Median age of canadian population is 39. 9 years. Expected to rise to 44 as baby boomers age. Baby boom cohort has a profound effect on canadian society. Never before have so many so close to retirement. Middle years have now joined child rearing as the longest stages in life. Some begin midlife at peak of careers or nearing retirement. These years of the family life cycle are transitional. Period often marks splitting of one family into two or more as children leave families of origin and form their own nuclear families of procreation. Extreme strain as a person re-evaluates his or her life in middle age. Rather most adults enter a quest for the meaning in life. During midlife, individuals typically consider whether their lives (especially work and family lives) have been fulfilling.
