1. Theories of Aging

2. Chapter Outline The origins of social gerontology
Micro theories of aging
Macro theories of aging

3. The Origins of Social Gerontology
The first practitioners of social gerontology were developmental psychologists, whose traditional focus on growth and maturation was expanded to include later maturity.
The emphasis on decline in old age grew from an awareness of real physical changes.
Early researchers saw old age as a period of inevitable physical and mental decline
Awareness of real physical changes, such as diminished short-term memory or vision losses
Increased vulnerability to certain diseases like heart disease, cancer, and stroke

4. The Origins of Social Gerontology
Book by Cavan (Personal Adjustment in Old Age, 1949)
Suggested that a decline in old age was not inevitable
Poor adjustment was correlated with a lack of activity
People who continued to lead active and productive lives remained well adjusted in old age
The Kansas City Study of Adult Life (1950’s)coupled the emphasis on adjustment with measures of how people performed various roles—spouse, parent, worker—as they aged.
Central to these concepts was social role (Expectations that accompany a given position or status, including age and sex roles)
No significant change in role competence or quality in middle age (subjects yrs)
Follow-up study in older populations up to age 85, showed increased disengagement (interiorization) – withdrawal from worldly affairs, decreased energy with advancing age

5. Discussion
Theories of Aging What is the benefit of having a theory of aging? Do gerontologists really need theories?

6. Micro Theories of Aging / Psychological Theories – Disengagement Theory
Disengagement Theory = First formal theory of aging
Proposed in 1961 by Cumming and Henry:
Criticizing what they called the “implicit theory” that people can be well adjusted, satisfied, and happy in old age only if they remain active and involved, Cumming and Henry (1961) argued that normal aging involves a natural and inevitable mutual withdrawal or disengagement
Because of the inevitability of death, the society and the individual mutually sever their ties in advance so that the death of the individual will not be disruptive to the social system
This process results in decreasing interaction between an aging person and the others in his/her social system
This process is universal and inevitable

7. Micro Theories of Aging / Psychological Theories – Disengagement Theory - Controversies
Most controversial about disengagement theory was the idea that disengagement was universal, meaning it happens everywhere and in all historical eras; that it was inevitable, meaning it must happen sometime to everyone; and that it was intrinsic, caused by biological factors rather than social factors
Disengagement theory does not fully account for differences in personality and temperance when considering the activity level of an aging individual in society
Perhaps instead of defining disengagement as a theory of optimal aging, it may be more helpful to consider it a process that sometimes, but does not always occur.

8. Micro Theories of Aging / Psychological Theories – Activity Theory
The quest for normal aging continued when Robert Havighurst formalized activity theory, what Cumming and Henry had called the “implicit” (detachment) theory of aging.
Havinghurst, one of the collaborators on the Kansas City Study of Adult Life, argued that the psychological and social needs of the elderly were no different from those of the middle-aged and that it was neither normal nor natural for older people to become isolated and withdrawn. The Activity Theory stresses that the person who ages optimally manages to stay active and resist the shrinkage of their social world.
Social gerontologists no longer view the withdrawal of older people from social roles and social interaction as normal aging
Disengagement is associated with changes that make it difficult for people to remain active
Widowhood, poor health, and retirement all correlated with disengagement and are better predictors of activity level than age
The person who ages optimally stays active and resists the shrinkage of their social world
Older persons who engage in productive activities and social networks are less like to have depression
Table 3.1 (next slide) shows a life satisfaction scale, which tends to remain high, even in advanced old age (Men importance = life partner satisfaction, financial health; women = life partner relationships, and wider ranges of other factors)

9. Life Satisfaction Scale

10. Micro Theories of Aging / Psychological Theories – Continuity Theory
Continuity theory represents a more formal elaboration of activity theory, using a life course perspective to define normal aging and to distinguish it from pathological aging.
First proposed by Robert Atchley, continuity theory draws heavily from the basic dichotomy of internal and external aging processes described in the Kansas City studies
Internal continuity refers to an inner remembered structure , such as the persistence of psychic structure of ideas, temperament, affect, experiences, preferences, dispositions, and skills. (WHO WE ARE)
External continuity is connected to past performance and can be observed in the continuity of skills, activities, environments, roles, and relationships between middle and old age (WHAT WE DO)
Continuity theory emphasizes that personality plays a major role in adjustment to aging and that adult development is a continuous process.
Thus, continuity is an effective strategy for successful aging, and minimizes the effects of aging

11. Micro Theories of Aging / Psychological Theories – Continuity Theory - Controversies
The most controversial element of continuity theory is its definition of normal aging. Normal aging, according to Atchley, refers to “usual, commonly encountered patterns of human aging It can be distinguished from pathological aging by a lack of physical or mental disease.
However, chronic illness is common in old age and having such does not preclude meaningful social interaction, especially when the person can create continuity in the process of a disruptive chronic illness.
Feminist theorists (discussed later in slide series) contend that because continuity theory defines normal aging around a male model, it turns forms of inequality such as high rates of poverty among older women into indicators of individual pathology. A more accurate description may be that poverty and income inequality is a flaw in the overall social structure.

12. Micro Theories of Aging / The Individual and the Social System Theories – Subculture Theory
Subculture theory shared several traits with activity theory and disengagement theory—a conviction that people lose status in old age, a focus on role changes in later life, and a belief that activity enhanced the lives of the elderly. It differed in that it built on a sociological theory of subcultural development.
Subcultures develop under two sets of circumstances: 1)When people share similar interests, problems, and concerns or have long-standing friendships, they may form a subculture; 2) Subcultures may also develop when groups of people are excluded from full participation in the wider society.
The social gerontologist Arnold Rose applied subculture theory to the study of aging. Rose argued that older people were subject to both conditions. They have a positive affinity for one another based partly on their physical limitations and thus their common interest “in a physically easy and calm existence.” They also share “common role changes and common generational experiences in a rapidly changing society”

13. Micro Theories of Aging / The Individual and the Social System Theories – Subculture Theory
Thus Rose argued that older people shared a subculture because they have:
Common interests
Common role changes
Common generational experiences
He also stated that older people are drawn together because they are excluded by younger people
Controversially, even though it is true that older people experience common role changes, the idea that the aged form a single subculture has now been discounted.
Older persons are more likely to form affiliations on the basis of family, racial ethnicity, and ethnic identity, social class and religious affiliation than on age
Within the subculture of the elderly, high status is conferred on those who have good physical and mental health
The idea that the aged form a single subculture is now discounted
Subculture theory disappeared from the research agenda until recently. Now as older people have increasingly become involved in interest groups, questions have again arisen about their group identity.

14. Micro Theories of Aging / The Individual and the Social System Theories – Exchange Theory
Exchange theory is similar to the psychosocial theories previously discussed in its interest in explaining why some older people withdraw from social interaction. Social exchange theory suggests that personal relationships feel most satisfying when both participants are perceived as contributing equally to the relationship
A central premise of exchange theory is that resources are often unequal and that actors will continue to engage in exchanges only as long as the benefits are greater than the costs. Also, interaction between the old and the young decreases because older people have fewer resources to bring to the exchange.

15. Micro Theories of Aging / The Individual and the Social System Theories – Exchange Theory - Criticisms
One controversy with the exchange theory is that it ignores the value of non-rational resources, such as love and companionship, which often even out what seems to be an unequal exchange.
Another controversy is that exchange theory overlooks that exchanges between generations take place over the life course.
To clarify this issue, Bould, Sanborn, and Reif (made a distinction between immediate exchange strategies and deferred exchange strategies.
Immediate exchange strategies may occur between friends and neighbors.
A deferred exchange strategy recognizes the importance of strong ties built up over time.
People redefine the costs and rewards of relationships over a lifetime, and those with strong ties store up social credits that protect them in old age, regardless of their present resources.

16. Micro Theories of Aging / The Individual and the Social System Theories – Social Constructionism
Contemporary versions of theories that view human beings as active creators of their own social reality are termed social constructionist theories.
Proponents of social constructionism view humans as active agents who create the society in which they live. Social constructionists are concerned with the individual’s process of interpreting his or her experiences. They study how social meanings of age and self-conceptions of age arise through negotiation and discourse.
The strength of the social constructionist approach is that it reminds the researcher that older people are not passive objects but active subjects who participate in the construction of their social worlds.
Conversely, the theory’s emphasis on microsocial processes often neglects the structural features of social life that are imposed by external forces

17. Discussion
Micro Theories of Aging What type of professional might find micro theories of aging particularly useful? Who might prefer to use macro theories?

18. MAcro Theories of Aging / Age and Social Status – Modernization Theory
The optimism that characterized the United States in the post– World War II era was shared by social scientists, who believed that if other nations would only follow the American example, they, too, could achieve prosperity and economic growth. This worldview was encapsulated in modernization theory.
Modernization theorists argued that nations could be placed on a continuum ranging from least developed to most developed, according to such indicators as level of industrialization or degree of urbanization. Those exhibiting certain qualities of social structure were termed modern.
The basic premise of modernization theory was that there was once a golden age of aging (The old were few in number. That they held great power and authority in the community and in the family)
Then a revolutionary process called modernization shattered this traditional society (inverted the power structure)

19. MAcro Theories of Aging / Age and Social Status – Modernization Theory
Thus, Modernization was responsible for the decline in status of the aged
As work moved from the home to the factory, the number of people who were self-employed declined
The aged lost their economic independence and were forced into retirement
Urbanization drew young people from rural areas to cities, destroying the extended family household and isolating the elderly
Figure 3.1, next slide, outlines the premise of the Modernization Theory, and the “lowered status” outcomes to the Aging Population

20. MAcro Theories of Aging / Age and Social Status – Modernization Theory
Criticisms of the Modernization Theory:
Golden Age of Aging never really existed in the United States (perhaps in other cultures)
No more elderly were living in children’s homes than today
Retirement was not a twentieth century creation, wealth was the dependent factor

21. MAcro Theories of Aging / Age and Social Status – Age Stratification Theory
As social gerontologists began to abandon largescale concepts of societal development such as modernization theory as a way to explain the status of the aged, a new framework termed age stratification theory emerged.
Age Stratification Theory analyzes the relationship between age and social structure.
Age Stratification is based on the premise that all societies group people into social categories.
These groupings provide people with social identities
Age is one principle of ranking, along with wealth, gender, and race
The central concept used to examine this issue was that of an age cohort, (see Figure 3.2, next slide)which refers to a group of people who are born at the same time and thus share similar life experiences.
A major premise of this theory is that the aging processes reflect the interplay between two dynamics: 1) the changing life course pattern of people in different cohorts; 2) the changing social structures in which these aging processes are experienced.

22. MAcro Theories of Aging / Age and Social Status – Age Stratification Theory
Age Stratification theory sets an agenda for research based on four questions:
How does an individual’s location in the changing age structure of society influence his/her behavior and attitudes?
How do individuals relate to each other within and between age strata?
How do individuals pass through key transitions from infancy to childhood to adolescence to adulthood to old age?
What is the impact of the answers to the above questions on the society as a whole?

23. MAcro Theories of Aging / Age and Social Status – Age Stratification Theory - Criticisms
A large body of research has examined cohort differences in life course experiences. One of the more interesting issues is how changes that affect one life transition create a ripple effect in other arenas.
Even though the original Age Stratification original included both individual life course rhythms and large-scale structural change as components of age stratification, most research derived from this model has ignored the latter emphasis. This is partly because the concept of social structure is broad and includes many possible definitions.
Another problem with age stratification theory is that it ignores other bases of social stratification such as social class, gender, and race that create inequality within age cohorts.

24. MAcro Theories of Aging / Age and Social Status – Age Integration Theory
Age integration theory draws on a core premise of age stratification theory, the idea that society is stratified on the basis of age. Age stratification can create age-segregated institutions, in which age acts as a barrier to entrance, exit, or participation. But society also has age- integrated institutions, which are characterized by an absence of age-related criteria.
There is no such thing as an age segregated society. Most people are involved in both age- segregated and age-integrated institutions. In practice, there is no such thing as a completely age-segregated society. A totally age- integrated society is equally unlikely.
When outdated social structures prevent persons of certain ages from full participation in the society, the society is said to suffer from social lag.

25. MAcro Theories of Aging / Theories of Power and Inequality – Political Economy Theories
The central premise in Theories of Power and Inequality is how does access to power influence the life changes of older persons and how do constraints create inequality in the aging experience.
The political economy perspective is not so much a formal theory as it is a framework for examining the larger social context of problems associated with old age.
Political economy theories highlight the structural influences on aging and emphasize the relevance of social struggles embedded in power relationships for understanding how the aged are defined and treated
Political and economic forces distribute societal resources in ways that maintain or increase inequality on the basis of class, race, or gender. Thus, The political economy approach understands the nature of old age to be socially constructed and to be created through power struggles.
Criticisms: The political economy framework has been criticized for being too negative and for viewing older people as too passive - theory does not address life satisfaction, individuals motivations, perceptions, and related activities.

26. MAcro Theories of Aging / Theories of Power and Inequality – Feminist Theories
Feminist theories of aging are less a formal body of theory than an approach that reflects a commitment to use theory in certain ways. The central purpose of feminist theory is to illuminate the gendered nature of society. Feminist theorists contend that the entire life course is gendered, both in terms of informal norms and in terms of formal policies.
A theory can be classified as feminist if:
Gender relations are the main subject matter
Notions of masculinity and femininity are seen as socially constructed
Emphasis is placed on the different ways aging is experienced by men and women
Why are women more poorly paid than men?
What effect do women’s familial responsibilities have on their employment?
Why are poverty rates higher among women than men at all stages of the life course?
Feminist theories do not ignore older men. This theory would note that older men do pay a price for having to “Live up” to societal ideals of masculinity (higher health risk factors, and death rates)

27. MAcro Theories of Aging / Theories of Power and Inequality – Critical Gerontology
The most recent theoretical approach in the study of aging is termed critical gerontology. Proponents of critical gerontology argue that research on aging has often been based on uncritical reliance on images from popular culture and from theories that are outdated.
Critical gerontology is derived from political economy and feminist approaches to aging but expands these perspectives to consider how the forces of globalization affect policies and programs for the aged and the daily lives of older people (ex. Immigration and displacement of older workers)
In particular, this approach emphasizes that aging is no longer a local or national issue but rather affects individuals, families, and nations all around the world

28. Discussion
Introspection: Theories of Aging If you were an aged person, which theories of aging would you think were most pertinent to your own life circumstances? Which theories might you disagree with?

29. Theories of Aging - Conclusion
Theories of aging, like all scientific theories, have been influenced by broader historical trends. These trends have helped to establish the core research agenda and have influenced the method to be used in pursuing it.
These theories have left behind a legacy of useful information about the process of aging and how these themes are used to define public policy and social practice

30. Additional Internet Resources
The SocioSite website ( is the only accessible website that refers to social theories of aging directly. The following sites refer to other research on aging:
Linda M. Woolf’s Gerontology’s Page (
U.S. National Institute on Aging (
Administration on Aging (
National Aging Information Center (
Gerontological Society of America (