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Chapter 18

Psychosocial Development in Late Adulthood

Experience Human Development

FOURTEENTH EDITION
Diane E. PAPALIA
Gabriela MARTORELL

© 2021 McGraw Hill. All rights reserved. Authorized only for instructor use in the classroom.
No reproduction or further distribution permitted without the prior written consent of McGraw Hill.
 Learning Objectives

Discuss theories and research on personality changes in late

adulthood.

Identify strategies and resources that contribute to older

adults’ well-being and mental health.

Discuss aging and adaptation to work and retirement.

Characterize the social relationships of aging adults.

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 Theory and Research on Personality Development

Most theorists view late adulthood as a developmental stage

with its own special issues and tasks.

It is a time when people can:

• Reexamine their lives;

• Complete unfinished business; and

• Decide how best to channel their energies and spend their

remaining days, months, or years.

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 Erik Erikson: Normative Issues and Tasks

Ego integrity versus despair: Erikson’s eighth and final

stage of psychosocial development.
• People in late adulthood either achieve a sense of integrity
of the self by accepting the lives they have lived, and thus
accept death, or yield to despair that their lives cannot be
relived.
• The virtue that may develop in this stage is wisdom.

Erikson maintained that some despair is inevitable.

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 The Five-Factor Model: Personality Traits in Old Age

Personality stability follows an inverted U-shaped curve.

• Stability is lowest in adolescence, peaks in mid-adulthood,
and then declines in late adulthood.
Longitudinal and cross-sectional studies have found
continued change in late adulthood.
• There appear to be no age-related trends in inflexibility.
• There are individual differences.
Both personality and personality change can be predictors of
health and well-being.
• Some changes are beneficial.

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 Well-Being in Late Adulthood

Older adults generally have fewer mental disorders and are

happier and more satisfied with life than younger adults.
• This is more true in wealthier regions of the world.

The rise in happiness later in life not only may reflect the
value of a mature outlook—but it also may reflect the
selective survival of healthier people.

In some adults, there is a sharp decline in well-being and life

satisfaction about 3 to 5 years before death, known as a
“terminal drop.”
• Events more common in the last years of life are one
factor.
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 Coping and Mental Health: Cognitive-Appraisal Model 1

Coping: adaptive thinking or behavior aimed at reducing or

relieving stress that arises from harmful, threatening, or
challenging conditions.
Cognitive-appraisal model: on the basis of continuous
appraisal of their relationship with the environment, people
choose appropriate coping strategies to deal with situations
that tax their normal resources.
• Problem-focused coping: directed toward eliminating,
managing, or improving a stressful situation.
• Emotion-focused coping: directed toward managing the
emotional response to a stressful situation so as to lessen
its physical or psychological impact.
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 Coping and Mental Health: Cognitive-Appraisal Model 2

Older adults tend to use more emotion-focused coping than

younger people.
• This is especially true with the oldest old.

When there is a realistic solution, emotion-focused coping is

less adaptive; but when there is no solution available, it may
be more adaptive to control emotions.

Adaptive coping is related to physical well-being.

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 Coping and Mental Health: The Effect of Religion
and Spirituality

As a whole, older adults today are more religious than

younger adults.

Religion seems to be supportive for many, and it can be part

of their coping strategy.

One important factor may be the social support provided by

church membership and the religious community.
• This may be even more significant for racial and ethnic
minorities.

People who belong to a church are more likely to engage in

healthy behaviors.

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 Models of “Successful,” or “Optimal,” Aging

A considerable body of work has identified three main

components of successful aging:
• Avoidance of disease or disease-related disability;
• Maintenance of high physical and cognitive functioning;
and
• Sustained, active engagement in social and productive
activities.

Another approach emphasizes subjective well-being and

satisfaction with life.

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 Disengagement Theory versus Activity Theory

Disengagement theory: successful aging is characterized

by mutual withdrawal of the older person and society.
• More than five decades of research has provided little
support for disengagement theory.
Activity theory: to age successfully a person must remain
as active as possible.
• Research generally supports activity theory, but the way it
was originally framed is now considered overly simplistic.
• People who remain active are more likely to maintain
high-quality social relationships, and the presence of those
relationships is likely to positively affect life satisfaction.

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 Continuity Theory

Continuity theory: in order to age successfully people must

maintain a balance of continuity and change in both the
internal and external structures of their lives.
• Continuity in activities is not always possible for older
adults because of visual, motor, or cognitive impairments.

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 The Role of Productivity

Productive activity—any action that provides a contribution to

society—has been found to have positive effects.
• This is true whether it is paid or unpaid.
• Generally, the more activities adults are engaged in and
the more time spent on them, the greater the positive
effects.
• The same effects have not been found with caregiving
activities.
Some research suggests participation in leisure activities can
be as beneficial.
• Social relationships are important.

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 Selective Optimization with Compensation

Selective optimization with compensation (SOC):

enhancing overall cognitive functioning by using stronger
abilities to compensate for those that have weakened.

Older adults conserve their resources by:

• Selecting fewer and more meaningful activities or goals.

• Optimizing the resources they have to achieve their goals.

• Compensating for losses by using resources in alternative

ways.

Research has found SOC is associated with positive

developmental outcomes.

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 Work and Retirement 1

Today, the line between work and retirement is not as clear

as it used to be.
• Compulsory retirement has been virtually outlawed in the
United States as a form of age discrimination.
• There are no longer norms concerning the timing of
retirement, how to plan for it, and what to do afterward.
• With increasing age, many adults retire because of health
issues.

Only 40% of those older adults who stop working in their

fifties and sixties stop for good.

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 Work and Retirement 2

In the United States, most adults who can retire do retire; but
the proportion of workers older than 65 has increased sharply.
Among those who retire, one model suggests five categories
of resources determine how well they adjust:
• Individual attributes such as health and financial status;
• Preretirement job-related variables such as job stress;
• Family-related variables such as marriage quality and
dependents;
• Retirement transition-related variables such as retirement
planning; and
• Postretirement activities such as bridge employment and
volunteer work.
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 How Do Older Adults Fare Financially?

Social Security and other government programs such as

Medicare have enabled today’s older Americans to live fairly
comfortably.

As the U.S. population grays and as proportionately fewer

workers contribute to Social Security, however, it seems
likely that benefits will decline.

Women are more likely than men to live in poverty in old age;
and there are ethnic differences.
• The highest poverty rates are among older Hispanic
women and older African American women who live alone.

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 Living Arrangements 1

In the United States in 2014, 7% of adults ag 65 and older

lived in senior housing of various types.

Most older adults prefer to stay in their own homes and

communities, an option called aging in place.
• For older people with impairments, minor support—such
as meals, transportation, and home health aides—can
often help them stay put.

Because women live longer and are more likely to be

widowed, older women are more likely to live alone.

Adults who move in with relatives are at higher risk of

loneliness than those who can live with a spouse or partner.
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 Living Arrangements 2

Many older adults see institutionalization as a last resort.

• Fewer than half report a good quality of life once there.
The use of nonfamily institutions for the care of the frail
elderly varies greatly around the world.
• Being female, being poor, and living alone significantly
increase the risk of entering long-term care.
A growing segment of the housing market is in age-qualified
active adult communities.
One popular option is assisted living for older adults.
• Such facilities vary widely in quality and affordability.

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 Personal Relationships in Late Life

Older adults have far fewer people in their social networks,

but they are not necessarily isolated and lonely.

Older adults typically retain a close circle of confidants.

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 Theories of Social Contact and Social Support

Social convoy theory: aging adults maintain their level of

social support by identifying members of their social network
who can help them and avoiding those who are not
supportive.

Socioemotional selectivity theory: older adults choose to

spend time with people and in activities that meet immediate
emotional needs.

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 The Importance of Social Relationships

Strong social relationships are as important for health and

mortality as smoking, being obese, and abusing alcohol.

People who are socially isolated and lonely tend to show

more rapid physical and cognitive declines.
• The feeling of being useless to others is an important
factor.
• Having a purpose in life is associated with decreased risk
of heart attack and death.

To be beneficial, relationships must be of good quality.

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 The Multigenerational Family

Today, many families in developed countries can include four

or more generations.

The presence of so many family members can be enriching

but also can create special pressures.
• Care of older adults can be physically and emotionally
draining.
• Many people in their late sixties or beyond may find
themselves serving as caregivers—a burden that generally
falls to women.

The ways families deal with these issues often have cultural
roots.
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 Long-Term Marriage

Married couples who are still together in late adulthood are

more likely to report higher satisfaction and fewer adjustment
problems in their marriage.
• Spouses who are still together are likely to have worked
out their differences.
• The way couples resolve conflicts is key.

Late-life marriage can be severely tested by advancing age

and physical ills.
• Spouses who care for disabled partners may feel isolated,
angry, and frustrated; and the strain in the relationship
may further aggravate the illness.
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 Widowhood

With increasing age, death of a spouse becomes more

common, and more so for women than for men.

Widowhood has been repeatedly associated with increased

mortality.
• The sharpest declines are seen in the first 6 months and in
rural rather than urban areas.
• Risk is higher for unexpected deaths.

Men appear to be affected more strongly by the loss of a

spouse.

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 Divorce and Remarriage

Divorce in middle-aged and older adults has risen.

• Increasing life expectancy.

• Remarriages, which are more likely to result in divorce.

• Women’s increased economic security.

Men are slightly more likely to remarry.

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 Single Life

In the United States, the number of single older adults has

risen in the past few decades.
• They may be single because of never marrying, divorce, or
widowhood.

When compared to divorced or widowed people, older never-

married adults are more likely to prefer single life and less
likely to be lonely.
• They are less likely to experience “single strain.”

• Never-married people are nevertheless disadvantaged.

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 Cohabitation

Cohabitation rates have risen sharply for older adults.

• These individuals are more likely to view it as an alternative
to marriage, rather than as a prelude.
• Most were previously married.
Generally, cohabitating relationships are quite stable.
• The benefits are most true for men.
Cohabitation for older adults is not commonly the result of
economic concerns.
• Cohabitating women are least likely to eventually marry if
they are in good health and are financially well-off.

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 Gay and Lesbian Relationships

The current cohort of older adults grew up at a time when

living openly as a homosexual was rare.
Gay and lesbian relationships in late life tend to be strong,
supportive, and diverse.
• Many homosexuals have children from earlier marriages.
• Married gay and lesbian adults and unmarried partners
report better physical health than do single gay and lesbian
adults.
Issues faced by older gays and lesbians include strained
relationships within the family of origin and discrimination in
nursing homes, social services, and health care—especially
when a partner dies.
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 Friendships

Maintaining friendships is important for well-being.

Most older people have close friends, and those with an
active circle of friends tend to be healthier and happier.
• Emotional closeness seems to be a key factor.
Some research has shown that many older people enjoy
spending time with friends more than with their families.

Long-time friendships often persist into very old age; but

losing friends is also a relatively common experience.
• Due to conflict, death, or relocation.

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 Relationships with Adult Children

While most older people have living children, they have fewer
of them than in previous generations.
• The mother-daughter relationship tends to be especially
close, and about half of older parents below 80 report
frequent contact with a child, most often a daughter.
The balance of mutual aid tends to shift as parents age, with
children providing a greater share of the support.
• Older adults who receive more help from their children
than they give them are, over time, more likely to show
increases in psychological distress.
• Older parents who can do so often continue to provide
financial support to their children.
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 Relationships with Siblings

Relationships with siblings tend to be among the longest

lasting of all relationships.
Sibling commitment is relatively stable across the life span.
The nearer people live to their siblings and the more they
have, the more likely they are to confide in them.
• Reminiscing about shared experiences may help in
reviewing a life and putting family relationships into
perspective.
Survivors of the death of sibling may grieve intensely and
become lonely or depressed.
• For some, it is a partial loss of identity.

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 Research in Action: Elder Abuse

Estimates are that 15.7% of adults age 60 and older are

abused across the world, 10% in the United States.
• These numbers do not reflect the cases that are not
reported.

Abuse can take various forms, including physical abuse,

sexual abuse, or abusive sexual contact, emotional or
psychological abuse, and neglect.
• It can also include financial abuse or exploitation.

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 Window on the World: Aging Stereotypes Worldwide

In many places, the elderly are often seen as frail, useless,

mentally incompetent, lonely, and a burden to society.

Some parts of the world are associated with respect for

elders, but research shows this is only partly true.
• The treatment of elders depends much on their usefulness
and contributions they can provide to others.

Negative views of aging can directly affect the elderly and

hasten physical and mental decline.

Social policies focused on education aim to increase hope for

the future and reduce fears among the elderly.

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 Questions?

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