Marriage and Family Life: The Middle and LateYearsAmericans,nearly half of people 65 and
older do not consider themselves“old”
and only 15% of people over 75 consider
themselves as“very old”.The survey also
showed that middle age is whatever you
want to make it.Half of the age 65-69
respondents and one third of those in
their 70’s still considered themselves
middle aged (Parkin,2000).
The Best Years or the Worst Years?
Amongtheagingmythsthat stillabound
in our society,oneassertsthat oldageis
theworst timeof life.Thetruth is,older
Americansarelivinglonger andenjoying
greater prosperity than any previous
generation.In fact,a recent study found
nearly 50%of 65- to69-year-oldsfelt these
werethebest yearsof their lives.For
peoplein their seventies,thepercentage
droppedto44%andfor peoplein their
eighties,thepercentagedroppedto33%.
AmongolderAfrican-Americansandolder
Hispanics,60%and57%respectively said
theolder yearswerethebest yearsof their
lives.(Parkin,2000).Onereason for these
high numbersmay betheincreasedhealth
andfinancialmeansof peopleover 65,
which makesit possiblefor older couples
todomany of thethingsthey havealways
wantedtodo,but couldnot becauseof
family andwork responsibilities.While
eldersstillfacethepossibility of poverty,in
2006,thepoverty ratefor people65and
older declinedto9.4%,down from 35%50
yearsago(DeNavas-Walt,Proctor,&
Smith,2007).
What constitutesa meaningful,vitallife
for an older adult?In thesurvey,American
Perceptionsof Agingin the21st Century
(NationalCouncilonAging,2002),85%of
therespondentsagreedfamily andfriends
werethemost important contributorstoa
vitallife,closely followedby health.Also
importantwasarichspirituallife,
communityinvolvement,andnewlearning
experiences.
Normal aging is a gradual process that
can lead to physical decline in several areas
of functioning.With aging come certain
changes in mental functioning,as well.
For example,short-term memory typically
declines.However,very few of these
changes match commonly held negative
stereotypes about aging.As people age,
good mental health is dependent on stable
intellectual functioning,the ability to cope
with change,and the ability to engage in
life and family (Goldman,Rye,&
Sirovatka,1999;Vaillant & Mukamal,
2001;Wilson et al.,2002).
Emotional Well-Being in the Later Years.
Our emotional well-being is an important
indicator of marital adjustment and
family cohesiveness.Emotional well-being
tends to improve as we age.Psychological
distress and depression decrease across the
adult lifespan and are the lowest in older
adults.Positive affect (outward display of
emotion) increases from young adulthood
through older adulthood,with the highest
levels found in older adults (Kessler et al.,
2004).