Identify two people or a caregiver (as in the case of an infant), who represent two different stages of the life span—ideally, two who do not identify with your own current stage of life span development—and set up an brief 15–20 minute interview with them for this assignment. For example, select an adolescent and a senior in late adulthood, or the parent of a newborn and a child in late childhood. Conversationally interview these two people in order to compare what you have learned here in class, through the textbook, lectures, and videos, with their perception of what it is actually like to be in their stage of life. Interviews may be done via phone, Skype, email, etc. Take notes or record (with permission) your interview. Below are some suggestions for your conversation. You do not need to cover all of these topics in your paper, but they will help you shape your discussion. Be sure to note which topics you discuss. In your write up, tell us the gender, age, identified life stage of development, and cultural identification(s) of the individuals you interviewed. Be sure to maintain each individual’s privacy and confidentiality when asked to do so. Summarize the topics you discussed and share your interviewees′ responses (you may paraphrase and quote). In your paper, after you have shared what the interviewees discussed, share your thoughts on the process of talking with someone about their place in the life span. Did you learn anything from your conversations that you did not learn in the academic materials? How accurate do you think psychologists have been in identifying and classifying the different life stages? Explain.
