Developmental psychology/Chapter 14 & 15/Selective Optimization with Compensation

We are going to be highlighting selective optimization with compensation in four fields: sex, driving, senses, and the brain. If you need a refresher on the Ecological systems approach, click here.

Microsystem: Sexual Intercourse

Surprisingly, the sex drive is very much relevant in older people. Some compensate for a lack of sexual intercourse through other means of affection, such as kissing and hugging.

Macrosystem: Driving

As age increases, the likelihood of a driving accident increases as well. Although they aren't going to be as bad as a teenager, their accidents are more frequent as they may have a hard time reading signs and reacting to sudden stops. An efficient, but rare, way to test the elderly's driving is by implementing a driving simulator test. Some may pass, some may fail and some may realize they better just be off the road.

Compensation can be employed by either the drivers themselves (stop driving if they can't drive safely) or by the community as a whole (make signs larger, efficient mirrors, and well-designed cars).

Exosystem: The Senses

Every sense deteriorates after a certain period of time.

Vision: Compensation for poor vision includes glasses, futuristic technology, dogs, canes, and even brighter lights within the surrounding area. The diseases that elders usually get in relation to vision are cataracts (blurry vision due to thickening of the lens), glaucoma (damage of optic nerves leading to black surrounding vision), and macular degeneration (deterioration of the retina, leading to a big purple spot in the way of vision).
Hearing: Higher frequencies tend to be lost compared to lower frequencies. Due to ageism, we don't see many compensations for hearing - but some do exist: hearing aids and talking louder/louder devices.

A universal design is where the setting appeals to both non-disabled and disabled people. This change in the exosystem would appeal for all types of people.

Chronosystem: The Brain

The brain naturally diminishes with age, but new neurons are born. This may explain why adults use both hemispheres of their brain vs. one hemisphere. Maybe this is why we value experience above youth?