Skip Navigation


The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences Advance Access originally published online on October 13, 2009
The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences 2009 64B(6):723-732; doi:10.1093/geronb/gbp074
This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow All Versions of this Article:
64B/6/723    most recent
gbp074v1
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Greenfield, E. A.
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Greenfield, E. A.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

© The Author 2009. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org.

Felt Obligation to Help Others as a Protective Factor Against Losses in Psychological Well-being Following Functional Decline in Middle and Later Life

Emily A. Greenfield

School of Social Work and Institute for Health, Health Care Policy, and Aging Research, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick

Address correspondence to Emily A. Greenfield, PhD, School of Social Work, Rutgers University, 536 George St., New Brunswick, NJ 08901. Email: egreenf{at}ssw.rutgers.edu


  Abstract

This study examined felt obligation to help others in two domains (close others and society) as protective factors against losses in psychological well-being following functional decline. Lagged-dependent regression models were estimated using data from 849 respondents aged 35–74 years and without any functional limitations at baseline in the 1995–2005 National Survey of Midlife in the United States. Greater felt obligation to help close others protected against declining self-acceptance in the face of more severe functional decline, and greater felt obligation to help society protected against declining personal growth and self-acceptance. Greater felt obligation to help close others and society protected against increasing depressive symptoms at younger ages in adulthood. Findings suggest the importance for additional research on how aspects of altruism can promote psychological adaptation to declining functional health in middle and later life.

Key Words: Altruism • Compassionate love • Disability • Resilience • Social relationships • Social responsibility

Received December 14, 2008; Accepted August 14, 2009

Decision Editor: Rosemary Blieszner, PhD


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?




Disclaimer: Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.