Daily event causation: An approach to elderly life quality

Abstract

Arizona State UniversityA conceptual framework for analyzing the role of daily events in the qualityof life (QOL) of the elderly is presented. Concepts involving perceptions ofcontrol over the causation of daily events are shown to relate to positive andnegative aspects of adjustment. Prior research by the authors has shown theutility of assessing the following event sequence: causation of event, responseto event, outcome of event activity. The elements in this sequence can berelated independently to QOL, and each or all can be differentially impactedby the aging process. The literature on four aspects of aging {retirement,death of a significant other, relocation, and institutionalization) and activity,disengagement, and congruence models are reviewed from an event-activityapproach. A single case study demonstrating the potential utility of the ap-proach is presented.The quality of life (QOL) of the elderly depends upon numerous factors, both per-sonal and environmental, operating separately and interacting. In our research on QOL,we have found that the study of events and related concepts provide some useful analytictools for piecing together many of the diverse elements. Both theoretical and practicalissues are involved here. Theoretical progress has been made because the frameworkallows for the integration of a number of distinct areas of research, and practical issuesare involved because it appears to offer the promise of developing clearly focused ways inwhich community resources can be brought to bear on improving the lives of the elderly.It should be noted that as yet there is little or no gerontological research integratingthese concepts with data. Our plan here is to sketch the conceptual outlines of what mightbe a useful empirical approach to QOL of the elderly. We will first review our frameworkfor studying the impact of events and then review how the relevant gerontologicalliterature might be integrated with that framework.Events and Event CausationAn enduring tenet of community psychology is that the quality of a person's life Isrelated to the types of events he/she experiences (Bloom, 1971; Zautra & Goodhart,1978). The concept of event is multifaceted; in our own research we have found it par-ticularly useful to analyze the causal properties of events that people experience in every-day life.Stated in its most elementary form, this approach maps experience into two distinctcausal domains: (a) Events that we cause and (b) events that occur independent of ourown efforts. The general theoretical principle involved here is that of cognitive controlalong with intrinsic and extrinsic reasons for engaging in actions. People do thingsbecause they want to and that freedom of choice has an important impact on their inter-pretation of how their life is going. Oftentimes events arise independently of choice; theyare externally initiated and put pressure on the person to respond. That external sourceof causation also has an impact. We refer to these two types of events that relate to daily