Sophia's Midlife Crisis

According to a 1978 and 1996 study conducted by Whereas Levinson, most men and women experience substantial inner turmoil during the transition to middle adulthood. Another study showed that individuals in their twenties and thirties anticipated a midlife crisis in their forties and fifties. This poses the question, ‘Is there such a thing as a midlife crisis.’ Midlife crisis is defined as inner turmoil and self-doubt that prompt major restructuring of the personality during the transition to middle adulthood. While crisis and major restructuring in midlife are rare and only affects a minority of adults, in Sophia’s case, it is possible that there is a crisis at this current stage of her life. A 2005 study showed that Americans often anticipate
In parental imperative theory, traditional gender roles are maintained during parenting years to help ensure the survival of children. Women tend to emphasize nurturance, while men are more goal-oriented. In Sophia’s case, this sheds some light on her willingness to always bail Nick out of jail even when she can barely afford it at times. In addition, we know that children of parents who have undergone a divorce are likely to be in the center of many problems. While Sophia and Nick’s father were never married, we do know that because of the separation, Nick had to adjust to not having two parents in the household. Children in these cases tend to display externalizing problems, such as conduct problems, which Nick executed during his childhood years and currently in his stage of early adulthood. Parents in conflict with one another tend to behave more negatively and less sensitively toward their children. Sophia admitted to not being as attentive to Nick as she could have been before she met Devon. I think we can hypothesize that in the midst of all of this, Sophia partially blames herself for Nick’s behavior as a child and now as an adult. Hence, she feels responsible to bail Nick out of jail each time because she believes that it is her fault. According to element five of the life cycle, launching children and moving on is a part of normative stages in traditional family development. Sophia blames herself for her inability to successfully do this as well as feeling the pressure to make sure she is able to do this with her last two kids; hence, her adamancy to help Keisha find a college, while also ensuring that Anthony strays away from the path of his