SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENT IN LATER LIFE: PERSPECTIVES FROM A 45-YEAR LONGITUDINAL STUDY

Abstract

How does spiritual engagement or religious involvement change with age? An accumulating body of evidence says there is spiritual development in later life, supporting psycho-developmental theories of James, Jung, and Erickson. This study examines such change with data from both survey and in-depth interview responses from the Longitudinal Study of Generations, a study that began in 1970–1 with 2044 family members from 364 three-generation families. Data for this analysis come from the Wave-9 surveys in 2016, along with intensive interviews with 70 individuals 65–95 from a variety of religious and non-religious backgrounds. Results indicate complex trajectories of both change and continuity as individuals reflect on their religious and spiritual biographies following retirement. In the qualitative data we find three patterns of spiritual and religious change reported by respondents: (1) increase over the past 10 years (the most common pattern); (2) stability—maintaining the same level of spiritual and religious involvement as in mid-life; (3) decrease—declining or dropping out of religious engagement. We discuss these findings in terms of both life-course personality theories and social integration/support theories.