THEORIES IN GERONTOLOGY: EARLY THEORIES

1. THEORIES IN GERONTOLOGY:EARLY THEORIES Dr. M. C. Sengstock SOC 5760 – Society & Aging

2. 5 PHASES OF THEORY IN GERONTOLOGY • Pre 1960: Problems Approach; No Theories • 1960s: Early Theory: Disengagement – Activity – Subculture of Aging • 1970s: 2nd Generation Theories Age Stratification – Personality Continuity • 1980s & Later: Emergent Theories Focus on Contextual & Structural Arrangements • More Recent Theories: Greater Focus on Theories from Individual Disciplines

3. SOCIAL THEORIES OF AGING:WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THEORY? • Organize What Is Known About a Topic • Propose Explanations for Data Observed • Suggest Hypotheses • Predict Future Findings

4. EARLY THEORIES IN GERONTOLOGY • Focused On Role Theory (Applicable to Nearly Everything!) • ROLE: The Activities Required by Statuses (Social Positions) • COMPONENTS: Role Expectations (Norms), Role Socialization, Role Changes, Role Discontinuity (Esp. in Times of Transition) • Early Gerontology Theory Focused on the Way Roles Were Assigned & Developed • Also on the Way They Had to Change As People Reached Old Age

5. DISENGAGEMENT THEORY • Cummings & Henry, 1961 • Kansas City Study of 275 Persons 50-90 Yrs Old • NOTE: Discussion in Text (Hooyman & Kiyak) Is Rather Sterile • Disengagement Very Influential At That Time • Was the Basis of Much Social Policy • Focused Primarily On LOSS of ROLES As People Grew Old

6. TENETS OF DISENGAGEMENT • Old Age Is Period of Mutual Withdrawal • Aged Withdraw From Society & Reverse • From Work, Family, Friends, All Institutions • MUTUAL Separation From PEOPLE & ROLES • Society Pushes Them Out • Get Rid of Them & Make Room For Young • Aged WANT to Withdraw • They Know They Are Less Able & Face Imminent Death

7. DISENGAGEMENT (ctd) • NORMATIVE Withdrawal Accompanies & Follows Actual Withdrawal • As Elderly Become Separated From Society, They Are Less Controlled By It • They Follow Their Own Rules • They Become Even More Separated • This is What Is Meant By “DISENGAGED” • “Gerotranscendance Theory”: Old Focus More on Self-Development Than Rational, Economical View of the World

8. CONSEQUENCES OF DISENGAGEMENT • Poor Adjustment to Old Age May Occur • Due to LACK OF SYNCHRONIZATION Between Society’s & Individual’s Disengagement • One Side – Usually the Individual – Is Behind the Other in Withdrawing • Reengagement Occurs If New Skills Learned • Low Morale Occurs if Pattern Does Not “Fit” • Men’s Disengagement More Sudden: Work Roles Cease More Suddenly Than Women’s Home Roles - Remember: This is the ’60s – Women Didn’t Work

9. DISENGAGEMENT: RECOMMENDATIONS & CRITIQUE • Solution To Old Age Problems: Encourage Aged to Withdraw • CRITICISMS: Theory Suggests: • Withdrawal Is Inevitable • Withdrawal Is Functional for Both • Fails to Consider Individual Personal Factors of Aged Persons • All Elderly Do NOT Want To Withdraw – Nor Do Their Families & Friends Want Them To

10. CUMMINGS & HENRY’S RESPONSE • Distinguished Between Appearance & Reality • Old People Are Really Disengaged – Even If They Don’t Look Like It • Recognized Physical/Psychological Differences • “Impingers” (Activist, Assertive People) Disengage Slower Than “Selectors” (Passive) • Women Socialized to Change Roles Easier Than Men So They Adapt Better

11. CUMMINGS & HENRY RESPONSE (ctd) • Disengagement Is Part of “Increasing Interiority” – Emphasis on Self vs. Other • This Occurs Throughout Life • Some People Are More Disposed to Interiority (Introverts) • They Will Disengage Faster Than Extroverts • This Leads to a More “Developmental Psych” Approach – Moving Through Life Stages

12. ACTIVITY “PERSPECTIVE” • Havighurst & Albrecht, 1953; Maddox, 1970 • Not Developed Enough For a Real Theory • Also Focused on ROLE LOSS of Old Age • Attempted to “Turn It Around” • 4 Essential Postulates: • Role Loss Is Related to Loss of Activity • Role Support Is Related to Activity • Stable Role Support Produces Stable Self Concept • Positive Self Concept Produces Life Satisfaction

13. ACTIVITY PERSPECTIVE (ctd) • “Activities” Are Parts of Roles • Activities Increase Through Child & Adult Life • Individual’s Self Concept Receives Validation Through Successful Activity Performance • With Old Age – Activities Decrease • To Maintain High Morale  New Activities Must Be Adopted

14. COMPARING THE THEORIES • DISENGAGEMENT THEORY: • Old Must Learn to GIVE UP Roles, Activities • ACTIVITIES THEORY: • Old Must Learn to DEVELOP New Roles, Activities

15. CONSEQUENCES OF ACTIVITY THEORY • Suggests Disengagement Occurs Only for the Very Old • For Most Older People, Increased Activity Is Necessary for High Morale • Suggested That “Activities” Should Be Created for Older People to Provide Them New Things to Do – & Lead to Higher Morale

16. CRITICISM OF ACTIVITY THEORY • Does Not Deal With Social Value of Activities • Will Any Old, Meaningless, Time-Consuming Activities Do? • Many “Activities” Were Meaningless (Nursing Homes Made Bread Wrapper Placemats) • May Have a Middle Class Bias: Assumes Everyone Must Always Do Something “Useful” • Importance of Leisure – Old People May Have a Right & Desire for Leisure!

17. SUBCULTURE OF AGING THEORY • Sociological Theory (A.Rose, 1965; J.Gubrium) • NOTE: “Subculture” Does NOT Refer to a Less Valuable Culture • It Refers to a Culture Practiced By A Smaller Segment Than the Population As a Whole • Sees Close Relationship Between: Roles – Social Identity – Self Concept

18. SUBCULTURE OF AGING (ctd) • A Distinctive AGED SUBCULTURE Develops: • Aged Interact More With Each Other Than Younger People • Demographic Changes Produced Many Old • Older People Are Targets of Discrimination • Older People Live Together in “Aged Ghettos” • Social Agencies Serving Elderly Promote It! • EX of Aged Subcultures: • FL Retirement Communities: Juvenile-Style Crime • Mesa, AZ Laws Against Children, Schools • 55 Yr Olds Aspiring to Retirement Community Living

19. PARTICIPATION IN AGED SUBCULTURE An Aged Person’s Participation in the “Aged Subculture” Is Dependent Upon: • Solidarity of the Age Group • Number of Aged Organizations, Their Strength • Number of Aged IN vs. NOT in Aged Groups • I.e., Who Associate More With Family, Friends • Are More Isolated From the Aged Community • SUM: Elderly In Retirement Communities – Part of Aged Subculture • Those in General Communities – Probably NOT

20. AGED SUBCULTURE:SUMMARY & CRITIQUE • SUM: There Will Be An Aged Subculture If Most Elderly Spend Most of Their Time With Old People & Little Time With Younger People (Family, Neighborhood, Church, Work) • QUESTIONS: Is There Really An Aged Subculture? • Does It Apply to All Aged? • Which Is Better: • Strong Aged Subculture? Or Weak One?

21. AGE STEROTYPING • Concept Related to Aged Subculture Theory • Over-Simplified Generalizations About Aged • Often Accepted By Young, Middle-Aged • Often Accepted By Old As Well • EX: Old-Fashioned; Fussy; Forgetful; Senile; Crotchety; Demanding; Asexual; Radically Different From Younger Persons; Men Upset By Retirement; Women By Children Leaving

22. CONSEQUENCES OF STEREOTYPES • Complaints By Elderly Are Often Dismissed As Results of Normal Aging or Examples of Old People Constantly Complaining • Are Stereotypes Accurate? For Whom? • Who Fares Best? • Wealthy: Comfortable: Age a Pleasant Surprise • Poor: Aging Is As Portrayed: Little Money, Poor Health, Left Out of Things

23. IMPACT OF METHODOLOGY • These Theories Probably Resulted From Methodological Patterns • Early Research Done on Institutionalized Aged • Easy to Access for Study Subjects • Different From Community Dwelling Aged … • Who Are NOT Separated From Community As a Whole • Who Interact a Lot With Younger People

24. AGE STRATIFICATION THEORY • A 2nd GENERATION THEORY • Shifted Attention from the Individual Roles Approach • Focused More on Broader Social Structure • Sociological Theory • Matilda White Riley, et al, 1972; Dowd, 1980

25. AGE STRATIFICATION THEORY (ctd) • Structural Components: • Same Variables As Any Stratification System: • Socio-Economic Status (SES); Ethnic Minorities • Age Strata: All Societies Have Age Subgroups • Size & Composition Varies With the Society • Each Stratum Differs in Terms of: • Physical, Psychological, Social Conditions • Results in Age-Related Capacities

26. AGE-RELATED ROLES • Roles Are Patterned/Distributed Based on Age • Directly: Women’s Age Determines Pregnancy • Indirectly: Rules Determine Entry Into School • Generally Roles Are Distributed By Age • Parents of Preschoolers; Retirees • Age-Related Expectations: • People of Different Ages Play Roles Differently • Partly Due to Physical Ability • Partly Due to Experience, Knowledge

27. PROCESS COMPONENTS IN AGE STRATA Cohort Flow: • Each Cohort Begins, Passes Through, & Ends Under Different Conditions Aging: • Each Cohort Changes Physiologically & In Gaining Knowledge

28. INTERVENING VARIABLESIN AGE STRATA • Allocation: Processes of Assigning & Reassigning People of Various Ages to Appropriate Roles • Adoption; Becoming Executive or Stock Clerk; Certain Jobs Only Available to College Grads, etc. • Socialization: Socializing Agencies Training People for New Roles At Each Stage • EX: Schools; Religious Organizations; Company OJT; Retirement Preparation Seminars

29. EXTERNAL FACTORSIMPACTING ON AGE STRATA • Outside Events: Events Which Play a Role or Impact on the Process – Without Anyone Being Able to Control It – EX: • Level of Industrialization; Numbers of Men/Women in Cohort • Economic Factors: Recession; Changes in 401K Plans; Madoff’s Scam • Outside Factors Affect the Way the Age System/ Strata Operate At a Given Time

30. PROBLEM OF AGE STRATA:STRUCTURAL LAG • Strata Patterns Lag Behind – No Longer Apply EX: Rules Require Mandatory Retirement @ 65 But Many Workers Cannot Afford to Retire: • Union Supported Retirement Plans Eliminated • Would-Be Retirees Caring for Very Elderly Parents • Harvard Care Plan: Force Women to Stay Home • Needs of Society &/or Individual Not Met

31. CONTRIBUTION OFAGE STRAFICATION THEORY Major Contribution: Its Research Methodology COHORT ANALYSIS: Comparing Effects of: • Aging: Physical Process of Growing Older • Period: Historical Period of Aging Process • Cohort: Generation Going Through It Together

32. PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES • From Developmental Psychology • “Life Course Theory” • Views Aging As One Stage in Life Course • See Changes Occurring Throughout Life • Many Different Stages (Including Elder Care) • Life Course “Capital” Plays a Role: • Assets/Liabilities Developed Through Life Experiences

33. PERSONALITY CONTINUITY THEORY • Basic Tenet: As We Age, We Basically Continue As We Were Before • No Major Changes As a Result of Growing Old • Barring Major Physical Change – EX: Stroke • Early Research Goal: Obtain Evidence of the “Mid-Life Crisis” & When It Occurred Paul Costa, PhD. Former Chief of Personality & Cognition Studies, Institute on Aging

34. COSTA’S STUDY OF MID-LIFE CRISIS • 25 Year Longitudinal Study of Military Men • Phase I: Personality Test Taken in 1944 in Their 20s (Test A) • Phase II: Same Test Taken 25 Years Later (1969) – 2 Parts: • Test B: Answer As You Think You Would Have Answered It 25 Years Ago • Test C: Answer As You Would Answer It Today

35. RESULTS OF COSTA’S STUDY • 3 Personality Tests Compared: 1944 Score; 1969 Est. of 1944 Score; 1969 Score • Great Similarity Between 1944 & 1969 Scores • Less Similarity: 1944 Score & Estimate of 1944 • Conclusion: If You Want to Know What You Were Like 25 Years Ago – Look at Self Today! • Memories Are Notoriously Inaccurate!

36. CONCLUSIONS OF PERSONALITY CONTINUITY THEORY • Our Personalities Are Pretty Well Set By Time We Are About 25 (Younger for Non-College) • Pictures of Elderly as Crotchety, Hard to Get Along With Are Inaccurate (Absent Brain Trauma) • Crabby Elderly Probably Were Crabby In Youth, Middle Age • People Easy to Get Along With In Youth, Middle Age – Stay That Way

37. NEXT SECTION Will Discuss Major Sociological Approaches to Aging