Developmental psychology/Chapter 14 & 15/Activities in Late Adulthood

Active elders live much healthier lives than elders that are inactive - they may participate in:

• Work, with elders eventually reaching retirement.
• Volunteer work
• Staying at home and taking care of the house: aging in place: remain in the same community while increasing in age.
  • Naturally occurring retirement community (NORC) - A neighborhood area where elders move to as young adults and stay there.
• Many elders are religious and may involve themselves in religious activities. Elders who are religious have more hopes for the future - religion encourages good habits, promotes good relationships, and reduces stress about death.
• Elders could also turn to politics, spouses or children through the principle of filial responsibility - where the adult children are obligated to take care of their elderly parents. Things that affect intergenerational relationships are assistance originating by need and ability, proximity over affection when contacting and sons feeling obligation while daughters feel affection.
• Skipped-generations may exist, where the middle generation (parents) are abusive and therefore cut off.
• Friends are also a close part of an elder's life - they lose friends over the years to death and retiring.