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A Life Course Perspective On Aging

NOTE: To obtain the most learning from this class read the assigned text readings first before reading the lectures which are designed to create critical thinking about the materials.

This week's material involves personal planning. Unlike financial planning personal planning means finding and living a socially and psychologically meaningful life; not only in old age but as we go thru our entire lives. The last stage of life is the results of all the stages that came before.  Old age is not something that just happens to us. We do, in part, construct our old age.

The  Life Course Perspective is used to explain the meaning (or lack of) in ones life. It is derived from the sum of all the decisions one has made from birth to death, the life style choices chosen, and the emotional growth accomplished during the life course. It also involves the opportunities that we ,as a society,  allow people to participate in.  If aging is changing shouldn't the role of a healthy older person change too?

We can only understand any stage of life by using this perspective because as you have read old age is no longer a clear cut stage of life. 

•  When we transition through the rites of passage as Moody describes they reinforce our expected behavior.
  • For example, once you graduate from college (a rite of passage) your role in society will change. The behavior society expects from you will be different (like it or not).
  • You have role models for what college graduates do next. 
  • Problems can occur when there are no previous role models or rites of passage in a developmental stage of life.
  • This is happening in the world today as unprecedented numbers of folks move into the  third half of life with no defined expected behaviors.

Do you remember, from the prolog reading, the changing median age in the US population from 1820 (age 17) to 2030 (age 37)?  America is growing older and today's elders are more educated and healthy than their parents were (although that trend may be changing with future generations)  and yet society has not yet decided how to integrate them.

• The way we grow old is not the same as it use to be and not everyone grows old uniformly. That is all our parts don't age at the same rate.  One might have young looking skin and age related vision problems for example.
• What should the role be for older adults who can still work or contribute to society?
• If one third of old age is spent in retirement will retired seniors follow the same pattern their less educated and less healthy parents did? Will society be able to continue to hold on to our mass-media driven stereotypes that see all older people as ill, demented, useless and dependent on us for care?

I .Socio-cultural Development: What is Socio-Cultural?

The way we arrive at old age, our attitudes, beliefs and who we are when we get there is not only determined by social and cultural influences, but variables such as age, sex, income levels,  and social class-- these also influence who we become. Keep in mind the concept that the last stage of life is the result of all the stages that came before. 

Because old age is not just a matter of destiny but somewhat one of choice, our aging process is dependent on what we do earlier in our lives; the choices we make along the way and the social institutions available to us.  Think about that statement. It is said that how we care for ourselves both physically and emotionally the first 50 years will determine , in part, the quality of life the last 50 years.

Our educational level, work history, opportunities, and life circumstances are dependent on these choices and shape our old age. All of these factors create the available roles in our lives. Do you know what  the advantage of education are?  They include both financial as well as cultural.

A. What are the roles you play in life?

Here are some examples of the rolls one might play in life.

• worker
• mother/father
• golf player
• traveler
• caretaker
• driver
• home owner/renter
• friend
• wife/husband
• student
• credit counselor/race car driver/horseman/crook/nurse/runner/smoker

 

Each of these roles you play make you who you are. The experiences you bring into old age are partly the result of these roles.

A retired judge, for example, might have more status when complaining about a noisy neighborhood than say a dishwasher.  The judge would know who to call, how to get action and call on his established contacts.

The resources we build, the relationships we establish might determine the level of personal care or friends who will be available to us in our old age (since 80-90% of long-term care is provided by family members in the home).  Other roles we develop, in part, determine what we will be like in old age.

 

Our roles also determine the resources that are available to us in old age. For example, our occupation throughout life (our work role) will determine not only our income status when we retire, but the resources or help we are able to afford. The status derived from our occupation can open or close doors of opportunity throughout life. For example educated people have more access to health care and healthy lifestyle and therefore a longer healthier life.

A convoy consists of the  people who are involved in our lives. Represented by a spiraling circle people enter our lives at different levels.

For example in the center of the convoy might be close family . The next ring would be close friends. As the convoy enlarges people on the outer rings include people with less frequent contact like the mail man who watches for signs of trouble, or the store clerk. The larger our convoy when we age, the more resources and support we have available. It is important to build your convoy as you age.

II.Age grading- refers to the way  people are assigned different roles in society depending on their age ( remember the hats you wear?)

But what roles are available to us along the life course?  Most are age graded by society. That is, from early childhood, we are socialized into thinking about what it means to act our age—to be in roles that are age appropriate. 

Part of socialization is learning what roles or behaviors are considered appropriate depending on our age. The role of wife, husband, mother, father, even child are dictated to some extend by social norms- behaviors that most of agree are normal at particular points in life.

For example, would it be appropriate for a middle-aged woman returning to college to move into the dorms at a University, or join a sorority? That to most is an socially unacceptable behavior. Other students would probably want to know whose mother was visiting. 

DID YOU KNOW
Sometimes because of  a cultural lag (the difference between what society thinks is real and what is really real) makes older students feel uncomfortable in a college class .  Many college documents still define a re-entry student as a 25 year old!! Today the average re-entry college student is  40+ years old.  No wonder !

Consider society's attitude regarding a  35 year old man still living at home with his mother? Most of society would see this as abnormal. 

It is however getting  harder to think of behaviors that today are not appropriate at every age because we are moving towards an age irrelevant society. A change in society where there are no set age norms. It is becoming more and more acceptable now to be a  student at age 50, 60 or beyond. More acceptable to start a family in our 40's or even now in our 50's.

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As a gerontologist, I have spent a considerable amount of time questioning age appropriate behaviors and what people do. Because of my work, I am more sensitive to "socially unacceptable" age graded roles, but most of society seldom questions this practice. 

As life expectancy increases the age at which society expects us to transition into and out of many life roles is changing. For example, during the 1950's a survey revealed that most people felt that the best age to marry for a woman was  age 19 and for a man age 20. Today, most of us would feel that these ages are much to young.

Biology can keep us alive longer giving us more time to transition into new roles. How now will we define traditional roles if we are older, more experienced , and because of increased life-expectancy. we will live longer in those roles?  Age Affects our expectations. 

 

Not only does society expect certain behaviors at age appropriate bench marks but for most of us roles define our behavior and attitudes. People learn to define themselves and their behavior in terms of these age appropriate roles. Consider these examples.

• for a baby or child the role is to be taken care of
• in the student role it is expected that you  study, be with friends, find your vocation
• when you graduate you are expected to find a job
• in young adult one usually marries and begins a family
• middle-age adults  might have grandchildren and build up retirement income
• young old people often travel and enjoy life (ages 65-75)
  

What do we think is appropriate for "older people", the over age 85 population in our culture today? For one answer we can look to the images of aging, our symbols, rituals, and myths. 

• As a rule, people on TV are young and good-looking, older people are not visible on television in
  anything like their proportion in the actual population.  When they are depicted, they tend to be 
  one step removed from the action.  Even when TV advertisers try to appeal to the “gray market” 
  of older consumers, they present idealized images of good health and vigorous activity. Watch the TV for medication adds. Almost always young active adults.
  

• The myths of aging range from the "quest for rejuvenation"  through the Fountain of Youth to 
  the "psychological self-fulfillment" of the aged hero returning home.  At its best, film can present 
  images of the older person as a genuine hero triumphing over circumstance.  The images of old age 
  portrayed  by mass media have a profound effect on attitudes toward aging in all industrialized 
  societies.

So what about the role of the middle and old- old? Can you define their roles in society? Many call this stage of life the "role-less-role" with no socially expected activities or behaviors especially for  the middle old (ages 75-85) and the old- old (ages 85 and up).

• Because we are living longer we read  of accomplishments by adults at these ages almost daily yet society still sees these accomplishments as news worthy and not as the norm. What an anomaly John Glenn was to travel in space in his 70's and the men and women who are still working well into their 80's are considered abnormal. The new Betty White phenomena gives older people a valuable role model.

•  

III.Transitions

As mentioned in the opening of the lecture there usually are rituals that help us transition from one role to the next;  for example graduation, marriage or a job promotion.

I define myself as a professor. The transition was marked by the rituals of graduating from graduate school, job interviews, orientation and evaluations.

With this role comes certain expected behaviors. Would it be appropriate for me to wear a swim suit and sandals to school?  Most would think not (besides it might be really scary). Society defines my position in life as one that deserves a certain behavior that dignifies the position.

What is appropriate for older people today?  What are their roles, their transitions in today's society? After retirement, there are few transitions in the third half of life, meaning the extended life expectancy we have been given.

 

IV. Stages and Psychosocial Development

How are we to understand the significance of life transitions for older adults?  One psychologists Eric Erikson ((1902-1994) an influential developmental psychologist), depicted the life course as a series of psychological tests, each requiring the person to resolve conflicting tendencies.

"Human personality, in principle, develops according to steps predetermined in the growing person's readiness to be driven toward, to be aware of and to interact with a widening social radius."
    -Erik Erikson

He emphasized developmental change throughout the human life span. In his theory, eight stages of development unfold as we go through the life span. Each stage consists of a crisis that must be faced.

According to Erikson, this crisis is not a catastrophe but a turning point of increased vulnerability and enhanced potential. The more successful the individual is in resolving the crises, the healthier their development will be.

Stage 1: Infancy -- Age 0 to 1

Crisis: Trust vs. Mistrust
Description: In the first year of life, infants depend on others for food, warmth, and affection, and therefore must be able to blindly trust the parents (or caregivers) for providing those needs.

Positive outcome: If their needs are met consistently and responsively by the parents, infants not only develop a secure attachment with their parents, but will learn to trust their environment as well.

Negative outcome: If not, the infant will develop mistrust towards people and things in their environment, even towards themselves. (ever meet anyone like that? It usually can be traced back to this stage of development)

It is important to note that no one develops perfect trust or complete mistrust. Humans balance on a scale from trust to mistrust. 

                                     TRUST                                                            MISTRUST
                                         


We each fall somewhere on that line. This is true for all of Erikson's stages. Hopefully we balance more towards the positive point.

Erikson does not believe that the proper solution to a stage crisis is always completely positive. Some exposure or commitment to the negative end of the person’s bipolar conflict is sometimes inevitable- you cannot trust all people under all circumstances and survive, for example. Nonetheless, in the healthy solution to a stage crisis, the positive resolution dominates.

Stage 2: Toddler -- Age 1 to 2

Crisis: Autonomy (Independence) vs. Doubt (or Shame)
Description: Toddlers learn to walk, talk, use toilets, and do things for themselves. Their self-control and self-confidence begins to develop at this stage.

Positive outcome: If parents encourage their child's use of initiative and reassure the child when he/she makes mistakes, the child will develop the confidence needed to cope with future situations that require choice, control, and independence.

Negative outcome: If parents are overprotective, or disapproving of the child's acts of independence, she may begin to feel ashamed of her behavior, or have too much doubt of her abilities.

Stage 3: Early Childhood -- Age 2 to 6

Crisis: Initiative vs. Guilt
Description: Children have newfound power at this stage as they have developed motor skills and become more and more engaged in social interaction with people around them. They now must learn to achieve a balance between wanting more adventure and more responsibility, and learning to control their impulses.

Positive outcome: If parents are encouraging, but consistent in discipline, children will learn to accept without guilt, that certain things are not allowed, but at the same time will not feel shame when using their imagination and engaging in make-believe role plays.

Negative outcome: If not, children may develop a sense of guilt and may come to believe that it is wrong to be independent.

Stage 4: Elementary and Middle School Years -- Age 6 to 12

Crisis: Industry vs. Inferiority
Description: School is the important event at this stage. Children learn to make things, use tools, and acquire the skills to be a worker and a potential provider. And they do all these while making the transition from the world of home into the world of peers.

Positive outcome: If children can discover pleasure learning, being productive, seeking success, they will develop a sense of competence.

Negative outcome: If not, they will develop a feeling of inferiority.

Stage 5: Adolescence -- Age 12 to 18

Crisis: Identity vs. Role Confusion
Description: This is the time when we ask the question "Who am I?" To successfully answer this question, Erikson suggests, the adolescent must integrate the healthy resolution of all earlier conflicts. Did we develop the basic sense of trust? Do we have a strong sense of independence, competence, and feel in control of our lives? Adolescents who have successfully dealt with earlier conflicts are ready for the "Identity Crisis", which is considered by Erikson as the single most significant conflict a person must face.

Positive outcome: If the adolescent solves this conflict successfully, he will come out of this stage with a strong identity, and sense of self.

Negative outcome: If not, the adolescent will be overcome with  confusion, unable to make decisions and choices, especially about vocation, and his role in life in general.

Stage 6: Young Adulthood -- Age 19 to 40

Crisis: Intimacy vs. Isolation
Description: In this stage, the most important events are love relationships. No matter how successful you are with your work, said Erikson, you are not developmentally complete until you are capable of intimacy. An individual who has not developed a sense of identity usually will fear a committed relationship and may retreat into isolation.

Positive outcome: Adult individuals can form close relationships and share with others if they have achieved a sense of identity.

Negative outcome: If not, they will fear commitment, feel isolated and unable to depend on anybody in the world.

Stage 7: Middle Adulthood -- Age 40 to 65

Crisis: Generativity vs. Stagnation
Description:  "generativity"  refers to the adult's ability to look outside oneself and care for the next generation.  The risk being trapped by old habits versus going beyond self-absorption to nurture the next generation). Erikson suggested that adults need children as much as children need adults, and that this stage reflects the need to create a living legacy.

Positive outcome: People can solve this crisis by having and nurturing children or grandchildren, or helping the next generation in other ways.

Negative outcome: If this crisis is not successfully resolved, the person will remain self-centered and experience stagnation later in life.

Stage 8: Late Adulthood -- Age 65 to death

Crisis: Integrity vs. Despair Important
Description: Old age is a time for reflecting upon one's own life, their role in the big scheme of things, and seeing it filled with pleasure and satisfaction or disappointments and failures.

Positive outcome: If the adult has achieved a sense of fulfillment about life and a sense of unity within himself and with others, he will accept death with a sense of integrity. Just as the healthy child will not fear life, said Erikson, the healthy adult will not fear death.

Negative outcome: If not, the individual will despair and fear death.
If this topic fascinates you and you want more :-) look at this site. http://www.ship.edu/~cgboeree/erikson.html

    What Does All This Mean?

     Imagine, if you will, what life might be like for an older adult who instead of finding trust and hope found mistrust and withdrawal, or found shame and doubt, or guilt and inferiority.

What if you came to old age with role confusion, and felt isolated and rejected? How might you respond to the challenges of old age with all this emotional baggage?  As you can see older adults are as complex as humans are at any stage of their lives

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V. Almost Last words

Many theorists today see personality in terms of continuity or flexible adaptation over the life course.  These theories are more optimistic than those  that see old age as a time of loss resulting in either passive adjustment or dependency and depression.  Today, most gerontologists believe that people  bring positive resources to aging, including a personal sense of meaning.  Empirical studies show that people generally cope well with the transitions of later life.  When problems come, styles of coping tend to remain intact, and people adapt.  

However, behavioral or psychological problems may emerge because of the difficulties in preparing for transitions without the help of  widely observed rites of passage or institutional structures for older people.

As you have seen we currently have no consensus about how people are supposed to act when, in late life, they confront events that have traditionally been linked to younger ages. 

•  How are older widows supposed to go about dating?

• How much help should elderly parents expect from their children who are themselves at the point of retirement?

• When confronted with such questions, we realize that norms previously related to many of the transitions of later life have shifted.

     VI. Modernization Theory:
     One influential account of the societal value of aging is Modernization Theory. According to this theory    
     the status of older adults declines as societies become more modern. For example: The status of old age was high    
     during  the time of stable agricultural society, when older people controlled the land and the knowledge to produce
     needed products like cloth, shoes, iron works etc.

 With the coming of industrialization, modern societies have tended to devalue older people. This theory suggests that the role and status of older adults are inversely related to technological progress. 

Copy to a word document or print this handout to follow the discussion below  "Effects of Industrialization on the image of Aging

Early in the development of our country goods and services were bartered. That is, when a shoemaker needed  milk he would go to the farmer and trade his shoes for milk. In this system little cash was needed. Sometimes when cash was needed, say to pay  for goods that were imported, one  could sell  surplus items produced for cash.

Under this system family members would hand down their knowledge, trade, and property to younger generations and in turn, the younger family members provided for their elders.

Elders not only held the experience and knowledge about the family craft, they held the title to the land as well. Younger generations were dependent on their elders to act not only as mentors, but as a means to acquire land and assets for their growing families. The extended family was important in this early economic structure. 

During the early part of the 1900's industrialization began. Factories sprung up in cities and for the first time in America, textiles (clothing) and other goods were being mass produced. One needed cash to purchase products in the new market place.

The development from farm to factory jobs during industrialization took younger family members from their parent's cottage industries to the city to work in factory  jobs. 

For the first time, younger people could be independent financially from their parents and earn cash. Travel from the farms to the cities was so popular that factories created sororities to protect young women who wanted city jobs. The factories would provide chaperones and housing for these women.  Remember in the 1900's it was not proper for an unmarried woman to be without an escort. 

This left the elderly who remained on the family farm (or cottage industry) in a bind . Without younger family members to help operate or care take their business elders were forced to abandon their way of life and follow their children into the city in search of a job. 

Factory jobs required specialized training. Industry owners relied on young people with fast reflexes to run the machines that produced products; turning machinery knobs and  pressing the lever at precisely the right time required quick reflexes and attention. 

Factory owners said that the elderly were not qualified for this specialized training. They were not quick enough. When they were given jobs, they  demanded better working conditions than their younger counterparts and brought Unions to the factories.  So older adults were denied access to factory wages. 

Because  elders were denied access to training  many were left with no means of supporting themselves.

Only 15% had enough money to retire  and the average age they did was 62, but remember at that time, the average life expectancy was just 47 or 48 years old.

Nearly 15% were taken in by their families but 3-5% were forced into the poor houses or as they were called, the Almshouses . Traditionally these poor houses were full of shiftless youth and immigrants who could not find work. Now however, for the first time, they included elderly persons who could not find work. 

The American newspapers quickly reported the plight of one who grows old in America. They showed pictures of thin older people sitting on thread-barren cots with captions that read: "This Is What Awaits You in Old Age in America" .

By the 1930’s widespread income problems among the older people had caused a buildup of public opinion in favor of compulsory retirement pensions. 

Industrialization provided enough wealth to make older adult's labor unnecessary. America could afford to support this vulnerable population. Especially since there were so few of them compared to the rest of the population. 

Social Security was seen as a way to keep many poor older people out of extreme poverty and out of the Almshouses. Some argue that it was also a way to keep them out of the work force during the rapid expansion days of industrialization.  

During the Great Depression there was a very high unemployment rate. Social Security was also seen as one way out. It gave people money to spend to stimulate the economy and thus create economic growth.-

The end

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