Self-Perceptions of Aging Among Very Old Parents and Their Old Children

Abstract

Research has consistently reported the importance of self-perceptions on aging for older adults’ health and well-being. However, less is known about how intergenerational experiences are shaping how older adults view age-related changes and aging itself. This study aims to examine how very old parents(81+) and their old children(65+) view their own aging and whether their health status and care experiences are associated with self-perceptions on aging within the prolonged relationship constellation—where parents and children age together. We analyzed data from 105 dyads of parents and their children in South Korea. Very old parents reported less positive self-perceptions of aging than their children; very old parents’ self-perceptions of aging were positively correlated with their child’s self-perceptions of aging. A path model predicting parents’ and children’s self-perceptions of aging showed that own subjective experiences of care within the dyads were significant for both parents’ and children’s self-perceptions of aging, while own health status was significant only for parents’ self-perceptions of aging. For old children, more caregiving burden was associated with less positive self-perceptions of aging; for very old parents, higher levels of satisfaction with care received from the child and fewer functional limitations in activities of daily living were associated with more positive self-perceptions of aging. The findings highlight the interdependence of self-perceptions of aging within the parent-child dyads in very late life, suggesting that care experiences within the prolonged relationship constellation should be considered to enhance older adults’ views on age-related gains and loss.