Daily Life in Very Old Age: Everyday Activities as Expression of Successful Living

Abstract

The goals of this article are (a) to describe the daily life of the very old in terms of frequency, duration, variety, and social and physical contexts of activities, and (b) to examine the effects of background variables (e.g., age, sex, residential and marital status, income, and education) on late life activity engagement. A representative sample of 516 adults aged 70-105 was interviewed about their activities using the Yesterday Interview. In contrast to most research on activity engagement, this measurement approach allows for assessment of both the type and context of activities engaged in during the day preceding the interview. The results indicated high frequencies of obligatory activities but also showed substantial time spent in discretionary activities, with television viewing occupying most of the participants' leisure time. Most activities were done alone and at home. In bivariate and multiple regression analyses, age and residential status had the strongest association with activity frequency, duration, and variety; the oldest-old and those residing in long-term care facilities had lower levels of activity engagement. Results are discussed in terms of their relevance for successful aging.

A multidimensional view of out-of-home behaviors in cognitively unimpaired older adults: examining differential effects of socio-demographic, cognitive, and health-related predictors

“…To refer to this perspective, we will use the term activity engagement and distinguish between engagement in physically demanding versus cognitively demanding activities. This distinction has been used in previous research on activities in the time-budget and other research arenas (Horgas et al 1998;Karp et al 2006;Wilson et al 2003) and permits the examination of differential connections between both of these categories, socio-demographic variables, cognitive performance, and physical and mental health.…”

Three very old men's experiences of mobility device use over time

“…Changes occur, however, as part of the ageing process, both in relation to the variety, frequency and time spent on these activities (18). Even if older people's days usually consist of activities that always have been done, they also strive to perform these activities in a well-known way (19).…”

Confiabilidade do Instrumento para Classificação de Idosos quanto à Capacidade para o Autocuidado

“…This would go against some important theoretical reference points, in which aging is considered to be a process of individualization, characterized by heterogeneity among aging individuals and diversity in their choices of activities. 2,5,11 Concerning the small sample size, it has to be borne in mind that some studies for evaluating the reliability of scales for activities of daily living (with content relating to ESCC) also used small samples. For example, the study to assess the interrater reliability of the fi fteenth version of the Barthel index, which was conducted by In Brazil, the reliability and validity study on the Portuguese version of Smilkstein's Family Apgar a can be cited.…”