Overview Lecture 13 Successful Aging 1. Successful Aging: Theoretical Perspectives 2. Age and Creativity Simonton Model Last Works

Theoretical Perspectives on Successful Aging Focus of Successful Aging theories and research Factors that contribute to survival Enhanced spirit and joy in life “Mental health”

High physical and cognitive functioning Maintain engagement with life Theoretical Perspectives on Successful Aging MacArthur Foundation Study of Successful Aging Absence of disease High physical and cognitive functioning Maintain engagement with life

Theoretical Perspectives on Successful Aging Social Indicator Model of Well-Being Age Gender Marital status Income account for Well-Being Older adults should have lower well-being

Theoretical Perspectives on Successful Aging Paradox of Well-Being Older adults are lower on social indicators (e.g., income, health, education, marital status) They have high levels of well-being BUT Successful aging is the norm

Percent who rate selves as happy Theoretical Perspectives on Successful Aging Percent who rate selves as happy Mroczek & Kolarz 1998

Theoretical Perspectives on Successful Aging: Subjective Well-Being Definition and Measurement Subjective well-being Overall sense of happiness Life satisfaction Cognitive evaluation of one’s life circumstances MIDUS study of midlife 2700+ participants 25-74 years, average= 46 Factors contributing to subjective well-being

Theoretical Perspectives on Successful Aging: Subjective Well-Being Findings of MIDUS Study Women: positive affect highest in oldest groups Men: higher positive affect scores in later life only for introverted (extroverted were higher throughout) Older groups of married men had lower scores than younger married men

Theoretical Perspectives on Successful Aging: Subjective Well-Being Set Point Perspective Well-being reflects personality traits Biologically determined temperament sets boundaries for levels of well-being

Theoretical Perspectives on Successful Aging: Subjective Well-Being Possible Ways to Achieve High Well-Being Adaptation or habituation Feeling of making progress toward goals Coping strategies Social comparison Life story as reflection of identity processes

Productivity and Creativity: The Relationship Between Age and Creativity Early Studies Analysis of significant contributions Peak productivity between 30-35 Peak varies by discipline Lehman

Productivity and Creativity: The Relationship Between Age and Creativity Lehman’s Findings for Three Disciplines 26-30 55-60 Chemistry Chief Ministers 40-44 “Best Books”

Productivity and Creativity: The Relationship Between Age and Creativity Lehman’s Conclusions Earlier peaks in sciences and fields depending on imagination and physical ability Later peaks in fields that rely on experience and diplomacy

Productivity and Creativity: The Relationship Between Age and Creativity Early Studies NUMBER (not quality) of creative works Only people who lived to at least 80 Steep decline after peak age in arts Decline after peak age in sciences However, steady rate of production through late 60s Dennis

Productivity and Creativity: The Relationship Between Age and Creativity Findings from Dennis (1966)

Productivity and Creativity: The Relationship Between Age and Creativity Summary Early Studies Lehman Rapid increase in creative output Peak in 30s or early 40s Steady decline thereafter Dennis Creative productivity unlikely to component of successful aging. But there are many well-known “older thinkers”

Productivity and Creativity: The Relationship Between Age and Creativity Problems With Counts of Productivity by Age highly creative artists die before becoming “old” (e.g., Mozart) Compositional fallacy- average productivity rates do not describe productivity of individuals in that group

Productivity and Creativity: The Relationship Between Age and Creativity Simonton’s Model of Age and Creative Production a Production of new ideas for new products Ideation Number of works in unlimited lifespan p m Creative Potential Creative Products e Calculated on basis of CAREER AGE Elaboration Transforming ideas into products

Productivity and Creativity: The Relationship Between Age and Creativity Model for Poetry and Pure Mathematics Career age

Productivity and Creativity: The Relationship Between Age and Creativity Typology of Career Trajectories Variations by career onset and creative potential Use formula to predict first, best, and last works Low High Early Earliest “Last Work”

Productivity and Creativity: The Relationship Between Age and Creativity Typology of Career Trajectories First Best Last CREATIVE POTENTIAL CAREER ONSET Low High Late Latest “Last Work”

Productivity and Creativity: The Relationship Between Age and Creativity Relation of Quantity to Quality Equal Odds Rule Positive relationship between quality and quantity Highly productive older individuals have high probability of creating a masterwork

Productivity and Creativity: The Relationship Between Age and Creativity Conclusions from Simonton’s Research Emphasis on career age not actual age Productivity in later life higher among those who begin later However, high creative potential leads to high rate of productivity early and later in career Longer span for highly creative between first and last works Model allows for possibility of highly creative older people

Productivity and Creativity: The Relationship Between Age and Creativity Characteristics of Last Works Eliminates fine details Presents essence of work’s meaning More subjective, less objective Artists “Old age style” Musicians Shorter main themes Simpler melodies “Swan Song” Integration and synthesis Studies of aging Research on aging Scientists Stimulated by: Proximity to death Desire to leave legacy Reaction to age-related changes

“Grow old along with me! The best is yet to be.” Robert Browning 1812-1889