Negotiating the demands of active ageing: longitudinal findings from Germany

Antecedents and Consequences of Endorsing Prescriptive Views of Active Aging and Altruistic Disengagement

In this study, we investigated endorsement of two types of prescriptive views of aging, namely active aging (e.g., prescriptions for older adults to stay fit and healthy and to maintain an active and productive lifestyle) and altruistic disengagement (e.g., prescriptions for older adults to behave altruistically toward the younger generation by granting young people access to positions and resources). The study comprised a large international sample of middle-aged and older adults (N = 2,900), covering the age range from 40 to 90 years. Participants rated their personal endorsement of prescriptive views of active aging and altruistic disengagement targeting older adults in general (i.e., "In my personal opinion, older adults should…"). Findings showed that endorsement was higher for prescriptions for active aging than for prescriptions for altruistic disengagement. Age groups in the sample differed regarding their endorsement of both prescriptive views of active aging and altruistic disengagement with older adults showing higher endorsement than middle-aged adults did. Prescriptive views of active aging and altruistic disengagement related positively to each other and to the superordinate social belief that older adults should not become a burden, which attests to their functional similarity. In contrast, prescriptive views of active aging and altruistic disengagement were associated with psychological adjustment in opposite ways, with endorsement of active aging (vs. altruistic disengagement) being related to better (vs. worse) adjustment outcomes such as life satisfaction and subjective health. Our findings highlight the internalization of prescriptive views of aging in older people and their implications for their development and well-being.

(Re)production of Inequalities in Retirement Practices and Meanings Assigned to the Term 'Retiree' in the Post-Communist Context

In the institutionalized life course transition from work to retirement is the transition that culturally defines the beginning of later life. However, there is no universal way of experiencing retirement or understanding retirees' social roles. Especially in the context of the post-communist, liquid modern reality in Poland. The social role of the retiree, defined as a set of rules and expectations generated for individuals occupying particular positions in the social structure, is constructed at the intersection of what is culturally defined and individually negotiated. Therefore, the way in which individuals (re)define term "retiree" and "do retirement" reflects not only inequalities in individual resources and attitudes, but also in social structure in a given place and at a given time. In this contribution, I draw upon data from 68 qualitative interviews with retirees from Poland to analyze retirement practices and meanings assigned to the term "retiree." Applying practice theory, I explore the inequalities they (re)produce, mirror and reinforce at the same time. Results show that there are four broad types of retirement practices: caregiving, working, exploring and disengaging. During analysis of meanings assigned by participants to the term "retiree," two definitions emerged: one of a "new wave retiree" and the other of a "stagnant retiree." Results suggest that in the post-communist context, retirement practices and meanings assigned to the term "retiree" are in the ongoing process of (re)negotiation and are influenced on the one hand by the activation demands resulting from discourses of active and productive aging, and on the other by habitus and imaginaries of retirement formed in the bygone communist era. Retirement practices and definitions of the term "retiree" that emerged from the data reflect structural and individual inequalities, highlighting intersection of gender, age and socioeconomic status in the (re)production of inequalities in retirement transition in the post-communist context.

Educational Attainment and Women's Environmental Mastery in Midlife: Findings From a British Birth Cohort Study

Using data from 1,184 women in the MRC National Survey of Health and Development, we estimated associations between education and Ryff’s environmental mastery scale scores at age 52. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated two subscales, here termed mastery skills and mastery accomplishments. Low education was associated with higher mastery skills. This was partly explained by childhood socioeconomic position, as mastery was lower among those with fathers in the most and least advantaged occupational classes. Education was not associated with mastery accomplishments in unadjusted models. Lower ambitions for family/home were associated with higher mastery accomplishments and may have partly suppressed as an association between education and mastery accomplishments. This study highlights childhood as well as adult correlates of mastery and adds to mounting evidence that higher mastery is not universally found among those who are more educated.

Measuring active ageing among older adults in Singapore

Active Ageing is conceptualised to measure the extent to which older people remain actively engaged with life. However, there is no evidence that the concept of Active Ageing is actually associated with the activity levels of older persons. Influences of age, ethnicity and spirituality on Active Ageing are also unexplored. Using the Active Ageing Index (AAI), this study examines whether the level of Active Ageing predicted the actual activity level of 120 Singaporeans of Chinese, Malay and Indians ethnicities, aged 55–64 years old or 65 years and above. Spirituality, measured by the Spirituality Index of Well-Being, was added to the AAI, to see if the predictive power of AAI improved. Hierarchical multiple regression showed that the AAI alone (controlling for age) did not significantly predict the activity level of older persons. The predictive power of the AAI improved significantly with spirituality included. Two-way between-groups Analysis of Variance revealed main effects of age and ethnicity, with higher AAI in those aged 55–64 and in Indian-Singaporeans. These findings suggest that the theoretical construct of Active Ageing needs further examination to identify the domains that distinguish it from chronological age, and support broadening the construct by including spirituality in Active Ageing.

Perceived Expectations for Active Aging, Formal Productive Roles, and Psychological Adjustment Among the Young-Old

We investigated how older adults' perceptions of societal expectations for active aging, or activation demands (e.g., to stay fit and to contribute to the public good), relate to their involvement in paid work and formal volunteering and psychological adjustment. We used two waves of survey data on young-old Germans (aged 56-75, N(T1) = 1,508, N(T2) = 602). With the exception of several items on perceived activation demands, paid work and volunteering were not significant longitudinal predictors of such demands. In females, perceived activation demands increased the likelihood to work for pay a year later. Finally, among nonworking individuals, perceived activation demands predicted a better physical self-concept and a higher positive affect, whereas among nonvolunteers, such demands predicted fewer depressive symptoms a year later. We conclude that the policy debate on active aging may benefit some older German adults but is of little consequence for most of them.