Understanding Late Adulthood and Aging
The Later Years
The period of late adulthood is a subject of study in gerontology. Gerontology, the scientific study of the processes and phenomena of aging, provides answers to many questions about this life stage. Sociologists are particularly interested in social gerontology, the study of the nonphysical aspects of the aging process.
Change Continues
People are now living longer. Life at age 65 is very different from life at 85. In recognition of this fact, gerontologists place individuals aged 65 and older into three groups:
- The young-old (65-74)
- The middle-old (75-84)
- The old-old (85 and older)
The topics of interest to gerontologists differ depending on the age group they are studying. Among the young-old (ages 65 through 74), adjustment to retirement is one of the most important developmental issues. When considering the middle-old (ages 75 through 84) and the old-old (85 and older), issues surrounding physical and mental decline and death take on added importance.
Adjustment to Retirement
In American society, we tend to identify individuals by their jobs. When two people meet for the first time, the question of what each does for a living is likely to arise. In light of the importance placed on an individual’s role in the labor force, it is reasonable to assume that people have difficulty adjusting to retirement.
For some people, the loss of the work role is a great shock. This shock is particularly evident in those who strongly identify with their jobs or who do not want to retire.
Most gerontologists feel that the level of adjustment to retirement reflects a person’s earlier attitudes and behavior. People who were happy and well-adjusted in their working lives will generally enjoy retirement.
Retirees need enough income to live comfortably. If they constantly struggle to make economic ends meet, retirees will have little time to enjoy retirement. Similarly, retirees need to have good health. Sickness makes adjustment to any stage of life (not just retirement) difficult.
Retirees quickly lose this feeling of independence if their comfort, both economic and physical, depends on the help and generosity of others.
Retirees also adjust better to their new situation if they remain linked to the larger social world to which they belong.
As the disease progresses, Alzheimer’s sufferers may also have trouble performing simple tasks even though they are physically able to do them. For example, they may be unable to perform their work duties or to drive a car.
Dealing with Dependency and Death
For the middle-old and the old-old, the issues of dependency and death take on increasing significance.
Dependency changes an individual’s status in society and necessitates new role behaviors. For example, when an aged parent is forced to live with a grown child because of dependency, the parent-child relationship often becomes reversed. The child takes over the role of the caregiver and authority figure. The aged parent is expected to be grateful for the assistance and to follow the wishes of the child.
Although elderly people do fear dependency, they do not appear to fear death. In fact, fear of death is much more common among middle-aged people. This middle-aged fear is interesting when one considers that the likelihood of dying in the near future is much greater for elderly people.