Chapter 2: The Age factor
Chapter 2: The Age factor
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Book Title
The age factor Multinational companies have increased the number of overseas assignments for employees under the age of 30 (29%) and for singles (42%) because of their willingness to relocate and the lower cost of moving. Those who move are usually not married or divorced and have no children. The age of adult expat residents in Dubai ranges from 25 to 50 years. In order to understand the adjustment style and expectations of these people, we need to keep into consideration the age differences. The fact that the behavioral development of a twenty-five year old is quite different from that of a fifty-year-old person, results in different styles of adaptation to the new environment.
The Life Cycle Theory Erickson has conducted a series of behavioral studies that led to the formulation of the Life Cycle Theory. This theory is based on the concept that human beings change their life objectives as they grow older. In order to achieve “ego integrity” a person has to go through a series of interrelated stages over the entire life cycle, and the transition to the next stage occurs whenever the individual manages to overcome the “evolutionary crisis” related to that stage. These evolutionary crises occur between two opposing psychological orientations for example Intimacy vs. Isolation, 9and can have a positive or negative outcome for personality development. Erikson identified eight evolutionary stages with different characteristics and goals. The illustration identifies the positive and negative outcome of each stage. The positive outcomes of the crisis are listed at the top of the illustration and the negative outcomes below. 10
Chapter 2: The Age factor
The Eight Stages of Psychological Development
In this book only two stages of adulthood will be covered, ages 19 to 25 years and 25 to 40 years, because these ages reflect the expat population in Dubai. Stage 6 (19-25 years) - Young Adulthood According to Erikson, in this behavioral stage, characterized by the bipolarity between Intimacy and Isolation, the primary role of individuals is to develop intimate relationships and expand their social and professional network. If the young adult is not in the right environment to make friends and cultivate meaningful relationships, he or she may withdraw from society and not integrate. Sadly, isolation and withdrawal are very common signs of discomfort among young expatriates, and although to others it might seem that they have many friends, go out every night and have nice jobs, at a deeper look they are lonely, they feel like they have no roots and don’t belong to any community.� 11
Book Title
Stage 7 (25-40 years) - Middle Age In this stage, characterised by the bipolarity between Generativity and Stagnation, the individual feels the need to be an active part of society and contribute to the community through the care and guidance of younger people. This is not always easy to do in Dubai for two main reasons. Firstly there are many ethnic communities present in Dubai, which can make it difficult to access groups of people. Secondly expatriates often perceive themselves as “temporary guests” and as a result don’t believe it is worth investing time and resources in the community. This perception can turn into a sense of uselessness and isolation or, as defined by Erikson, into “stagnation.”
Personality Traits Regardless of the age, personality traits contribute to facilitate or hinder adjustment. For example, an extroverted person will tend to adapt more easily to the new environment than an introverted one. This is because extroverts are stimulus hungry and therefore seek out interactions to satisfy this need.
Counseling TIP Observing the amount of time a young adult spends on-line or on social networks is a good behavioral observation for whether or not they are isolating themselves. For the more mature client experiencing stagnation, the tendency is to become a “workaholic” and concentrate all the time in the office or doing work related activity at home.
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Chapter 2: The Age factor
Defintion An extrovert is “a person who manifests a particular receptivity to external reality and shows the qualities of communicativeness and social openness.” In contrast, an introvert is described as “a person who is closed in his inner world due to shyness or lack of interests in others. Distrustful or even hostile to human contacts and social relationships. “ Introversion-extroversion personality traits are generally viewed as important indicators as to how people relate and react to their new environment. Studies also suggest that in particular introverted individuals may struggle to find the social support needed for their adjustment process.
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