Zadowolenie z życia słuchaczy uniwersytetów trzeciego wieku

Abstract

The article aims at describing the relationship between the educational activity of the elderly and a more optimal way of experiencing their aging. That link can be justified by a higher measure of the overall level of satisfaction with their lives. The purpose of the study described in the paper was an in-depth analysis of the components of life satisfaction among actively learning seniors. A questionnaire survey was conducted with the voluntary participation of 405 third age university students (U3A). The authors collected data on the critical areas comprising individual well-being, illustrating the diversity in the experience of old age among active mature learners. Only 6.8% of the U3A learners are not satisfied with their life achievements. The study revealed that seniors with four or more children were most pleased, suggesting that self-actualization in the family and educational domains need not be competitive. The analysis of the health component of life satisfaction showed a clear overrepresentation of seniors with the good psychophysical condition. In general, successful ratings of the component measures of life satisfaction among the members of the researched group predominate.