Freya Dittmann-Kohli

Beyond Life Satisfaction: Lay Conceptions of Well-Being among Middle-Aged and Elderly Adults

The present study examines lay conceptions ofwell-being in a representative sample ofGermans in the second half of life. Respondentsfilled out a sentence completion questionnaireas well as the Satisfaction With Life Scale(SWLS). In their sentence completions,respondents gave spontaneous descriptions oftheir lives as a whole in terms ofsatisfaction, quality (good/bad), achievement,retrospection, and other global dimensions.They also referred to the intrapersonal andinterpersonal domain, health and functioning,and other specific life domains in thesesentence completions. Systematic differenceswere found in the dimensions referred to inpositive and negative judgments and across agegroups. Hardly any of the negative judgmentswere couched in terms of life satisfaction. Thesentence completions and the SWLS resulted insimilar evaluations, but the personallymeaningful dimensions of judgment which emergedfrom the sentence completions were only partlycovered by the dimensions inherent in the SWLSitems. These findings are discussed in relationto existing studies on subjective well-beingand successful aging, which appear to focus toonarrowly on life satisfaction at the expense ofother personally meaningful dimensions of lifejudgments.

Expectations of gains in the second half of life: a study of personal conceptions of enrichment in a lifespan perspective

This research focuses on cognitive representations of the personal future during the second half of life. To investigate the developmental perspectives of people growing older, the anticipation of possible gains is studied. The participants of this study took part in the German Aging Survey and the sample comprises 2,934 subjects aged 40–85 years. To assess their anticipated ‘gains’, we selected the future-related items from the SELE-questionnaire, a sentence completion instrument administered for the Survey. We assumed that many would anticipate further enrichment by new social and societal activities in retirement, but the most frequently-mentioned gains referred to changes in life style and leisure activities, especially travelling. Plans and wishes feature a predominantly leisure-oriented life style. Among the anticipations, those concerned with generativity – caring for others, societal commitment, vocational ambitions – substantially decrease at about the age of 50 years. It was hypothesised that age, gender, living in the former East or West Germany, health, education, income, and perceived control would influence the cognitive representation of the future. To examine the effects of these personal and situational factors on gain anticipations, multiple regression analyses were performed. With respect to all independent variables, differences in the kinds of expected gains were found. The outcomes are discussed with reference to lifespan developmental theory and the role of older people in society.

Life contexts and health-related selves in old age: Perspectives from the United States, India and Congo/Zaire

Although aging and declines in health appear to be intrinsically related all over the world, there are large cultural differences in the meaning of health in old age. From a perspective on subjects who give meaning to themselves and their life world health-related selves were examined in relation to biological decline and social systems of caring for and curing the ill in the USA, India, and Congo/Zaire. Two hundred fifty-two elderly filled out a sentence completion questionnaire which asked for self-descriptions. For the American elderly health was an important value; they expressed fears of becoming ill and dependent, hopes for maintenance of autonomy, health and cognitive functioning, and intentions to health behaviors. The Congolese elderly expressed fears of death, hopes for a good death, expectations for decline in mobility and strength, and for support by their children. The Indian elderly generally fall between the Congolese and American extremes, but culture-specific cognitions about meditation and a peaceful death are also found. The differences in health-related selves are interpreted in relation to chances of healthy aging, specific illnesses, medical systems as well as care systems in each country. The findings are discussed in terms of universal and culture-specific themes of aging and their consequences for gerontological theory.

Individualism and Collectivism in the Personal Meaning System of Elderly Adults The United States and Congo/Zaire as an Example

Two problems in cross-cultural research are the increasingly complex definitions of individualism and collectivism and the relation between culture and self. A cultural psychological perspective on the construction of meaning can address both problems. In attributing meaning to self and life, people appropriate cultural values so that even the most authentic level of experience, the self, is culturally constituted. People are expected to use different attributes of individualism and collectivism in qualitatively different ways in relation to age-specific life contexts. The meaning of self and life was studied among American and Congolese elderly by the use of a sentence completion task. Each group showed a qualitatively different constellation of individualism and collectivism beyond cultural differences in the level of individualism and collectivism.

“When Looking Back on My Past Life I Regret…”: Retrospective Regret in the Second Half of Life

ABSTRACT The study investigated the frequency, themes, and attributions for significant regrets in a random probability sample of 3,917 German and Dutch nationals between the ages of 40 and 85 years. It was found that 14% did not have any regrets in spontaneous memory, and that this increased with the age of the respondents. With respect to mentioned regrets, older people, women, and those living in the former East Germany were more likely to recall externally attributed events; younger participants, men, West Germans, and the Dutch recalled more internally attributed events. Largely, memories related to 4 major themes: (a) mistakes, behavior, and bad decisions in general; (b) hard times; (c) social relationships; and (d) missed educational opportunities. The importance of these themes, however, varied according to age, gender, and regional belonging. Differences in the kind of attribution and in the centrality of themes are discussed in terms of lifespan theory, death preparation, and cultural differences.

Cognitive representations of future gains, maintenance, and losses in the second half of life

The aim of this study is to explore three different developmental dimensions in an aging population. Based on sentence completion responses, the investigation examines personal anticipations of possible gains, maintenance, and losses. Additionally, the effects of age and other personal and situational factors are examined. The study sample consists of 2,934 participants ranging from 40 to 85 years of age, who participated in the German Aging Survey of 1996. Study findings indicate that, to a large extent, the anticipated gains include positive changes in the way of life and increased leisure projects while anticipated maintenance refer to physical and behavioral resources and to life style. Anticipated losses are related to concerns about external living conditions and physical decline. There is a strong association of anticipated gains and maintenance with age, while present health conditions are related to expectations of loss. The implications of the study results for lifespan expectations in the second half of life and for lifespan theory are discussed.

Degree and Content of Negative Meaning in Four Different Age Groups in Germany.

The aim of this study was to investigate the degree and content of negative meaning (i.e., negative evaluations, motivations, feelings) in four different age groups of men and women in East- and West-Germany. A sample was drawn from 290 cities in Germany which was stratified according to four age groups (18–25, 40–54, 55–69, and 70–85), gender and region of residence (West- or East-Germany). A total of 3,306 individuals participated in the study. A sentence completion task was administered to study negative meaning. An analysis of variance was carried out for the degree of negative meaning, as well as binary logistic regression and correspondence analysis for the content of negative meaning to study the differences between the four age groups, gender, and East- and West-Germans. The results showed that the youngest age group, men, and people living in the Western part of Germany reported significantly less negative meaning than other groups. However, the difference between the groups was very small. The negative meaning showed different content in age groups reflecting age-graded developmental tasks. Some gender and regional differences in the content of negative meaning were also found.

Selbstvorstellungen über Individualität und Verbundenheit in der zweiten Lebenshälfte

Zusammenfassung Individualität und Verbundenheit sind zentrale Lebensthemen im gesamten Lebenslauf, über deren Bedeutung für Personen im mittleren und höheren Erwachsenenalter jedoch wenig bekannt ist. In dieser Studie wird deshalb den folgenden Fragen nachgegangen: Welche Anliegen sind mit Individualität und Verbundenheit assoziiert? Wie zentral sind Individualität und Verbundenheit in der zweiten Lebenshälfte? Lassen sich in Bezug auf Zentralität und inhaltliche Anliegen Altersgruppenunterschiede innerhalb der zweiten Lebenshälfte erkennen? 2934 Ost- und Westdeutsche (40–85 Jahre) wurden im Rahmen des Deutschen Alters-Surveys gebeten, ein Satzergänzungsverfahren (SELE) auszufüllen. Die Selbstbeschreibungen wurden im Hinblick auf Individualität und Verbundenheit codiert. Als Differenzierung dieser übergreifenden Kategorien wurden sechs Anliegen in Bezug auf Individualität und sieben Anliegen in Bezug auf Verbundenheit identifiziert, die die persönliche Bedeutung der Lebensthemen zum Ausdruck bringen. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass Individualität und Verbundenheit für Sinngebungsprozesse in der zweiten Lebenshälfte ähnlich zentral sind. Ein Vergleich von fünf Altersgruppen ergab eine geringere Zentralität beider Themen bei den ältesten Studienteilnehmern. Auch zeigen sich altersabhängige Unterschiede in den inhaltlichen Anliegen. Ein Vergleich unserer Befunde (bezüglich Zentralität und inhaltlicher Anliegen) mit Annahmen gängiger Theorien psychologischen Wohlbefindens im Erwachsenenalter und erfolgreichen Alterns zeigt, dass die Selbstvorstellungen der Deutschen zwischen 40 und 85 Jahren viel stärker auf Verbundenheitsaspekte gerichtet sind, als in den theoretischen Vorstellungen postuliert wird.    Im Anschluss werden methodologische Implikationen der Ergebnisse diskutiert.Summary Across the whole life span individuality and communion are two central motivational orientations. These themes are scarcely studied in the second half of life. In this study the following questions are posed: which concerns are associated with individuality and communion in middle and late adulthood? How central are these themes? Do age groups in the second half of life differ with regard to the meaning and centrality of individuality and communion? In the German Aging Survey East- and West-Germans from 40 to 85 years of age (N=2934) were asked to fill out a sentence completion questionnaire (SELE) which requires self-descriptions. These self-descriptions were coded in terms of the different meanings related to individuality and communion: 13 concerns were identified. Results showed that individuality and communion are about equally important topics for meaning-giving in the second half of life. The comparison of five age groups shows that both themes are significantly less central in self-descriptions of older groups. The particular concerns associated with individuality and communion also differ according to age. When results on centrality and particular concerns are examined on the basis of theories of successful aging and psychological well-being, it becomes evident that the ideas adults have of themselves do not correspond with certain features of these theories. An important implication is that current theories of succesful aging and well-being overemphasize individuality at the expense of communion. Implications for methodology are pointed out in the discussion.