Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Different Ways of Understanding the Construct of Successful Aging: Iranian Immigrants Speak About What Aging Well Means to Them

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Journal of Cross-Cultural Gerontology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This article presents the variations in themes and notions of successful aging that were found in a project that aimed to shed light on the value orientations that people prefer and the understandings of successful aging that they uphold. The project, which aimed also to study the way in which the process of migration challenges the notions in question, shed light on the various types of logic that Iranian immigrants to Sweden use when trying to make sense of the construct of successful aging. This article departs from these variations and discusses, among other things, the inevitable decay with which the aging process seems to be associated; the different purpose-related ideologies that people use when trying to explain how the decay in question ought to be handled; the way in which time-related ideas influence the manner in which notions of aging well are framed; the manner in which divergent views regarding activity shape the understandings of successful aging that people uphold; and the way in which ideas regarding autonomy and dependence shape the way in which one defines a good old age. The complexity of logic types utilized by the informants suggests that, if researchers are to further their understanding of the meaning of the construct of successful aging, they need to dismantle people’s ideas as well as the way in which they use culture when trying to make sense of what aging well entails. The article finishes with a brief discussion regarding the importance of intracultural variation and suggests that researchers need a better understanding of culture’s impact on the manner in which the construct in question is understood if they are to develop the successful aging paradigm in a culturally informed manner.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. Lack of space inhibits me from going into the issue of atheoretization in this particular article. Suffice it to say, that gerontologists interested in the impact of ethnicity and culture on the manner in which the process of aging is experienced and understood have long been struggling with the various problems that lack of theoretical frameworks pose. For insights into the atheoretization debate see Burton et al. (1992) as well as Torres (1999, 2001a, 2003b, 2004).

  2. In this project the term culture-relevance means that the approach employed has allowed the value orientations that guide people’s understandings of successful aging to come to fore. Space limitations inherent to this format do not allow me to go into a thorough discussion of what culture-relevance means. It is, however, imperative that I stress that culture is not hereby conceived to be neither a static point of reference when meaning is being constructed nor a unifying frame of mind that takes for granted inter-cultural differences and disregards intra-cultural ones. The latter is among others one of the issues that this particular article is trying to address.

  3. Cross-cultural gerontologists have already brought to fore the fact that understandings of what it means to age well differ from culture to culture (see, for example, Fry, 1980; Ikels et al., 1995; Keith et al., 1994; Keith, Fry, & Ikels, 1990 and Scheidt et al., 1999); a fact that mainstream gerontologists seem to sometimes forget. This is why some of us use terms like culture-obliviousness and/or culture-insensitiveness when referring to the gerontological debate on successful aging (see Torres, 1999, 2001a, 2003b).

  4. This literature review is, in part, inspired by the differentiation between state and process to which Baltes and Carstensen (1996) indirectly allude.

  5. Bowling (1993) and Rodeheaver (1993) have traced the beginning of our present fascination with successful aging to 44 b.c. when Cicero wrote an essay on the nature of good aging. Gerontologists’ quest for the unveiling of what it means to age successfully in modern times and within Western society did not start until 1944 when the American Social Science Research Council established a Committee on Social Adjustment to Old Age. It was, however, in 1986 that the successful aging paradigm really took off, so to speak, as a result of the fact that the construct became the actual theme of the Gerontological Society of America annual meeting.

  6. As suggested by, among others, Rowe and Khan (1987) and the researchers involved in the development of the SOC model—e.g., Baltes, 1993; P. B. Baltes & M. M. Baltes 1990a,b; Baltes & Carstensen, 1996; Baltes & Lang, 1997.

  7. Because this model was formulated back in the late 1960s, there might be some that wonder why it was used to launch a framework for the study of cultural variation in the manner in which the construct of successful aging is understood. In this regard it is perhaps necessary to mention that the works of different value theoreticians was taken into consideration before deciding upon the theory of cultural variation as point of departure for the framework in question. Space limitations inherent to this format do not allow me to concentrate on this issue; those interested in becoming acquainted with how the decision to depart from Kluckhohn came about are welcome to take a look at chapter 3 in Torres (2001a). However, having said that, it might be necessary to point out that, in spite of the fact that the study of culture has evolved over the past four decades, the theory of cultural variation continues to be utilized in studies of cultural variation (e.g., among others, Beckett & Dungee-Anderson, 1996; Carter, 1990; Carter & Park, 1992; Mestenhauser, 1996 and Mariño, Stuart, & Harry Minas, 2000).

  8. For insight into the advantages and disadvantages of vignette methodology see Torres (2003a).

  9. This entailed minor language-related updates and choosing 12 out of the 20 original vignettes that Kluckhohn and Strodtbeck (1961) utilized. The reason for omitting some of the vignettes was based on the fact that new vignettes that tapped into understandings of successful aging were needed and their addition would have led to an instrument that would have been far too lengthy to be useful in the context of qualitative interviews. These, as well as other issues related to the adaptation of their instrument are discussed in Torres (2001a).

  10. The following is an example of one of the vignettes that were used in order to tap into value orientations:

    Three men from different areas were talking about the thing that control weather and other conditions. Here is what each of them said:

    1. a)

      One man said: My people have never controlled the rain, wind and other natural conditions and probably never will. There have always been good and bad years. That is the way it is so it is pointless to try to control what isn’t meant to be controlled by mankind.

    2. b)

      The second man said: My people believe that it is a man’s job to find ways to overcome weather and other conditions just as they have overcome other things. They believe they will one day succeed in doing this and may even overcome drought and floods.

    3. c)

      The third man said: My people help conditions and keep things going by working to keep in close touch with all the forces that make the rain, the snow and other conditions. It is when we do the right things, live in the proper way and keep all that we have—the land, the stock and the water—in good condition that all goes well.

  11. The following is an example of one of the vignettes that were used in order to tap into understandings of successful aging:

    Three persons were discussing the manner in which they would like to age:

    1. a)

      One of them thought that one shouldn’t give up nor should one persist on trying to impede the inevitable. “Why can’t we just learn to be in tune with our bodies instead of trying to work against them,” he said.

    2. b)

      The other person said that things were bound to change once we become old. “When our bodies grow old it is ludicrous to try to maintain them looking young or to try to feel the same as we did when we were younger; growing old is about looking and feeling old,” he said.

    3. c)

      The third and the last person in the group disagreed. “Science and technology has made it possible for us to delay and/or impede the aging process in various ways; one shouldn’t disregard these advancements without trying them out. If creams are created to eliminate wrinkles, why should we all walk around looking like prunes?,” he asked.

  12. A copy of the instrument can be found in Torres (2001a).

  13. The age limit was set on the basis of the assumption that the older a person is at the time of migration, the higher the chances that the person has assimilated the value orientations of their culture of origin. This limit pertains therefore to the second overall aim of the study on which this article is based.

  14. The vignettes were transcribed into flash cards which were arranged in such a way as to ensure that scenarios hypothesized to be congruent with one another were not presented one after the other. In addition, every other flash card depicted a value orientations scenario. In order to avoid recognition of particular alternatives the order in which the alternatives were presented was rotated.

  15. In regard to the conceptualization of aging as a physiologically trying process, it could be mentioned that studies about the way in which illness is conceptualized among elderly Iranians in Sweden, have also pointed to what they have regarded as ideas concerning the inevitability of diminished health in old age that are ‘typically’ upheld by Iranians (e.g., Hajighasemi, 1994). In regard to the tendency of elderly Iranian immigrants to explain all physiological problems as disease, Hajighasemi (1996) suggests, for example, that it is cultural ideas regarding aging which she refers to as ‘the incurable old age’ (Hajighasemi (1996): p. 399), that lie at the core of this tendency.

References

  • Baltes, P. B. (1993). The aging mind: Potential and limits. The Gerontologist, 33, 580–594.

    Google Scholar 

  • Baltes, P. B., & Baltes, M. M. (1990a). Psychological perspectives on successful aging: The model of selective optimization with compensation. In P. B. Baltes & M. M. Baltes (Eds.), Successful aging: Perspectives from the behavioral sciences (pp. 1–33). New York: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Baltes, P. B., & Baltes, M. M. (Eds.) (1990b). Successful aging: Perspectives from the behavioral sciences. New York: Cambridge University Press.

  • Baltes, M. M., & Carstensen, L. L. (1996). The process of successful aging. Ageing and Society, 16, 397–422.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baltes, M. M., & Lang, F. R. (1997). Everyday functioning and successful aging: The impact of resources. Psychology and Aging, 12, 433–443.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Beckett, J. O., & Dungee-Anderson, D. (1996). A framework for agency-based multicultural training and supervision. Journal of Multicultural Social Work, 14(4), 27–48.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bond, L. A., Cutler, S. J., & Grams, A. (Eds.) (1995). Promoting successful and productive aging. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

  • Bowling, A. (1993). The concepts of successful and positive aging. Family Practice, 10, 449–453.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brandtstadter, J., & Renner, G. (1990). Tenacious goal pursuit and flexible goal adjustment: Explication and age-related analysis of assimilative and accommodative strategies for coping. Psychology and Aging, 5, 58–67.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brandtstadter, J., & Renner, G. (1992). Coping with discrepancies between aspirations and achievements in adult development: A dual process model. In L. Montada, S. H. Filipp, & M. J. Lerner (Eds.), Crises and experiences of loss in adulthood (pp. 301–319). New Jersey: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Burton, L. M., Dilworth-Anderson, P., & Bengtson, V. L. (1992). Creating culturally-relevant ways of thinking about diversity and aging: Theoretical challenges for the twenty-first century. In E. P. Stanford & F. M. Torres-Gil (Eds.), Diversity: New approaches to ethnic minority aging (pp. 129–140). New York: Baywood.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carter, R. T. (1990). Cultural value differences between African American and White Americans. Journal of College Student Development, 31, 71–79.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carter, R. T., & Park, E. E. (1992). White ethnic group membership and cultural value preferences. Journal of College Student Development, 33, 499–506.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cavan, R. S. (1949). Personal adjustment in old age. Chicago: Science Research Associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cohen, L. (1998). No aging in India: Alzheimer’s, the bad family and other modern things. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Darvishpour, M. (1999). Intensified gender conflicts within Iranian families in Sweden. Nordic Journal of Women’s Studies, 7(1), 20–33.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Days, A. T. (1991). Remarkable survivors: Insights into successful aging among women. Washington, DC: Urban Institute.

    Google Scholar 

  • Emami, A., Torres, S., Lipson, J., & Ekman, S.-L. (2000). An ethnographic study of a day-care center for Iranian immigrant seniors. Western Journal of Nursing Research, 22, 169–188.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eyrumlu, R. (1997). Iranier möter Sverige [Iranians meet Sweden]. Stockholm: Carlssons Bokförlag.

    Google Scholar 

  • Featherman, D. L. (1992). Development of reserves for adaptation to old age: Personal and societal agendas. In N. E. Cutler, D. W. Gregg, & M. P. Lawton (Eds.), Aging, money and life satisfaction: Aspects of financial social gerontology. Berlin Heidelberg New York: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Featherman, D. L., Smith, J., & Peterson, J. G. (1990). Successful aging in a post-retired society. In P. B. Baltes & M. M. Baltes (Eds.), Successful aging: Perspectives from the behavioral sciences (pp. 50–93). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fisher, B. J. (1992). Successful aging and life satisfaction: A pilot study for conceptual clarification. Journal of Aging Studies, 6, 191–202.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fisher, B. J. (1995). Successful aging, life satisfaction and generativity in later life. International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 41, 239–250.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fry, C. L. (1980). Aging in culture and society: Comparative viewpoints and strategies. New York: Praeger.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fry, C. L., Dickerson-Putman, J., Draper, P., Ikels, C., Keith, J., Glascock, A., et al. (1997). Culture and the meaning of a good old age. In J. Sokolovsky (ed.), The cultural context of aging: Worldwide perspectives (2nd edn., pp. 99–123). Westport, CT: Bergin & Garvey.

    Google Scholar 

  • Furstenberg, A.-L. (1994). Rules for aging: How to manage growing older. Journal of Gerontological Work, 23, 223–243.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gibson, R. C. (1995). Promoting successful and productive aging in minority populations. In L. A. Bond, S. J. Cutler, & A. Grams (Eds.), Promoting successful and productive aging (pp. 279–288). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Graham, M., & Khosravi, S. (1997). Home is where you make it: Repatriation and diaspora culture among Iranians in Sweden. Journal of Refugee Studies, 10, 115–133.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hajighasemi, F. (1994). Invandring på gamla da’r: Sextio äldre iranier berättar [Immigrating in old age: Sixty elderly Iranians tell their stories]. Stockholm: Socialtjänstens FoU Byrå rapport nr 6.

  • Hajighasemi, F. (1996). Hjärta och nerver: Äldre Iranier diskuterar hälsa [Heart and nerves: Elderly Iranians discuss health]. Socialmedicinsk Tidskrift, 7–8, 398–405.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hannerz, U. (1992). Cultural complexity: Studies in the social organization of meaning. New York: Columbia University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Havighurst, R. J., Neugarten, B. L. & Tobin, S. S. (1968). Disengagement and patterns of aging. In B. L. Neugarten (ed.), Middle age and aging: A reader in social psychology (pp. 161–172). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Herzog, A. R., & House, J. S. (1991). Productive activities and aging well. Generations, 15, 49–54 (Winter).

    Google Scholar 

  • Hosseini-Kaladjahi, H. (1997). Iranians in Sweden: Economic, cultural and social integration. Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ikels, C., Dickerson-Putman, J., Draper, P., Fry, C.L., Glascock, A., Harpending, H., et al. (1995). Comparative perspectives on successful aging. In L. Bond, S.J. Cutler, & A. Grams (Eds.), Promoting successful and productive aging (pp. 304–323). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Keith, J., Fry, C. L., Glascock, A. P., Ikels, C., Dickerson-Putman, J., Harpending, H. C., et al. (1994). The aging experience: Diversity and commonality across cultures. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Keith, J., Fry, C. L., & Ikels, C. (1990). Community as context for successful aging. In J. Sokolovsky (Ed.), The cultural context of aging: Worldwide perspectives (pp. 245–261). Westport, CT: Bergin & Garvey.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kluckhohn, C. (1952). Values and value orientations in the theory of action: An exploration in definition and classification. In T. Parsons & E. Shils (Eds.), Toward a general theory of action (pp. 388–433). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kluckhohn, F. (1950). Dominant and substitute profiles of cultural orientations: Their significance for the analysis of social stratification. Social Forces, 23, 376–393.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kluckhohn, F. R., & Strodtbeck, F. L. (1961). Variations in value orientations. New York: Row, Peterson.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mariño, R., Stuart, G. W., & Harry Minas, I. (2000). Acculturation of values and behavior: A study of Vietnamese immigrants. Measurement and Evaluation in Counseling and Development, 33, 21–41.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mestenhauser, J. A. (1996). Traveling the unpaved road to democracy from communism: A cross-cultural perspective on change. Available online at http://www.coled.umn.edu/EPA/CIDE/RESO/TRAV.html#Kluckhohn.

  • Pahl, R. (1995). After success: Fin-de-siécle anxiety and identity. Cambridge, UK: Polity.

    Google Scholar 

  • Phillips, B. S. (1957). A role theory approach to adjustment in old age. American Sociological Review, 22, 212–216.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Riley, J. W. & Riley, M. W. (1994). Beyond productive aging: Changing lives and social structure. Aging International, 21, 15–19 (June).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rodeheaver, D. (1993). Psychological adaptation and virtue: Geropsychological perspectives on Cicero’s De Senectute. Journal of Aging Studies, 7, 353–359.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rowe, J. W., & Kahn, R. L. (1987). Human aging: Usual and successful. Science, 237, 143–149.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rowe, J. W., & Kahn, R. L. (1997). Successful aging. The Gerontologist, 37, 433–440.

    Google Scholar 

  • Scheidt, R. J., Humpherys, D. R. & Yorgason, J. B. (1999). Successful aging: What is not to like. Journal of Applied Social Gerontology, 18, 277–282.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Songur, W. (1992). Att åldras i främmande land: Om mellanösterns pensionärer i det svenska samhället [Aging in a foreign country: On Middle Eastern retirees in the Swedish society]. Stockholm: Socialtjänstens FoU Byrå rapport nr 15.

  • Thomas, L. E., & Chambers, K. O. (1989). ‘Successful aging’ among elderly men in England and India: A phenomenological comparison. In L. E. Thomas (ed.), Research on adulthood and aging: The human science approach (pp. 183–203). New York: SUNY Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tornstam, L. (1973). Att åldras: Socialgerontologiska perspektiv [To age: Social gerontological perspectives]. Uppsala, Sweden: Uppsala University Department of Sociology.

    Google Scholar 

  • Torres, S. (1999). A culturally-relevant theoretical framework for the study of successful aging. Ageing and Society, 19, 33–51.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Torres, S. (2001a). Understanding successful aging: Cultural and migratory perspectives. Ph.D. dissertation. Uppsala, Sweden: Uppsala University Department of Sociology.

  • Torres, S. (2001b). Understandings of successful aging in the context of migration: The case of Iranian immigrants to Sweden. Ageing and Society, 21, 333–355.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Torres, S. (2002). Relational values and ideas regarding successful aging, Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 33, 417–430.

    Google Scholar 

  • Torres, S. (2003a). Exploring cross-cultural issues through vignettes: The pros and cons of this data collection method. In K. Lumme-Sandt, J. Outi & N. Mäkinen (Eds.), The cultural in gerontology: Challenges, approaches and methods, programme and proceedings for the 4th International Symposium on Cultural Gerontology, May 24–27, 2003, Tempere, Finland.

  • Torres, S. (2003b). A preliminary empirical test of the culturally-relevant theoretical framework for the study of successful aging. Journal of Cross-cultural Gerontology, 18, 73–91.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Torres, S. (2004). Making sense of the construct of successful aging: The migrant experience as point of departure for theory development. In S.-O. Daatland & S. Biggs (Eds.), Aging and diversity: Multiple pathways and cultural migrations (pp. 125–139). Bristol, UK: Policy.

    Google Scholar 

  • Trost, J. (1986). Statistically non-representative stratified sampling: A sampling technique for qualitative studies. Qualitative Sociology, 9(1), 54–57.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • von Faber, M., Bootsma-van der Wiehl, A., van Exel, E., Gusselkloo, J., Lagaay, A. M., van Dongen, E., et al. (2001). Successful aging in the oldest old: Who can be characterized as successfully aged? Archives of Internal Medicine, 161, 2694–2700.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Whitfield, K. E., & Baker-Thomas, T. (1999). Individual differences in aging minorities. International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 48, 73–79.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The study upon which this article is based was funded by The Swedish Council for Social Research and the Faculty of Social Science, Uppsala University. The author wishes to express her gratitude to the members of The Social Gerontological Group at the Department of Sociology for their continuous support. For more information regarding this group and the various research projects that it conducts, see http://www.soc.uu.se/research/gerontology/.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Social Sciences, Mälardalen University, Box 883, 72123, Västerås, Sweden

    Sandra Torres

  2. National Institute for the Study of Aging and Later Life (NISAL), Linköping University, Norrköping, Sweden

    Sandra Torres

  3. Department of Sociology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden

    Sandra Torres

Authors
  1. Sandra Torres
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sandra Torres.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Torres, S. Different Ways of Understanding the Construct of Successful Aging: Iranian Immigrants Speak About What Aging Well Means to Them. J Cross Cult Gerontol 21, 1–23 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10823-006-9017-z

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10823-006-9017-z

Keywords

Search

Navigation