The Aging, Transformative Self

The Transformative Self ◽

10.1093/oso/9780199970742.003.0013 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 381-400

Author(s):

Jack Bauer

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Popular Culture ◽

Research Evidence ◽

Personal Narratives ◽

Well Being ◽

Future Generations ◽

Popular Belief ◽

Self Identity ◽

Academic Psychology ◽

Young Growth

The transformative self is not just for the young. This chapter focuses on the aging self and how the person who has a transformative self interprets growth throughout the adult years. The chapter starts by debunking the popular belief—in both popular culture and academic psychology, despite the research evidence—that growth is just for the young. Research shows that older adults hold at least as many growth-oriented concerns as decline-oriented concerns, both in their memories and in their goals. However, growth is not a Pollyanna concept; eudaimonic growth is not easy. The chapter shows what young growth versus mature growth sounds like in personal narratives. Young and mature growth are examined in terms of concerns for self-identity, relational intimacy, and generative concern for future generations—and then in relation to well-being and wisdom.

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Managing Volunteer Retirement among Older Adults: Perspectives of Volunteer Administrators

Journal of Public and Nonprofit Affairs ◽

10.20899/jpna.5.1.95-109 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

pp. 95

Author(s):

Allison R. Russell ◽

Melissa A. Heinlein Storti ◽

Femida Handy

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Succession Planning ◽

Research Evidence ◽

Large Body ◽

Well Being ◽

Future Research ◽

Volunteer Management ◽

Quantitative Evidence ◽

Older Volunteers ◽

New Challenges

A large body of quantitative evidence demonstrates a link between volunteering and improved well-being, especially among older adults. Yet the research evidence pointing to the purported benefits of volunteering does not adequately address the unique experiences of older volunteers, nor does it address the ways in which working with them impacts the work of volunteer administrators. As the proportion of those aged 65 and older increases, older adults are poised to play an even greater role as volunteers than ever before, representing both unparalleled opportunity and potential new challenges for volunteer administrators. One such challenge includes how to manage older adults’ decisions to withdraw or retire from volunteering, which has an impact on the succession planning of the volunteer workforce. This article presents the results of a recent survey of volunteer administrators who share current policies and perspectives about volunteer retirement. These practitioner viewpoints provide important insights for both volunteer management and future research.

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Resilience in older people living with dementia – A narrative analysis

Dementia ◽

10.1177/1471301220927614 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 147130122092761

Author(s):

Sarah-Louise Buggins ◽

Christopher Clarke ◽

Emma Wolverson

Keyword(s):

Older People ◽

Narrative Analysis ◽

Lived Experiences ◽

Sense Of Self ◽

Personal Narratives ◽

Well Being ◽

Self Identity ◽

Positive Attitudes ◽

People With Dementia ◽

Dialectical Process

Dominant discourses surrounding dementia tend to focus on narratives of loss and decline. Simultaneously, individuals living with dementia are vulnerable to being dispossessed of personal narratives supportive of identity and well-being. How older people with dementia story their experiences of resilience in this context has not previously been investigated. In response, this qualitative study utilised a narrative approach to understand lived experiences of resilience shared by eight older people living with dementia. Structural analyses indicated that participants’ personal narratives regarding resilience in living with dementia contained distinct and common phases (The Diagnosis, Initial Tasks, 'The High Point', Reflecting on Limitations and Focusing on Today) as well as a variety of dynamic characters. Overarching themes within participants’ narratives included sense of self/identity, being connected to others, sense of agency and having positive attitudes. Participants narrated richer, more active personal stories than those typically represented in dominant social discourses surrounding dementia. As such, their narratives depict lived experiences of resilience that unfolded over time in response to adversity and uncertainty and involved a dialectical process in relation to adjustment and well-being. The findings have important implications for the way resilience in living with dementia is framed and supported.

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Talk or Walk? Gait Speed over Self-Report in Association with Cognitive Speed in Healthy Older Adults

GeroPsych ◽

10.1024/1662-9647/a000202 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 32 (1) ◽

pp. 41-52

Author(s):

Matthew C. Costello ◽

Shane J. Sizemore ◽

Kimberly E. O’Brien ◽

Lydia K. Manning

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Older Adult ◽

Gait Speed ◽

Well Being ◽

Self Report ◽

Subjective Report ◽

Healthy Older Adults ◽

Relative Value ◽

Cognitive Speed ◽

Age Range

Abstract. This study explores the relative value of both subjectively reported cognitive speed and gait speed in association with objectively derived cognitive speed. It also explores how these factors are affected by psychological and physical well-being. A group of 90 cognitively healthy older adults ( M = 73.38, SD = 8.06 years, range = 60–89 years) were tested in a three-task cognitive battery to determine objective cognitive speed as well as measures of gait speed, well-being, and subjective cognitive speed. Analyses indicated that gait speed was associated with objective cognitive speed to a greater degree than was subjective report, the latter being more closely related to well-being than to objective cognitive speed. These results were largely invariant across the 30-year age range of our older adult sample.

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Leisure Activities and the Subjective Well-Being of Older Adults in Croatia

GeroPsych ◽

10.1024/1662-9647/a000179 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 31 (1) ◽

pp. 31-39 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ljiljana Kaliterna Lipovčan ◽

Tihana Brkljačić ◽

Zvjezdana Prizmić Larsen ◽

Andreja Brajša-Žganec ◽

Renata Franc

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Leisure Activities ◽

Leisure Activity ◽

Later Life ◽

Perceived Health ◽

Well Being ◽

Hierarchical Regression ◽

Subjective Well Being ◽

Convenience Sample ◽

Financial Status

Abstract. Research shows that engagement in leisure activities promotes well-being among older adults. The objective of the current study was to examine the relationship between subjective well-being (flourishing) and leisure activities (total number of different activities in the previous year) in a sample of older adults in Croatia, thereby considering the variables of sex, marital status, financial status, and self-perceived health. The differences in the examined variables between the groups of older adults who reported to be engaged in new activities with those who did not were also examined. The sample of N = 169 older adults aged 60 years and above was drawn from a convenience sample of adult internet users in Croatia. Participants reported their self-perceived health and the number of leisure activities they engaged in over the previous year as well as completing the Flourishing Scale. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that older adults who were engaged in more various leisure activities, who perceived better financial status, and who were married reported higher levels of flourishing. A comparison of the two groups of older adults with and without engagement in leisure activities showed that those engaged in at least one leisure activity were more likely to be women, reported higher levels of flourishing, and perceived their own financial status as better. This study indicated that engaging in leisure activities in later life might provide beneficial effects for the well-being of older adults.

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Analysis of Self-Concept in Older Adults in Different Contexts

European Journal of Psychological Assessment ◽

10.1027/1015-5759.20.4.262 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 20 (4) ◽

pp. 262-274 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

Manuel de Gracia Blanco ◽

Josep Garre Olmo ◽

María Marcó Arbonès ◽

Pilar Monreal Bosch

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Nursing Home ◽

Depressive Symptoms ◽

External Validity ◽

Aging Process ◽

Well Being ◽

Self Esteem ◽

Self Concept ◽

Self Perceptions ◽

Discriminatory Capacity

Summary: Self-concept is a construct consisting of a group of specific self-perceptions that are hierarchically organized. Age-associated changes of self-concept are related to the individual's perception of the changes occurring throughout the aging process. The authors examined external validity and internal consistency of an instrument that has been developed to assess self-concept in older adults and examined self-concept's characteristics in two different contexts. Results confirm the multidimensionality of the scale and show a satisfactory external validity, indicating good discriminatory capacity. Findings support the hypothesis that older people who live in a nursing home have a poor self-esteem, self-concept, and psychological well-being and have a greater presence of depressive symptoms than people who live in their own home.

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