Late Adulthood Chapter 1 Summary

Learning Objectives: Chapter 15

1. Some theories of late adulthood are called self theories because they focus on individuals’ perceptions of themselves and their ability to meet challenges to their identity. They are theories that emphasize the core self, or the search to maintain one’s integrity and identity. (Other theories are called stratification theories because they describe the ways in which societies place people on a particular life path.) These negotiations to the challenges faced in late adulthood are crucial when faced with challenges such as illness, retirement, and death of loved ones. The central idea is that each person ultimately depends on himself or herself.

Integrity versus despair is the final stage of
Filial responsibility is the obligation of adult children to care for their aging parents. When parents need material goods, adult children often sacrifice to provide them, but emotional support is more crucial and more complex, sometimes increasing when financial help is not needed. Other elders actually resent supportive behaviors such as visiting frequently, giving presents, cleaning the refrigerator, calling the doctor, or even paying the telephone bill. Culture is crucial in determining what specific type of support people expect and who they think should provide it. In the United States, a major goal among adults is to be self-sufficient. The old would rather take care of their own needs, but if that is not possible, they would rather rely on a spouse than on a child. Adult children may be more willing to offer support than their parents are to receive it. A good relationship with successful grown children enhances a parent's well-being. By contrast, a poor relationship makes life worse for
When caregiving results in resentment and social isolation, the risk of depression, poor health, and abuse (of either the frail person or the caregiver) escalates. Most family members provide adequate care despite the stress. However, abuse of the elderly person is likely if the caregiver suffers from emotional problems or substance abuse. Maltreatment ranges from direct physical attack to ongoing emotional neglect. Three distinct elements contribute to the problem: the victim, the abuser, and the community. Abuse is likely when the care receiver is a feeble person who suffers severe memory loss, when the caregiver is a drug-addicted relative, or when care occurs in an isolated place where visitors are few and far between. If any one of those conditions is absent, abuse is less likely. The typical case of elder maltreatment occurs benignly, as an outgrowth of caregiving. Benign beginnings make elder abuse difficult to identify, and family members are reluctant to notify authorities. Sometimes the caregiver becomes the victim, cursed or even attacked by the confused elderly person. As with other forms of abuse, the dependency of the victim makes prosecution