PSY BEH 113D Lecture Notes - Lecture 37: Longitudinal Study, Life Satisfaction, Psych
13 Jan 2020
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Document Summary
Contribute to sense of identity and personal satisfaction. Travel takes people out of their comfort zone. Critique: evidence from health & retirement study. Longitudinal study of adults 51+, 1998- -2004. Developed successful aging measure based on r & k criteria: No limitations in activities of daily living. Ability to perform a variety of physical tasks. Problem: few participants met all four criteria. Self-efficacy, optimism, attitudes toward aging, attitudes toward one"s own aging, resilience, physical and emotional symptoms, depression, cognitive functioning. Women highest in subjectively-rated successful aging had high scores on resilience, self-efficacy, optimism. High sexual satisfaction, though not necessarily high sexual activity. Psychological resilience and optimism more important than objective determinant. Both fit in with tradition of positive psychology, which seeks to provide a greater understanding of the strengths and virtues that enable individuals and communities to thrive. An aim of researchers is to understand why adults remain positive in their approach to life.
