Defining Successful Aging: A Tangible or Elusive Concept?
Purpose of the Study Everyone wants to age successfully; however, the definition and criteria of successful aging remain vague for laypersons, researchers, and policymakers in spite of decades of research on the topic. This paper highlights work of scholars who made significant theoretical contributions to the topic.
Design and Methods A thorough review and evaluation of the literature on successful aging was undertaken.
Results Our review includes early gerontological definitions of successful aging and related concepts. Historical perspectives reach back to philosophical and religious texts, and more recent approaches have focused on both process- and outcome-oriented models of successful aging. We elaborate on Baltes and Baltes' theory of selective optimization with compensation [Baltes, P. B., & Baltes, M. M. (1990a). Psychological perspectives on successful aging: The model of selective optimization with compensation. In P. B. Baltes & M. M. Baltes (Eds.), Successful aging: Perspectives from the behavioral sciences (pp. 1–34). United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press], Kahana and Kahana's preventive and corrective proactivity model [Kahana, E., & Kahana, B. (1996). Conceptual and empirical advances in understanding aging well through proactive adaptation. In V. Bengtson (Ed.), Adulthood and aging: Research on continuities and discontinuities (pp. 18–40). New York: Springer], and Rowe and Kahn's model of successful aging [Rowe, J. W., & Kahn, R. L. (1998). Successful aging. New York: Pantheon Books], outlining their commonalities and differences. Additional views on successful aging emphasize subjective versus objective perceptions of successful aging and relate successful aging to studies on healthy and exceptional longevity.
Implications Additional theoretical work is needed to better understand successful aging, including the way it can encompass disability and death and dying. The extent of rapid social and technological change influencing views on successful aging also deserves more consideration.
The term "successful aging" has been used in the gerontological literature to cover processes of aging throughout the life span (Wykle, Whitehouse, & Morris, 2005). It implies positive aging processes for some (Rowe & Kahn, 1998) while provoking criticisms of failing to be either not comprehensive enough or too far-reaching for others (Holstein & Minkler, 2003). As Moody (2005) pointed out, the term "successful aging" suggests "key ideas such as life satisfaction, longevity, freedom from disability, mastery and growth, active engagement with life, and independence" (p. 59). Sometimes successful aging has been called "vital aging" or "active aging" or "productive aging" with the implication that later life can be a time of sustained health and vitality where older people contribute to society rather than merely a time of ill health and dependency (Achenbaum, 2001; Butler & Gleason, 1985). The emphasis for many may be on maintaining positive functioning as long as possible (Phelan & Larson, 2002), but others have suggested that successful aging can also be discussed under more adverse health conditions (Glass, 2003; Poon, Gueldner, & Sprouse, 2003). This paper will highlight the work that has popularized the topic of successful aging, present some of the definitions that have been offered, and outline their commonalities and differences. However, we will first review historical roots of successful aging.
Abstract and Introduction
Abstract
Purpose of the Study Everyone wants to age successfully; however, the definition and criteria of successful aging remain vague for laypersons, researchers, and policymakers in spite of decades of research on the topic. This paper highlights work of scholars who made significant theoretical contributions to the topic.
Design and Methods A thorough review and evaluation of the literature on successful aging was undertaken.
Results Our review includes early gerontological definitions of successful aging and related concepts. Historical perspectives reach back to philosophical and religious texts, and more recent approaches have focused on both process- and outcome-oriented models of successful aging. We elaborate on Baltes and Baltes' theory of selective optimization with compensation [Baltes, P. B., & Baltes, M. M. (1990a). Psychological perspectives on successful aging: The model of selective optimization with compensation. In P. B. Baltes & M. M. Baltes (Eds.), Successful aging: Perspectives from the behavioral sciences (pp. 1–34). United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press], Kahana and Kahana's preventive and corrective proactivity model [Kahana, E., & Kahana, B. (1996). Conceptual and empirical advances in understanding aging well through proactive adaptation. In V. Bengtson (Ed.), Adulthood and aging: Research on continuities and discontinuities (pp. 18–40). New York: Springer], and Rowe and Kahn's model of successful aging [Rowe, J. W., & Kahn, R. L. (1998). Successful aging. New York: Pantheon Books], outlining their commonalities and differences. Additional views on successful aging emphasize subjective versus objective perceptions of successful aging and relate successful aging to studies on healthy and exceptional longevity.
Implications Additional theoretical work is needed to better understand successful aging, including the way it can encompass disability and death and dying. The extent of rapid social and technological change influencing views on successful aging also deserves more consideration.
Introduction
The term "successful aging" has been used in the gerontological literature to cover processes of aging throughout the life span (Wykle, Whitehouse, & Morris, 2005). It implies positive aging processes for some (Rowe & Kahn, 1998) while provoking criticisms of failing to be either not comprehensive enough or too far-reaching for others (Holstein & Minkler, 2003). As Moody (2005) pointed out, the term "successful aging" suggests "key ideas such as life satisfaction, longevity, freedom from disability, mastery and growth, active engagement with life, and independence" (p. 59). Sometimes successful aging has been called "vital aging" or "active aging" or "productive aging" with the implication that later life can be a time of sustained health and vitality where older people contribute to society rather than merely a time of ill health and dependency (Achenbaum, 2001; Butler & Gleason, 1985). The emphasis for many may be on maintaining positive functioning as long as possible (Phelan & Larson, 2002), but others have suggested that successful aging can also be discussed under more adverse health conditions (Glass, 2003; Poon, Gueldner, & Sprouse, 2003). This paper will highlight the work that has popularized the topic of successful aging, present some of the definitions that have been offered, and outline their commonalities and differences. However, we will first review historical roots of successful aging.