CHAPTER OUTLINE

Introduction

According to U.N. estimates, there were some 200 million persons 60 and over throughout the world in 1950. In the year 2000, that number will jump to 590 million, and to over 1.1 billion in 2025.

1. CHARACTERISTICS OF LATER-LIFE FAMILIES

   According to Brubaker, later-life families exhibit three characteristics: they are multi-generational, they have a lengthy family history, and they experience a number of new life events for which they may have little preparation such as grandparenthood, retirement, and widowhood.

   1. The Sandwich Generation.

      So called because of the pressures its members experience from both ends of the age spectrum. Middle-aged parents must meet the challenges of their own lives, those of adult children who often cannot make it alone financially, and those of aging parents. In 1994, 12 percent of young adults age 25 to 34 lived with their parents.

      1. Younger Siblings: Parents who were still caring for younger children at home reported greater satisfaction with co-resident adult children than parents whose other children were living independently.

      2. Employment Status: Parents were more likely to be satisfied having adult children living with them if the child was working.

      3. Grandchildren: When grandchildren are part of the new living arrangement with adult children, stress is likely to increase.

   2. Diversity in the Family Life Cycle.

      The United States culture has always emphasized youth and consequently negative stereotypes of the elderly have developed. Butlers coined the term "ageism" to describe these stereotypes and the discriminatory treatment applied to the elderly. Social gerontology, the study of the impact of sociocultural conditions on the process and consequences of aging, shows us that the impact of aging on marriages and families is multifaceted. Some elderly relatives are frail and some are totally independent.

   3. Changing Age Norms.

      Age norms, the expectations of how one is to behave at any stage in life, currently show signs of being less restrictive than in the past and a shift toward a loosening of age-appropriate standards of behavior.

2. THE DEMOGRAPHICS OF AGING: DEFINING "OLD"

   In 1935, the government arbitrarily selected 65 as the age at which a worker could receive full social security retirement benefits. Defining old age is more difficult. Functional age (referring to an individual's physical, intellectual, and social capacities and accomplishments) is more important than chronological age.

   1. Age Categories of the Elderly.

      The young-old are 65-74, the middle-old are 75-84, and the old-old are aged 85 and older. The older population itself is aging at a rapid rate. These changing demographics present both opportunities and challenges. On one hand, families and society have much to gain by utilizing the experience and wisdom of the older population. On the other hand, families and society must be prepared to meet the health-care requirements of an aging population.

   2. Gender and Marital Status.

      Six out of every ten older Americans are female. The majority of the young-old are married but the rate is much lower for woman than for men. The differences in martial status also vary significantly by race and ethnicity. Black males are the least likely to be married, and fewer elderly, black women are likely to be married. Older women from every racial and ethnic group are more likely to experience poverty than men. In 1994, the median income of female householders living alone was $9,980.00, while that of a man was $13,896.

   3. Race, Ethnicity, and Class.

      In 2000, the overall composition of the population 65 and older in the United States is expected to be 84 percent white, 8 percent African American, a little over 2 percent Asian/Pacific Islander, and less than 1 percent Native American/Eskimo/Aleut. Together, people of color make up approximately 16 percent of the elderly population. Due to higher fertility rates and immigration, the numbers of people of color are increasing at a faster rate than those of the white elderly. Whites have a higher life expectancy than other races and ethnic groups. Social class accounts for many of the differences between groups.

   4. Poverty Among the Elderly.

      A smaller proportion of elderly are poor today than in the past, but poverty remains a problem for many (12 percent in 1993), The poverty rates for people of color are two to three times higher. The AARP has successfully lobbied to resist all attempts at cuts in programs for the elderly.

3. LIVING ARRANGEMENTS
   1. Housing Patterns.

      77 percent of those who live independently own their own home. The homes are usually old and require a great deal of maintenance. An estimated 20 percent of the elderly live in dwellings that are substandard. Those who rent usually live in apartments, including public housing of various quality. The demolition of single-room occupancy (SROS) hotels has led to homelessness among some elderly people. When the elderly are forced to relocate, the result is often trauma, confusion, grief, and a sense of helplessness and isolation. The elderly do not want to live with their children and few do. Those that do, live with a daughter. Race and ethnicity affect housing decisions. Economic need and a cultural emphasis on the extended family are the most common explanations for these different patterns.

4. MARRIAGES IN LATER LIFE

   Given the current life expectancies, many married couples can expect to celebrate their golden wedding anniversary and beyond.

   1. Marital Quality and Satisfaction.

      Studies that gauge marital satisfaction show inconclusive results (some show improvement over time, some show a decrease over time, and some show no difference). Ade-Ridder found that sexual activity was related to marital satisfaction, but it is not essential.

   2. Adjustment to Retirement.

      With the establishment of social security in 1935, the institution of retirement became part of the national culture. Like so much of social life in the United States, the experience of retirement is affected by an individual's race, class, and gender.

      1. Types of Retirement: Brubaker has identified four patterns of retirement among older couples: single or traditional, dissynchronized-husband initially, dissynchronized-wife initially, synchronized retirements. Lee and Shehan found that wives who continue to work after their husbands have retired have lower levels of marital satisfaction than other wives. Retirement does not alter the division of household tasks and this can lead to conflict. In 1986, Congress passed legislation ending mandatory retirement at 65. Involuntary retirement produces stress and depression, whereas voluntary retirement is more likely to be positive. After retirement, a person's income can decline by 50 percent.

5. INTERGENERATIONAL RELATIONSHIPS

   Studies have shown that 50 to 60 percent of older people with children have at least one child within 10 minutes of their home. Substantial assistance in the form of financial aid, goods, and services flows in both directions.

   1. Quality of Relationships.

      Most adult children and their elderly parents like one another and express satisfaction with their relationships. Gender seems to play an important role in this regard.

   2. Patterns of Support. Families, not the government or taxpayers, provide the bulk of care for the elderly across all cultural groups.
      1. Racial and Ethnic Variations: Families of color, especially among the poor, have developed a wider range of informal support systems than have whites.

6. EVOLVING PATTERNS OF KINSHIP: GRANDPARENTHOOD

   The social role of grandparent, let alone great-grandparent, is a fairly recent one and therefore is not well defined.

   1. Styles of Grandparenting.

      People become grandparents at ages ranging from the early 30s to the 60s or 70s. This age diversity contributes to the ambiguity surrounding this role. Neugarten and Weinstein identified five styles of grandparenting: formal, fun seeker, distant figure, surrogate parent, and reservoir of family wisdom. Later, Cherlin and Furstenberg identified three styles of grandparenting: remote, compassionate, and involved. These relationships can change over time.

   2. Benefits and Conflicts.

      Grandchildren contribute to a sense of immortality and self-esteem, and can keep the grandparents up to date on cultural and social changes. Grandparents can provide love and guidance, minus the intensity, responsibility, and tension that frequently exist in parent-child relationships. They can help the children understand their parents, and be role models for all. In the past and to a great extent today, helping and caring for grandchildren are more traditionally associated with grandmothers. The role is not without conflict, but on the whole most grandparents are satisfied with the role of grandparent. Race and ethnicity play a role in the degree of involvement in the grandparent role.

      1. Unplanned Parenting: In a growing number of cases, grandparents assume sole responsibility for their grandchildren. In effect, they become surrogate parents. As a direct result of the incapacity of the middle generation to care for their children, grandparents are increasingly taking on this role. Unplanned parenting has both positive and negative outcomes for the caregivers.

   3. Great-Grandparenthood.

      Most great-grandparents have only a remote relationship with their great-grandchildren, interacting with them on a limited and mostly ritualistic basis.

7. THE CHILD-FREE ELDERLY

   Being child-free is a predictor of social isolation in later life. Compared with elderly parents, child-free elderly have fewer social contacts. Child-free elderly women have a greater chance of becoming institutionalized than any other group. As the parents of the baby-boom generation enter the ranks of the oldest age group, the percentage of child-free will be less than in 1990.

8. SIBLING RELATIONSHIPS

   Sibling relationships are valuable because they share a history and because these are potentially the longest lasting relationships an individual will ever have. Seventy to 80 percent of all elderly adults have at least one living sibling. Siblings are likely to be a good source of support for some elderly well into the twenty-first century.

9. HEALTH AND ILLNESS

   A National Center for Health Statistics survey found that 70 percent of the noninstitutionalized elderly described their health as good or excellent. A common measure of health among the elderly is the activities of daily living (ADL). The majority of elderly manage these activities quite well. Despite all the publicity about the health-care system, the majority of care is still being provided at home by informal caregivers, most of whom are female family members. Nearly one out of every four U.S. households (22.4 million households) is involved in caregiving to persons age 50 and older.

   1. The Spouse as Caregiver.

      Wives make up the majority of spousal caregivers, who often become the "hidden patients." Although spousal caregivers may have the greatest need for assistance in fulfilling this role, they receive less assistance from family and friends than other caregivers.

   2. Adult Children as Caregivers.

      It is estimated that 5 million adult children are currently caring for parents. This role is most frequently filled by daughters. The kind of help that caregivers provide is often mediated by social class. Middle-class adult children provide more emotional support and financial aid. Children from lower socioeconomic classes are more likely to provide direct care themselves.

      1. The Stresses of Caregiving: Caring for an elderly relative can lead to financial hardship and can jeopardize the caregiver's own health. The most severe consequences tend to be the psychological and emotional stress that comes from seeing formerly strong and independent parents become dependent as well as from the restrictions on the caregiver's time and freedom. Many daughters quit their jobs in order to be caregivers. This can put emotional and financial strain on their own family. "Granny dumping," taking the elderly to a hospital emergency room and abandoning them, occurs on an average of eight times a week.

10. THE EXPERIENCE OF WIDOWHOOD

    Not only have the widowed lost their main source of support, but they often find that their entire social network is disrupted to some degree. The role of widow itself is problematic.

    1. Stages of Widowhood.

       Robert DiGuilio described four stages that widowed people experience. One must grow through stages one and two, and grow beyond stages three and four.

       1. Encounter: From 3 months to a year. Physical and emotional problems are often experienced. Some people become obsessed with the deceased spouse, seeking her or his presence by visiting places they frequented together or using her or his personal belongings.

       2. Respondence: This can be a very painful time, as reality sets in and those widowed confront their unmet needs for attachment, nurturance, and reassurance. The deceased spouse might be sanctified or idealized.

       3. Emergence: The moving on process necessitates an acknowledge- ment of their new identity as single and a focus on the present and the future rather than the past.

       4. Transformation: Creation of a new life. Many feel stronger for having survived and grown.

    2. Gender Differences in Widowhood.

       Men generally become widowed later in life than do women. Although widowhood represents a major role change for both women and men, researchers have found some gender differences in how women and men experience widowhood.

       1. Special Problems of Widows: Changes in their self-identity and changes in their financial situation.

       2. Special Problems of Widowers: Men are not accustomed to dealing with day-to-day domestic chores. They have fewer contacts with their families and receive less social support. They also have higher rates of mental illness and depression as well as death and suicide during the first year following the death of their spouse.

    3. Beyond Widowhood.

       Many widowed people return to school, take up a hobby, do volunteer work, travel, and in some cases remarry. The changes in women tend to be internal. Men focus more externally.

11. IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL POLICY

    Tomorrow's elderly should be provided with better education, job-training programs, and more extensive pension plans. The health-care system must be changed to accommodate the increasing numbers of elderly who will use it in the future. Preventive medicine should be practiced. Support for the elderly is only one side of the coin. We must find ways to use the reservoir of skills that they possess either through paid employment or volunteer work.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

After reading Chapter Fourteen, students should be able to:

1. describe the demographic and social characteristics of families in the later stages of the family life cycle.

2. briefly outline the most widely recognized age categories of the elderly.

3. discuss the reality versus the myth of housing patterns among the elderly.

4. discuss the nature of marriage in later life with respect to quality, satisfaction, and adjustment to retirement.

5. describe the essential characteristics of grandparenting in American society.

6. describe the realities of health, illness, and caregiving with regard to the elderly in the United States.

7. discuss the stages of widowhood and gender differences in widowhood.

KEY TERMS

TEACHING SUGGESTIONS/DISCUSSION QUESTIONS/CLASS EXERCISES

1. A growing number of men and women in American society are having to take care of their elderly parents, as well as their own children. These adult "children," who assume such responsibilities have been referred to as members of the sandwich generation. Because of our modern technology, people are more likely to live into old age, and full time professional care for the elderly is often unaffordable. Students tend to have a difficult time visualizing how increased longevity of American men and women has created this "sandwich generation." Use what might be called the "cancer analogy" to illustrate: More people are dying of cancer today. In part, this is no doubt due to life style considerations and problems with our environment. On the other hand, another explanation is very simple, yet hard to grasp: People who would have died from other causes, such as heart failure in the absence of coronary bypass surgery, go on living. The longer a person lives, the greater the long-term likelihood of contracting some type of cancer. Ask your students to imagine the reverse effect: If one's parents died before they entered old age, with its accompanying infirmities, very few adult children would have the responsibilities of caring for their elderly parents.

2. Schwartz and Scott spend some time discussing the demographics of aging. Barbara Hirshorn has written an interesting article that addresses the dynamics of teaching about these issues: "Introducing the Demography of Aging: Relating Population Processes to the Aging Society" (Teaching Sociology, 19 [April], 1991: 231-236). The focus of the article relates to teaching a course on population, but her suggestions can be adapted for a discussion in your marriage and family class.

3. There is considerable debate about the prestige and deference accorded to elderly people in the United States compared to other societies. Some observers suggest that elderly people in other societies enjoy more respect than their counterparts in America. Encourage your students to think about what factors explain the widespread disvalued labels that are frequently attached to the elderly in the United States.

4. Kathy Shepherd Stolley and Archie E. Hill have conducted a content analysis of marriage and family textbooks in order to determine how elderly people are portrayed ("Presentations of the Elderly in Textbooks on Marriage and Family," Teaching Sociology, 24, 1996, (January: 34-45). Stolley and Hill determined that the aged receive limited amounts of coverage, are often separated from other family issues and events, and are generally associated with specific "elderly" topics in these texts. The Schwartz and Scott textbook is not among the texts surveyed. You may wish to have your students conduct a similar content analysis and report the results.

5. Everybody has heard the expression, "Growing older is not for wimps." Many of the emotional problems surrounding the aging process relate to society's view of the elderly. It is possible to uncover negative stereotypes of the elderly through how they are characterized in jokes. Bradley Fisher suggests a way of using commercial motion pictures in the classroom to explore ageist stereotypes: "Exploring Ageist Stereotypes Through Commercial Motion Pictures" (Teaching Sociology, 20 [April], 1992: 280-284). A contemporary example with which most of your students will be familiar may be found in the companion Grumpy Old Men and Grumpier Old Men films. Ask your students to relate jokes or humorous anecdotes that they have heard about the elderly. Encourage them to analyze these for what they imply, both positive and negative.

6. The text identifies five different types of grandparents: formal, fun seeker, the surrogate parent, the reservoir of family wisdom, and the distant figure. Ask your students to reflect upon which category their own grandparents fit into best. Pose the questions: If you had little or no contact with your grandparents, how might their relationship with their grandchildren be described? What type of grandparent would you prefer to have? Why?

7. Ask the students to interview several grandparents, including their own if available. What were their expectations of being a grandparent? What are the realities? The students could either write a short summary of their findings or they could present them in class, either formally or informally.

8. It is unlikely that you will have any widows or widowers enrolled in your class, but some of your students have probably had personal contact with someone who occupies this status. If so, ask them to comment on the issues of social isolation and loneliness for those who have lost a spouse and have yet to establish another, similar relationship.

9. Elisabeth Kübler-Ross identified five stages through which she believed the dying patient goes: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance. Discuss her descriptive theory and the views of her critics. Ask the student if the stages mentioned by Kubler-Ross could be applied in any other circumstances (e.g,, the end of any relationship, being fired or laid off from work, not making the team, etc.).

10. Young children and teenagers have been known to complain when told that they are not old enough to do something they want to do. Conversely, they do not like to hear that they are "acting like a baby." However, they rarely realize that people of all ages are subject to similar expectations. Ask for examples of age norms. Discuss any age norms which the students think might be changing. How often does sexism contribute to age norms?

11. We like to think of old people as sweet and gentle and grateful for the kindness of others, and many are. However, if a politician starts talking about making some of them pay more for Medicare or about taxing the Social Security of the wealthy elderly, just watch the sparks fly. A vast majority of our senior citizens voice the opinion that Social Security is "hands-off" and that they earned it and they are "entitled to every penny they paid in." The fact is that for most of the elderly who are receiving Social Security today "every penny they put in" was paid out less than two years after they started receiving the benefits. Should wealthy Americans (e.g, ex-Presidents of the U.S.) receive Social Security benefits? Should the high income elderly have to pay more taxes on their benefits? What do the students think about this issue?

FILMS AND VIDEOS

Aging and Saging, 1996, 24 min. (Films for the Humanities and Sciences). American culture reveres youth, so there is little room today for the elderly, who are often expected to drop out of public life so they will not remind the young of their own mortality. This program takes viewers to a weekend Elder Circle at the Omega Institute and is an excellent source of information on the cultural perspectives of aging.

 

Living Past a Hundred, 1998, 57 min. (Films for the Humanities and Sciences). Over the course of the 20th century, the life span in the West has doubled. This program surveys the potential impact of increasing longevity on society, the environment, and the global economy.

 

Seasons of Life, 1990, 5 volumes, 60 min. each (Insight Media). This five-part series examines the life cycle, from infancy to late adulthood. These presentations examine major theories of human development, and the interaction of biological, social, and psychological forces at different stages in people's lives.

 

The Later Years (Portrait of a Family series), 1988, 30 min. (RMI Media Productions, Inc.). This program focuses on the myths and realities of old age, the changing character of the elderly, families and the elderly, and the challenges of an aging society.

 

The Aging of America, 1988, 30 min. (Insight Media). This program contrasts stereotypes of the elderly with present-day reality. It focuses on the demographic shift created by increased life expectancy and improved vitality. The presentation also examines problems experienced by the elderly, such as Alzheimer's disease, loneliness, financial difficulties, and fears relating to memory loss and death.

 

Aging, 1991, 30 min. (Insight Media). This video focuses on the treatment of the elderly in the United States, depicting the lives of three individuals. This presentation examines the life course and the process of aging and analyzes age stratification and ageism from a historical perspective. The effects of social change on age stratification are also explored.

 

Ageless America, 1988, 52 min. (Films for the Humanities and Sciences). This program focuses on caring for the elderly, why women live longer than men, the prospect of aging for a new generation of the middle-aged with fewer children and many more single women, the "sandwich generation" of adults with responsibility for aging parents and young children, and the process and problems of aging itself.

 

Aging, 1994, 23 min. (Films for the Humanities and Sciences). This presentation deals with what causes people to age biologically and some speculations about slowing this process down or even eliminating it. The program features actual interviews with researchers who have conducted investigations in the area of aging, including recent information about Alzheimer's and more effective treatments for this disease.

 

The Midlife Passage, 1998, 24 min. (Films for the Humanities and Sciences). In this program, several people strive to answer the question, "Where am I going?" by sharing the defining moments of their lives as they have come to understand them in their middle years.

 

The Sandwich Generation: Caring for Both Children and Parents, 1994, 28 min. (Films for the Humanities and Sciences). In this specially adapted Phil Donahue program, Hugh Downs joins senior citizens who don't want their children to be "stuck" with them, but see no other way. Other guests on the program are members of the Sandwich Generation, some of whom resent having to care for their parents while others feel it is their duty.

 

Caring for Your Parents, 1991, 19 min. (Films for the Humanities and Sciences). This program deals with the problems of caring for elderly parents while attempting to maintain one's own family and career. It looks at the signals that a parent may need help in taking care of him or herself, dealing with a parent's anger and helplessness, adjusting to role reversal, and finding and choosing between available options to deal with tough problems.

 

Elder Abuse: America's Growing Crime, 1998, 16 min. (Films for the Humanities and Sciences). In this ABC News presentation, correspondents Diane Sawyer and Marti Emerald probe what is quickly becoming the fastest growing family crime in the United States. Actual cases of elder abuse are chronicled.

 

Elder Abuse, 1990, 40 min. (Insight Media). Through actual case studies of five different victims of elder abuse, this presentation analyzes the problem and makes suggestions for intervention.

 

Aging Well, 1992, 18 min. (Films for the Humanities and Sciences). This program explains how people are living longer and staying healthier, examining medical advances and the role that lifestyle changes play in longevity. The presentation also explores the effects of aging on mental skills and examines the emotional issues associated with the process of growing older in American society.

 

Granny Dumping: Abandoning the Elderly, 1994, 16 min. (Films for the Humanities and Sciences). This program features actual interviews with the daughter of an 80-year-old man suffering from Alzheimer's who was abandoned inside of an Idaho stadium. The daughter explains why she abandoned her father in such a condition. The presentation also reports on the larger consequences of abandoning the elderly: in nursing homes, hospitals, and sometimes in the streets of our cities.

 

Kicking High in the Golden Years, 1988, 50 min. (New Day Films). In the context of strong family, inter-generational, and community experiences, this winning documentary illustrates the rewards of aging with dignity and purpose. Portraits of black, middle-class senior citizens create a sensitive and inspiring film about choices for families and seniors.

 

The Silent Epidemic: Alzheimer's Disease, 1982, 25 min. (Filmakers Library). Describes Alzheimer's disease and illustrates the many problems associated with this illness. The issue of whether Alzheimer's patients should be cared for in their homes or in other facilities is explored; one nursing home administrator talks about her frustration in trying to integrate Alzheimer's patients with other elderly people.

 

The Generation Connection: One to One, 1987, 24 min. (Terra Nova). Shows a meeting between a group of older people and a group of adolescents as they discuss their attitudes toward different issues such as aging, death, goals, rebellion, and their impressions of each other.

 

Parenting Our Parents, 1988, 26 min. (Films for the Humanities and Sciences). As the population of senior citizens grows, more middle-aged people find themselves overwhelmed. They are the "sandwich generation," staggering under the double burden of growing kids and chronically ill or disabled parents. As the size of the elderly population increases, the forecast is for a society of the old caring for the very old.

 

Aging in Japan: When Traditional Mechanisms Vanish, 1988, 45 min. (Films for the Humanities and Sciences). This program provides a record of Japanese society in flux, in which the traditional mechanisms for looking after old people-who used to be the most important members of the family-are breaking down. These Japanese senior citizens created the economic miracle of modern Japan, only to find that the happy retirement they unquestioningly expected has been replaced by isolation. The program takes place in a Japanese Public Bath House, an ancient institution that has assumed a new role in Japan as a place where the elderly, alienated from society, take up residence and find a kind of permanent impermanence.