Interview Assignment a Person 65 or Older: Aging Theories

Theories of Aging
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Theories of Aging
Aging is a process that every living organism must undergo, and everybody wants to experience a successful aging. We all want to continue doing the things we used to do and have the freedom to say or yell what we want and remain healthy. Biological and psychosocial theories of aging are the major categories of the concept of aging. However, in this paper, I will discuss the continuity theory. This is a type of the psychosocial theories of aging, in based on the interview's responses from a 66-year-old woman. Psychosocial approaches focus on psychological and social aspects that lead to successful aging. Robert Atchley was the first person to propose the continuity theory in his article “Retirement and Leisure Participation: Continuity or Crisis?” This theory states that human beings maintain their past social and physical activities even as they grow old. Such activities include their lifestyles, preferences, habits, mentality, and culture (Karl & Cavanuagh, 2016).
The continuity theory provides a basis for understanding how old people employ their experiences and concepts to adjust and adapt to the changes resulting from normal aging. It argues that middle-aged and older adults maintain and preserve their social and psychological style of living by applying the same strategies and skills used in the past. They make adaptive choices that maintain their existing external and internal structures. The theory takes a life course viewpoint that shows that history, culture, and social experiences shape the aging process. It supports that there is a relationship between our daily activities and successful aging (Menec, 2003).
I interviewed a 66-years-old American old woman who is married with three children. Her highest level of education is the University education, and she is living in an urban environment. The woman’s name is Kate, and she likes painting and currently stays with her husband who is 69-years-old. Among the questions I asked the interviewee, were her favorite recreational activities across different stages of her adulthood, cognitive activities such as playing cards or chess, reading books or teaching, and social activities such as visiting friends and relatives, community work, and religious meetings. In addition, I asked Kate how her close friends from college to university to workplace influenced her life and the development of her morals. I also found out how the experiences in her life have contributed to who she is as a mature woman and below is the discussion of her responses regarding the continuity theory of normal aging.
The interviewee’s responses show that there are significant associations between current social and recreational activities and the past leisure activities when she was in high school and college. For instance, during her teenage hood, Kate used to compose songs, participate in high school music and drama festivals, hang out with friends, go out for night dance, paint, and have nature walks. At the university, she still used to sing at the concerts, nightclubs and did the same things she did when she was in high school. Kate also mentioned that she...