Life-span Developmental Perspective Research Articles

Conceptions of aging and beliefs about how one's life is unfolding over time: A lifespan developmental perspective.

The present study examined beliefs about how one's life satisfaction is unfolding over time in relation to conceptions of aging in an online American adult lifespan sample (N = 882; Mage = 47.89, SD = 15.30, range = 19-84 years; 56% female). Single-item and multi-item ratings of recollected past, current, and anticipated future life satisfaction were employed, along with subjective perceptions of change in life satisfaction over time. Person-centered (latent profile) analysis identified distinct linear and nonlinear patterns of beliefs concerning past-current and current-future changes in life satisfaction: improve-improve, stable-stable, worsen-worsen, and worsen-improve. Multiple facets of conceptions of aging were assessed, including subjective perceptions of age (chronological vs. felt and desired age); attitudes toward, experiences of, and expectations concerning aging; future time perspective; and goal orientations (growth, maintenance, prevention of losses). Multinomial logistic regression models identified unique facets of conceptions of aging characterizing the four profiles. In general, individuals reporting a distinct profile conveying the belief that one's life was improving (vs. worsening) over time were characterized by more positive conceptions of aging. Further, conceptions of aging partially explained the link between chronological age and the belief that one's life is getting worse and worse (vs. better and better). Thus, the present work provides new insights into how age and conceptions of aging may shape the directions and patterns with which individuals view their lives to be unfolding over time. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Understanding the adjustment functions of solitude from a lifespan development perspective: A five-round comparison of benefits and costs

Understanding the adjustment functions of solitude from a lifespan development perspective: A five-round comparison of benefits and costs

DEVELOPMENTAL CHANGE IN PROBLEM DRINKING ACROSS THE LIFESPAN: BETWEEN- VERSUS WITHIN-PERSON AGE EFFECTS IN NATIONAL DATA

Abstract When considering problem drinking from a lifespan developmental perspective, an often-stated underlying premise is that problem drinking peaks around early young adulthood and then declines throughout the remainder of the lifespan. However, relative to adolescence and young adulthood, the supposed later declines in midlife and older adulthood are less firmly established and based primarily on cross-sectional data. Thus, this study contrasted cross-sectional versus longitudinal age effects on problem-drinking changes across the adult lifespan. Analyses used two waves of longitudinal data from a U.S.-representative sample. We generated descriptive “porcupine figures” graphically depicting both cross-sectional and longitudinal age effects simultaneously. In addition, we used multilevel models to partition, test, and contrast cross-sectional versus longitudinal age effects on problem drinking in different age periods of the adult lifespan. While age effects were consistent in young adulthood across the cross-sectional and longitudinal tests, key discrepancies were shown in midlife and older adulthood. Specifically, the supposed continuation of problem-drinking reductions throughout midlife and older adulthood was observed cross-sectionally but not longitudinally. These findings call into question the notion of normative drinking-related declines that continue beyond young adulthood and throughout the remainder of the adult lifespan. We will discuss plausible alternative explanation for how cross-sectional data can lead to spurious conclusion about developmental change (e.g., age-confounded cohort effects). If replicated in future research, our evidence for relative stability or even increases in problem drinking in midlife and older adulthood can contribute to a more lifespan-developmentally-informed understanding of risky behaviors and thereby guide lifespan-developmental tailoring of interventions.

A LIFESPAN DEVELOPMENTAL ANALYSIS OF RECIPROCAL RELATIONS BETWEEN HEAVY DRINKING AND SLEEP PROBLEMS

Abstract In recent years, numerous studies have begun to explore the ways in which problem drinking behavior is affected by different lifespan developmental changes. However, while there currently exists a plethora of research on adolescence and young adulthood, there is far less research with midlife and older adults examining lifespan developmental changes and problem drinking. As part of larger NIAAA-funded project investigating aging, health, and alcohol use, the current study investigated cross-sectional and longitudinal associations among heavy drinking and sleep problems in a sample of midlife and older adults. One particularly noteworthy analysis used path analysis in Mplus to test a longitudinal moderated mediation model involving sleep problems, sleep-related motives for drinking, and heavy drinking. Results showed an interaction between sleep problems and sleep-related drinking motives. Interestingly, sleep problems appear to significantly reduce the risk for heavy drinking among most participants. However, when combined with high sleep-related drinking motives, sleep problems appear to significantly increase risk for heavy drinking. This phenomenon may help explain the occasionally contradictory results found in previous studies examining the impact of sleep disturbances on drinking behavior and may prove to be an area worth investigating in future studies. From a lifespan-developmental perspective, these findings highlight how there are likely important differences across stages of adulthood in the most relevant factors that affect heavy drinking. Health-related factors including sleep problems, coupled with motives to use alcohol to cope with such problems, appear to be a pathway to heavy drinking that increases in importance across the adult lifespan.

Does personality always matter for health? Examining the moderating effect of age on the personality-health link from life span developmental and aging perspectives.

Extensive evidence has been found for the associations between personality traits and health. However, it remains unknown whether the relationships between personality and health show differential patterns across different life stages. The current research examined how the associations between the levels of and changes in the Big Five personality traits and different types of health outcomes (self-rated, physical, and physiological health outcomes) differ across ages over the life span (Sample 1, age range: 15-100) and during the aging process (Sample 2, age range: 50-109) in particular. Using data from the two large longitudinal studies-the Household, Income, and Labor Dynamics in Australia Survey and the Health and Retirement Study, we observed three important patterns. First, levels of and changes in personality traits were significantly associated with health across different life phases, and these effects were observed even in very old ages. Second, overall, the prospective relations between personality traits/changes in personality traits and health outcomes increased in strength in middle adulthood and/or early stages of late adulthood; however, the strength of their connections diminished in very old ages. Finally, there were some trait-specific and health outcome-specific patterns in the age-differential associations between personality and health. Findings from the present study contribute to enhancing our understanding of the personality-health link from a developmental perspective and provide critical information for the design and implementation of screening and interventions targeting health promotion. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

A cross‐lagged study investigating the relationship between burnout and subjective career success from a lifespan developmental perspective

AbstractThis study draws on the conservation of resources theory to investigate the relationship between burnout (disengagement and emotional exhaustion) and subjective career success (SCS) through career insecurity over time. It also aims to shed light on the role of the occupational future time perspective (i.e., remaining opportunities and remaining time) as a personal resource that may moderate the direct and indirect relationship between burnout and SCS through career insecurity. A total of 362 full‐time working individuals participated in the survey, which was administered at two time points, 9 months apart. The results from the cross‐lagged analysis suggested a bidirectional relationship between disengagement and SCS; however, emotional exhaustion did not predict SCS across time. Career insecurity mediated the cross‐lagged relationship between burnout and SCS. Finally, the findings showed that the negative cross‐lagged relationship between disengagement and SCS was moderated by remaining opportunities, such that the relationship was stronger for individuals low on remaining opportunities. The negative cross‐lagged relationship between emotional exhaustion and SCS was moderated by remaining time, such that the relationship was stronger for individuals low on the remaining time. Implications for practice and future research directions are discussed.

Investigating determinants of middle-aged and elderly users' video-creating intention on short-video platforms from a lifespan development perspective

PurposeMiddle-aged and elderly users become an important group on short-video platforms, however, the research on determinants of their video-creating intention is limited. Based on lifespan development theories, this study examines the impact of aging experiences on their video-creating intention, considering internal generative motivations as mediators and age as a moderator.Design/methodology/approachTo test this study’s hypotheses, survey data from 321 Chinese middle-aged and elderly short-video users were collected and partial least square-structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) approach was used to analyze these data.FindingsMiddle-aged and elderly users' aging experiences of social loss and personal growth are positively related to their video-creating intention. Aging experiences (i.e. physical loss, social loss, and personal growth) are positively related to internal generative motivations (i.e. need to be needed and symbolic immortality), and need to be needed is positively related to video-creating intention. Via the mediation of need to be needed, physical loss and personal growth are indirectly positively related to video-creating intention. Personal growth strengthens the relationship between physical loss and symbolic immortality, but weakens the associations of social loss with need to be needed and symbolic immortality. Age weakens the relationship between symbolic immortality and video-creating intention.Originality/valueThis study is the first wave to introduce and integrate lifespan theories such as selective optimization with compensation model, socioemotional selectivity theory, and generativity theory to explore the impacts of aging experiences on middle-aged and elderly users' video-creating intention by considering generativity motivations as mediators and age as a moderator.

Supplemental Material for Does Personality Always Matter for Health? Examining the Moderating Effect of Age on the Personality-Health Link From Life Span Developmental and Aging Perspectives

Supplemental Material for Does Personality Always Matter for Health? Examining the Moderating Effect of Age on the Personality-Health Link From Life Span Developmental and Aging Perspectives

Learning While Working:

As the demand for lifelong learning increases, many working adults have turned to online graduate education in order to update their skillsets and pursue advanced credentials. Simultaneously, the volume of data available to educators and scholars interested in online learning continues to rise. This study seeks to extend learning analytics applications typically oriented toward understanding student interaction with course content, instructors, and peers to the program level in order to gain insight into the ways in which adult learners manage their learning progress over multiple courses and multiple semesters. Using optimal matching analysis, we identify four distinct profiles of course enrollment behaviour among 1,801 successful graduates of an online master’s program that differ with respect to course load, semesters off, and graduation speed. We found that profiles differed significantly as a function of age and knowledge background, but not with respect to gender, ethnicity, or previous academic performance. Findings indicate the utility of expanding learning analytics focused on the micro-level of analysis to the macro-level of analysis and the utility of grounding learning analytics applications geared toward adult learners in a lifespan development perspective. Implications for program design and educational interventions are discussed.

Career transitions and career success from a lifespan developmental perspective: A 15-year longitudinal study

We draw on the conservation of resources theory to examine how upward and horizontal career transitions contribute to both objective and subjective career success among a longitudinal sample, covering the first 10 to 15 years of their career. Further, we adopt socioemotional-selective theory to investigate how upward and horizontal career transitions contribute differently to career success from a lifespan perspective. Latent growth curve analysis revealed that increases in upward and horizontal career transitions over time were positively related to increases in objective career success and positively related to subjective career success. As expected, the positive effect of horizontal transitions on objective career success was stronger for younger individuals. Contrary to our expectations, upward transitions had a stronger effect on the objective career success of older individuals. We found no age effects on subjective career success. This study helps to further our understanding of how different types of career movements contribute to career success, and the types of transitions that are important for individuals of different ages.

Putting the individual and context back into national human resource development research: A systematic review and research agenda

AbstractConceptualization of national human resource development (NHRD) emphasizes that it is an ongoing development process of the individual that is shaped by context. However, the extant literature has focused primarily on describing and evaluating NHRD policies and interventions in different countries with limited consideration of NHRD across the lifespan and the interaction of life stage with context. Using ecological systems theory (EST) and a lifespan development perspective (LDP), we present a systematic review of the NHRD literature based on 310 sources. We identify key themes and gaps in research across the lifespan and at distinct levels of the ecological system. We build on this review to suggest future research informed by both EST and an LDP. We propose a future research agenda focused on several key areas, including: the developing individual as the primary focus of NHRD; the dynamic relationship between NHRD microsystems and how this evolves over time; the exosystem and macrosystem, which provide the context of the NHRD development experience for the individual over their lifespan; and the imperatives of directing research attention to top‐down and bottom‐up influences within the ecological system. We also propose three methodological innovations to address many of the questions raised by our review, drawing on national archive databases, the use of historical methods and a focus on longitudinal data analysis. Finally, we highlight the practical implications of our analysis for ecosystem and microsystem NHRD actors.

A lifespan development perspective and meta‐analysis on the relationship between age and organizational training

AbstractThe confluence of the aging population and economic conditions that require working longer necessitate a focus on how to best train and develop older workers. We report a meta‐analysis of the age and training relationship that examines training outcomes and moderators with 60 independent samples (total N = 10,003). Framed within the lifespan development perspective, we expected and found that older trainees perform worse (ρ = −.14, k = 34, N = 5642; δ = 1.08, k = 21, N = 1242) and take more time (ρ = .19, k = 15, N = 2780; δ = 1.25, k = 12, N = 664) in training relative to younger trainees. Further, age was negatively related to post‐training self‐efficacy (ρ = −.08, k = 10, N = 4631), but not related to trainee reactions. Moderator analyses provided mixed support that training alone is related to increased mastery of skills and knowledge. No support was found for the moderating effects of pacing or instructional approach. We call for future research examining the interactive effects of training design on older worker outcomes in ways that capitalize on age‐related growth, compensate for decline, and consider the strategies workers use to mitigate the effect of age‐related losses.

Problem-Drinking Across the Lifespan: Cross-Sectional Versus Longitudinal Effects Among Midlife and Older Adults

When considering problem drinking from a lifespan-developmental perspective, an often-stated premise is that problem drinking escalates during adolescence, peaks around early young adulthood, and then declines throughout the remainder of the lifespan. However, while there is a strong empirical basis for such changes throughout adolescence and young adulthood, the notion of continued declines throughout midlife and older adulthood is less firmly established and based primarily on cross-sectional data. Thus, this study contrasted cross-sectional versus longitudinal age effects on problem-drinking changes across the lifespan, with particular focus on midlife and older adulthood. Analyses used data from a large, two-wave, U.S.-representative sample. We generated descriptive “porcupine figures” graphically depicting both cross-sectional and longitudinal age effects simultaneously, and we estimated mixed-ANOVAs to partition, test, and contrast cross-sectional versus longitudinal age effects. As expected, analyses confirmed the well-known rise and fall of problem drinking across young adulthood in both cross-sectional and longitudinal age effects. In contrast, in midlife and older adulthood, only cross-sectional age effects were consistent with the notion of continued age-related declines throughout these ages, whereas the longitudinal data showed a mixture of stability and escalation at these ages. Age-confounded cohort effects are one plausible explanation for how cross-sectional data can lead to spurious conclusions about developmental change. By potentially yielding a more accurate understanding of lifespan-developmental change in midlife and older adulthood, findings like ours could help guide lifespan-developmentally-informed interventions for midlife and older-adult problem drinkers; an objective of increasing importance in light of the ongoing aging of the U.S. population.

Developmental Analysis of Prospective Effects of Problem Drinking and Health Problems in Three-Age Groups

Past research has clearly demonstrated interrelations between drinking and health. However, little research has investigated this from a lifespan-development perspective, which is the objective of the current study. Our hypotheses predicted results consistent with the familiar “J-shaped curve” of drinking effects on health, including that health problems would be (1) lower in moderate drinkers than abstainers and (2) higher in excessive drinkers than moderate drinkers. We also hypothesized that these protective effects of moderate drinking would increase with age across the lifespan. The current study used two waves of data from a large U.S.-representative sample. Analyses used 3*3 between-persons ANCOVAs that tested a three-level Wave-1 drinking-group factor and a three-level Wave-1 age-group factor. Of particular importance were the drinking-group-by-age interactions. Various Wave-2 health outcomes were predicted in different ANCOVAs, and each ANCOVA controlled for Wave-1 levels of the Wave-2 health outcome. Across nearly all health outcomes, young adults did not show significant differences between abstainers and moderate drinkers, whereas midlife and older adults consistently showed better health for moderate drinking versus abstainers. This suggests that protective effects of moderate drinking apply more-so to midlife and older adults than young adults. Surprisingly, excessive drinkers generally did not show poorer health than moderate drinkers, except for mixed evidence for such effects only among older adults. Thus, only older adults showed patterns entirely consistent with our hypothesized “J-shaped curve.” A next analytic step we will conduct in advance of this poster presentation will assess if alternative excessive-drinking operationalizations more consistently signal health problems.

Technology to Support Self-Regulation in Older Adulthood: Insights From Design to Implementation

Across the lifespan, individuals adapt to change through the careful monitoring and adjustment of goals, demands, and performance—processes of self-regulation. Technology in support of self-regulatory processes may compensate for deficiencies in the ability to set, monitor, and work toward goals. Our purpose in this symposium is to forward the discourse on how health technology—from design to implementation—can assist older adults in their efforts to support their health and well-being in daily life. Our symposium begins with design considerations for technologies that support processes of information seeking, reflection, and action. Chin presents a process for designing conversation agents that guide dialogues with older adults to support informal self-regulated learning of health information. Nie and colleagues synthesize the literature on visual feedback to provide a framework that illustrates how visual design elements can link feedback to action. The symposium continues with papers that speak to older adults’ experiences using technology to accomplish their goals. Mejía and colleagues use insight from older adults who had self-assessed their balance for 30 consecutive days to explore themes of self-monitoring accuracy and feedback preferences. Francis and colleagues use data from the Detroit-based Social Relations Study to illustrate how technology use and its implications vary when older adults engage with their weaker social ties. The symposium will conclude with a discussion led by Wahl, who will situate the papers, and the discourse on health technology design and application, within lifespan developmental and action perspectives on aging.

Age differences in the importance of interpersonal justice in the workplace

The aging workforce is a major societal challenge that will affect managerial practices worldwide. Understanding how to better manage older employees is therefore of utmost importance for managers and organizations. By integrating the lifespan developmental perspective to adult development with organizational justice, the current research investigates employee age differences in the importance of interpersonal justice in the workplace. In Study 1, we used interviews (N=56) to explore employee age differences in the salience of interpersonal justice concerns. In Study 2, we used a scenario-based experiment (N=418) to investigate employee age differences in the relationship between interpersonal justice perceptions and trust in supervisor. In Study 3, we used a three-wave survey (N=454) to test one age-related psychological mechanism responsible for such differences. The results showed that interpersonal justice concerns are more salient among older versus younger workers, and that interpersonal justice predicts trust in one’s supervisor to a greater extent among older versus younger workers. Results also suggest that these age-related differences could be explained by older workers’ greater present temporal focus. These findings provide important theoretical implications for the study of aging and work and offer practical applications for how to motivate an increasingly older and age-diverse workforce.

Prosociality across adulthood: A developmental and motivational perspective.

Why do people contribute to the well-being of others? What promotes or hinders their contribution? Framed by expectancy-value theory and the motivational theory of life span development, we use data from the Midlife in the United States National longitudinal study (MIDUS I, II, and III) to examine how individuals' perceived contributions to the well-being of others develop across adulthood, in the related but distinct forms of overall prosociality (more other-focused) and generativity (more self-focused). Our findings show that prosociality and generativity display similar, yet distinct trajectories, peaking in midlife a decade apart from each other, when expectancy and value for prosocial behavior are highest. Moreover, expectancy as reflected in perceived control and control strivings, and value as indicated by agreeableness, predict individuals' prosociality and generativity. Trajectories of prosocial contributions further differ according to individual differences in perceived control, control striving, education, income, and number of children, whereas trajectories of generativity only differ across levels of perceived control and income. By applying motivational and life span developmental perspectives, our study offers insight into how prosociality and generativity develop throughout adulthood. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

The mediating role of work-family enrichment:

The purpose of the present study was to examine the mediation models of work-to-family enrichment and family-to-work enrichment from a lifespan development perspective. Specifically, It was verified that work-to-family enrichment mediated the relationship between work support and family performance, and family-to-work enrichment mediated the relationship between family support and job performance. The participants were in their 30s (n = 211 (122 men and 89 women)), 40s (n = 212 (130 men and 82 women)), and 50s (n = 193 (129 men and 64 women)), and were full-time employees in Japan who filled out a web survey. The mediation models of work-to-family enrichment and family-to-work enrichment were supported in people in their 30s to 50s. The results also showed that work-to-family enrichment and family-to-work enrichment have mediating roles.

Social Isolation, Loneliness and Well-being in the Covid-19 Crisis: A Look at Nursing Home Residents in Luxembourg

During the COVID-19 crisis, older adults, in particular those with underlying health conditions, were at a special risk for severe illness and mortality, and efforts were made to shield them from exposure to the virus. While measures of physical distancing and reduction of in-person contacts were necessary to prevent contraction, they hit residents of care settings particularly hard since visits from family and friends were banned and the risk for loneliness and social isolation increased. In the present study, we therefore gave the voice to nursing home residents and focused on their perceived loneliness and subjective well-being during the crisis. We were both interested in difficulties but also in personal resources and resilience factors that might protect older adults from negative mental health outcomes and help to maintain subjective well-being. A sample of N = 76 residents in care homes in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg were interviewed by use of a standardized questionnaire during July and August 2020. Participants reported on their loneliness and life satisfaction during the crisis, on their self-regulatory strategies as well as on personal and social resources (e.g. self-efficacy, generativity, social support). Data will be analyzed by use of regression analysis to predict loneliness and well-being by risk and protective factors. Results will be discussed applying a life-span developmental and systemic perspective to understand the mutual interplay of individual, social and institutional resources to mitigate negative side effects of protective measures on care home residents.

The Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on Older Workers: The Role of Self-Regulation and Organizations.

We live in an unusual time, which effects all of us in different ways. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, some people are working harder than ever, some people have lost their job, some people can only work from home, and some people have to reinvent how they work (Kniffin et al., 2020). Older 50+ workers might even be more affected by the pandemic compared to younger workers because they are labeled as vulnerable and as being at risk in terms of Covid-19 (Ayalon et al., 2020). However, emerging studies on the impact of Covid-19 suggest that older workers respond more effectively to measures that counter Covid-19 (Losada-Balter et al., 2020). This is in line with the lifespan developmental perspective, which theorizes and demonstrates that older adults generally are very capable of adapting and very effective in dealing with the aging process (Baltes and Baltes, 1990; Freund, 2008). Multiple studies show that older adults engage in various self-regulation strategies aimed at continuously maintaining or restoring person-environment fit (e.g., Kooij et al., 2020; Taneva and Arnold, 2018; Zacher, Kooij, & Beier, 2018a) thus helping them to age successfully at work. In this commentary, I will take a more positive perspective on older workers and discuss the self-regulation strategies that older workers engage in and how organizations can stimulate this. I will end my commentary with some suggestions for future research.