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Chapter 19

Socioemotional Development in Late Adulthood

In this chapter, I would like you to try to imagine that you are 70 years old. With whom would

you like to be spending your time? What hobbies will you be pursuing? Will you be retired or

working?

Learning Goals

Learning Goal 1: Discuss four theories of socioemotional development and aging.

A. Describe and discuss Erikson’s theory.

B. Define and discuss activity theory.

C. Summarize socioemotional selectivity theory.

D. Explain selective optimization with compensation theory.

Learning Goal 2: Describe links between personality and mortality, and identify changes in

the self and society in late adulthood.

A. Discuss personality in late adulthood.

B. Explain changes in self and society.

C. Summarize older adults in society.

Learning Goal 3: Characterize the families and social relationships of aging adults.

A. Describe and discuss lifestyle diversity in late adulthood.

B. Discuss the relationship between older adult parents and their adult children.

C. Discuss the role of the great-grandparent.

D. Describe and discuss friendships among the elderly.

E. Discuss the importance of social support and social integration.

F. Discuss the benefits of altruism and volunteerism in late adulthood.

Learning Goal 4: Summarize how ethnicity, gender, and culture are linked with aging.

A. Discuss ethnicity and attitudes toward the elderly.

B. Describe and discuss gender roles amongst the elderly.

C. Discuss and describe the influence of culture.

Learning Goal 5: Explain how to age successfully.

A. Describe and discuss factors that lead to successful aging.

Question

 When we talk about the “socioemotional development” of late adults, what are some of the issues that may come up?

Integrity vs. Despair

 What are some of the things that might make a person feel that their time in life has been well-spent? Not well-spent? Spending quality time forming relationships with family and friends, working in a career important to them, giving something to the next generation are often things that help people feel a sense of integrity.

THEORIES OF SOCIOEMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

 Erikson’s Theory:  Integrity vs. Despair: involves reflecting on the past and either piecing together a

positive review or concluding that one’s life has not been well spent

 Life review: looking back at one’s life experiences, evaluating them, and interpreting/reinterpreting them

 Life review is set in motion by looking forward to death  Can include sociocultural dimensions, interpersonal/relationship dimensions,

and personal dimensions

 Regrets involve four major themes:  Mistakes and bad decisions  Hard times  Social relationships  Missed educational opportunities

Do you have any of these regrets at this point in your life? If so, what can you do to rectify them (if

anything)?

 Reminiscence therapy: discussing past activities and experiences with another individual or group

 Activity Theory: the more active and involved older adults are, the more likely they are to be satisfied with their lives

 Suggests that individuals will achieve greater life satisfaction if they continue their middle-adulthood roles into late adulthood When older adults are active, energetic, and productive, they age more successfully

and are happier than if they engage from society. Research has shown that greater

overall activity (but especially social and productive activity) was related to

happiness, better functioning and a lower mortality rate. Activity theory suggests

that many individuals will achieve greater life satisfaction if they continue their

middle-adulthood roles into late adulthood. If these roles are stripped from them

(like with early retirement), it is important for them to find substitute roles that

keep them active and involved.

What can you do to remain active socioemotionally when you are older?

 Socioemotional Selectivity Theory: older adults become more selective about their social networks, spending more time with individuals with whom they have had rewarding relationships

 Two important classes of goals:  Knowledge-related  Emotional

 Trajectory for each type of goal is different  When time is perceived as open-ended, knowledge-related goals are pursued

more often

 As older adults perceive that they have less time left, emotional goals become more important. I think I’ve only ever had one student in his 70’s in 14 years of teaching! Most older people would prefer to pursue hobbies and engage in relationships and activities that make them emotionally fulfilled. This is not to say that there are not 70 year old students out there, or people who are taking classes on how to use computers at the senior center, it just becomes less of a priority for most people as they age.

Idealized Model of Socioemotional Selectivity Through the Life Span

Degree of Personal Life Investment at Different Points in Life

As you can see from the above chart, as you age, you start to spend more time thinking about

your health, family, and past life. Independence and work are less central to older individual’s

experiences.

PERSONALITY

 Conscientiousness predicts lower mortality risk from childhood through late adulthood  Low conscientiousness and high neuroticism predicts earlier death  Older adults characterized by negative affect do not live as long as those characterized by

more positive affect

THE SELF AND SOCIETY

 Self-Esteem:  Tends to be higher for males than females; difference disappears in the 70’s and 80’s  Tends to decline significantly in the 70’s and 80’s

 Deteriorating physical health  Negative societal attitudes toward older adults

 Possible Selves: what individuals might become, what they would like to become, and what they are afraid of becoming. When my grandma was 90, she was infected with Valley Fever (http://www.cdph.ca.gov/HealthInfo/discond/Documents/VFRaceEthnicity.pdf) . Filipinas/os like here are more likely to get very ill from the disease. She died from it, but if she had lived, she likely would have been disabled and needing a nurse. She was very fearful of how her life may become. She didn’t want to be in a nursing home, she was afraid of even having a home nurse because she was fearful of being abused. The possible future selves to her were frightening.

Self-Esteem Across the Life Span

THE SELF AND SOCIETY

 Self-Acceptance: depends on whether the individual is describing their past, present, future, or ideal selves

Changes in Self-Acceptance Across the Adult Years

 Self-Control: a majority of adults in their 60’s and 70’s report being in control of their lives  Accommodating control strategies increase in importance, and assimilative control

strategies decrease in importance

Discussion Question

 What are some stereotypes about older people?

OLDER ADULTS IN SOCIETY

 Ageism: prejudice against others because of their age  Stereotypes against older adults are often negative  Most frequent form is disrespect, followed by assumptions about ailments or frailty

caused by age

 Concern that the economy cannot bear the burden of so many older persons  Problems involving health care

 Increasing health care costs  Medical system is based on a “cure” rather than “care” model

What are some of the social issues facing older adults?

 Older members of action groups have gained political clout and lobbying power.

 Do you think that ageism is a legitimate issue that needs to be addressed in society, or is it just a “politically correct” concern?

 How might such stereotyping affect those in late adulthood?  How might your own responses to such generalizations have affected an older individual?

 Eldercare: physical and emotional caretaking of older members of the family  Generational Inequity: the view that our aging society is being unfair to its younger

members

 Controversial issue

 Income:  10%–12% of older people are living in poverty

 Varies by gender and ethnicity  Average income for retired individuals is about half what they earned when they

were fully employed

 Living Arrangements:  95% of older adults live in the community  Two-thirds live with family members, one-third alone

 Half of older women 75 years and older live alone

 Technology:  Older adults are less likely to have a computer in their home and less likely to use the

Internet

 Older adults spend more time on the Internet, visit more Web sites, and spend more money on the Internet than young adults. They use the internet most often to communicate with relatives. My paternal grandma has a facebook page. Another elderly relative of mine sends emails to her family to keep in touch with them regarding the current happenings.

LIFESTYLE DIVERSITY

 Married Older Adults:  56% of U.S. adults over 65 are married; 45% of older adult women are widows  Marital satisfaction is greater in older adults than middle-aged adults  Retirement alters a couple’s lifestyle

 Greatest changes occur in the traditional family

 Older adults who are married or partnered are usually happier and live longer than those who are single

 Marital satisfaction is often greater for men than women

 Divorced and Separated Older Adults:  Represent only 8% of older adults  Social, financial, and physical consequences of divorce

 Weakening of family ties  Less financial resources  Linked to more health problems

 Remarriage is increasing due to rising divorce rates, increased longevity, and better health  Some older adults perceive negative social pressure about their decision to remarry  Majority of adult children support the decision of their older adult parents to

remarry

 Cohabiting Older Adults:  3% of older adults cohabit; the number is expected to increase  Cohabiting is often more for companionship than for love

 Cohabiting older adults often have a more positive, stable relationship than cohabiting younger adults

 Health of cohabiting couples does not differ from the health of married couples

 Those who cohabit may be more depressed than their married counterparts

 Romance and Sex:  Increased divorce rate and longer longevity has resulted in an increase in older adult

dating

 Healthy older adults may still engage in sexual activities  Companionship often becomes more important than sexual activity

OLDER ADULT PARENTS

 About 80% of older adults have living children, many of whom are middle-aged  Older adults with children have more contacts with relatives than those without children  Gender affects relationships between older adults and their children

 Adult daughters are more likely to be involved in the lives of aging parents  Adult children often coordinate and monitor services for aging disabled parents  Relationships between adult children and aging parents can be both positive and negative.

I saw this a lot with my mom and grandma. They had a love-hate relationship. Love was the predominant feeling, but there was a lot of fighting regarding life choices and other decisions my mom made that were not really any of my grandma’s business. It caused them a lot of strain.

GREAT-GRANDPARENTING

 Four-generation families have become more common because of increased longevity  Great-grandparents can transmit family history to future generations  Young children interact more with grandparents than great-grandparents  Grandparents are considered more influential and have a more defined role than

great-grandparents FRIENDSHIP

 Research on Friendship:  Friendships have been found to be more important than family relationships in

predicting mental health

 Individuals with close ties to friends were less likely to die across a 7-year period  Unmarried older adults with a strong network of friends fared better physically and

psychologically than other unmarried older adults SOCIAL SUPPORT AND SOCIAL INTEGRATION

 Convoy Model of Social Relations: individuals go through life embedded in a personal

network of individuals from whom they give and receive social support

 Social Support:  Improves physical and mental health  Reduces symptoms of disease  Increases one’s ability to meet health-care needs  Decreases risk of institutionalization  Associated with lower rates of depression

 Social Integration:  Greater interest in spending time with a small circle of friends and family  Low level of social integration is linked with coronary heart disease  Being a part of a social network is linked with longevity, especially for men

ALTRUISM AND VOLUNTEERISM

 Older adults benefit from altruism and engaging in volunteer activities. They may be volunteering at the library, elementary school, church, animal shelter; all volunteer activities are possibly beneficial for older people and even their grandkids could join in!

 Helping others may reduce stress hormones, which improves cardiovascular health and strengthens the immune system

 Volunteering is associated with a number of positive outcomes  More satisfaction with life  Less depression and anxiety  Better physical health

ETHNICITY, GENDER, AND CULTURE

 Ethnicity:  African Americans and Latinos are overrepresented in poverty statistics. Sex and

ethnicity are associated with greater poverty in old age.

 Elderly ethnic minority individuals face both ageism and racism  More likely to become ill but less likely to receive treatment

 Many never reach the age of eligibility for Social Security benefits  Many ethnic minority individuals have developed coping mechanisms that allow

them to survive

 Extended family networks  Churches  Residential concentrations of ethnic minority groups

 Gender:  Some developmentalists believe that there is decreasing femininity in women and

decreasing masculinity in men during late adulthood

 Older men often become more feminine, but women do not necessarily become more masculine

 Older adult females face “triple jeopardy”: ageism, sexism, racism  Poverty rate for older adult females is almost double that of older adult males

CULTURE

 Seven factors are likely to predict high status for older adults in a culture:  Have valuable knowledge  Control key family/community resources  Are allowed to engage in useful/valued

functions as long as possible

 Have role continuity throughout their life span  Make age-related role changes that give greater responsibility, authority, and

advisory capacity

 Extended family is common, and older person is integrated into extended family  Respect for older adults is greater in collectivistic cultures

SUCCESSFUL AGING

 Being an older adult has many positive aspects  Older adults’ functioning is the result of better health habits such as:

 Eating a proper diet  Having an active lifestyle  Engaging in mental stimulation and flexibility  Having positive coping skills  Having good social relationships and support  Avoiding disease

 Successful aging involves having a sense of self-efficacy and a perceived control of

environment.

Here are some good links pertaining to this chapter:

AARP (formerly known as American Association of Retired Persons)

http://www.aarp.org/

Activity Theory

http://www.medrounds.org/encyclopedia-of-aging/2005/12/activity-theory.html

Directory of Nursing Homes

http://www.nursinghomeinfo.com/

Grandparenting

http://www.grandparenting.org/

Selective Optimization with Compensation Theory