Research indicates that the characteristics we are born with have much more influence on our personality and development than any experiences we may have in our life.

Other factors can cause changes to the individual’s health (condition). Conditions affecting the memory other than dementia are brain injury, brain tumours, Parkinson’s disease, stress, stroke. Below I have made a list of things that could change the individuals condition.

I think that that both nature and nurture play an important role and the way a person turns out. It can either have a positive impact on the individual or a negative

The nature vs nurture issue has been a controversial argument among psychologist for decades. This argument exposes two different views. One of them emphasizes that our personality depends solely on genetics (nature). On the other hand, the second view suggests that humans “develop through experience” (Myers 2013, SG 6) (nurture).

Alzheimer’s is a type of dementia that causes problems with memory and it is not a normal part of aging, “Although the greatest risk factor is increasing age” (Alzheimer’s Association). Even though our memory begins to deteriorate when we are growing older we don’t necessarily forget we get the “tip of the tongue” effect where we are ale to recollect our memories unlike those with Alzheimer’s.

In short, memory loss is one of the scariest parts of aging. Not every occurrence of forgetfulness is something to be alarmed about, though. And, even if the memory loss seems to be more than the occasional senior moment, there are many factors other than dementia that could be at play. Regardless of the cause

If you are the caregiver of a senior who is experiencing signs of any memory problems, it's a smart idea to mention it to their doctor, so they can give other tests to determine if they are experiencing any kind of cognitive

Quadagno (2014) discusses ways cognitive abilities differ from young-adults, middle-old adults and oldest old adults. Cognitive decline can also be affected by conditions such as stroke, depression, diabetes, auditory, and vision problems. Older adults may also encounter age related cognitive decline in their daily lives. Cognitive abilities such as processing speed, episodic memory, working memory and dual task processing are abilities that researchers are aiming to improve in older adults (Basak, et al, 2008; Quadagno, 2014).

A topic I learned more of this semester in regards to the older population was dementia. Some loss in memory function is an inevitable consequence of aging, and as one ages, it takes more time to process information and retrieve memories. However, "Dementia is a general term that refers to progressive, degenerative brain dysfunction, including deterioration in memory, concentration, language skills, visuospatial skills, and reasoning, that interferes with a person's daily functioning" (Mauk, 2014, p. 377). This loss of mental skills affects the ability to function over time, causing problems with memory and how one thinks, impacting these individual's overall quality of life.

As the Baby Boomer era has now grown up, there is subsequently a large increase in the number of elderlies in the United States. One of the largest generations reaching elderly status also brings an increase in curiosity on their health; particularly their mental health. With nearly 69% of practicing psychologist working with older patients, it is clear that there is a particular interest in how the elderly behave and think (Kring & Johnson, 2015). This curiosity and prevalence of elderlies brings along an increase awareness of commonly thought “elderly specific” illnesses and disorders. One major area that is often associated with the elderly is memory loss, more appropriately labeled as Dementia. However, not all areas of Dementia are reserved for the elderly.

One of the myths are that memory loss is a regular part of aging. As people age they lose some of their memories. This has been shot down because Alzheimer’s is just not memory loss but the loss of brain cells and dead brain cells. The other myth is that the disease is not fatal. It strips away the person’s identity and body functions. They are not able to think, eat, talk, and walk but never to the extent of death. And the last myth would be that Alzheimer’s only occur with older people, which have also been shot down because more and more the year progresses we have found more younger people being diagnosed with the

When you get older one part of your brain grows with you and deteriorates as you get older. This part of your brain is called “hippocampus”. That is the reason that when you go shopping with your nanny she forgets half of the list and she also forgot to write it down. The elderly also don’t have cognitive memory because you can ask them their original cheesecake recipe and they have it written down because they can’t remember. I would advise that the elderly play regularly memory games so they can’t forget. The elderly can play luminosity which is a website that challenges your brain. It also includes memory games which are a big help for the elderly. According to an ABC news article younger people tend to remember specific details in their

There are also cognitive changes during middle adulthood. There is a mixed pattern of positive and negative changes in cognitive abilities. Processing speed starts to decrease during this time period however crystallized thought does not decline until older age (pg. 456). Working memory begins to decline however semantic memory continues to increase as we learning throughout our older years (ph 456). Usually most memory decline is during older age and can be attributed to Alzheimer’s disease of dementia.

There are a plethora of ideas and theories regarding the developmental psychology behind why people metamorphosize into different personalities and habits later in life. Developmental psychologists have developed several ways to try and determine where the determining factors are in peoples’ lives that cause the differences. Several of the theories tend to have overlaps in parts of the ideas such as the ideas of “nature vs nurture” and that of “social context.” These theories share the overlapping ideas that there are outside influences on the way a person turns out in life. While “nature vs nurture” states that there are outside influences, there is also a counterargument that the genetic make-up of a person is the determining factor for how that person develops later. Even still, there are some who also believe that both arguments of “nature vs nurture” have even attributes on the lives of people.

In many cases mild age-related memory loss is considered normal, but more severe memory impairments are not.

Advancing age is commonly associated with loss of memory. The inability to maintain both short term and long term memory is serious. Learning new things or remembering familiar words and names can be quite daunting.