“Count Your Age By Friends, Not By Years”: An Interpersonal Perspective on Subjective Views of Aging

Friday, November 4, 2022

12:00 PM – 1:30 PM ET

Location: 203 CC

Chair(s)

Amit Shrira, PhD

Professor
Interdisciplinary Dept. of Social Sciences
Bar-Ilan University
Ramat Gan, HaMerkaz, Israel

Co-Chair(s)

YB

Yoav Bergman, PhD

Assistant Professor
Faculty of Social Work
Ashkelon Academic College
Ashkelon, HaDarom, Israel

Discussant(s)

AK

Anna Kornadt, PhD

Professor
Department of Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences
University of Luxembourg
Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg

Individual Symposium Abstract First Author(s)

YB

Yoav Bergman, PhD

Assistant Professor
Faculty of Social Work
Ashkelon Academic College
Ashkelon, HaDarom, Israel
Amit Shrira, PhD

Professor
Interdisciplinary Dept. of Social Sciences
Bar-Ilan University
Ramat Gan, HaMerkaz, Israel
Shannon Mejía, PhD

Assistant Professor
Kinesiology and Community Health
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Champaign, Illinois, United States
Shevaun Neupert, PhD

Professor
Department of Psychology
North Carolina State University
Raleigh, North Carolina, United States

Humans are social beings, and as we age, meaningful and close relationships become increasingly important. However, the literature on older adults’ subjective views of aging (VoA) tends to focus on the link between such views and health outcomes, overlooking important interpersonal correlates. This symposium consists of four presentations that focus on various concepts, study designs, and populations, and offers novel insights regarding how VoA operate in the social domain. The first presentation (Bergman et al.) establishes, using a diary study, the mediating role of understanding others’ emotional states (i.e., Theory of Mind) in the connection between VoA and positive social relationships. The second presentation (Mejía & Hooker) examines, through daily assessment, how VoA differentiate the processes by which older adults construct interactions with their closest social partners to progress toward health goals in daily life. The third presentation (Neupert & Can) employs a diary study and demonstrates that daily fluctuations in both subjective age and ageist attitudes are important determinants for older adults’ well-being. The fourth presentation (Shrira), a clinical study, focuses on how orthopedic patients’ rehabilitation is affected by their own and their healthcare professionals’ VoA. Together, the findings highlight the relevance of VoA to interpersonal functioning and health, and offer valuable information for both researchers and clinicians regarding the importance of this direction in future explorations of older adults’ VoA and physical/psychological well-being.

Learning Objectives:

After attending this session, participants will gain a deeper understanding of how subjective views of aging are associated with interpersonal functioning.
After attending this session, participants will understand the importance of applying a broader, interpersonal perspective to research concerning how subjective views of aging affect older adults’ functioning and well-being.

Presentations:

12:00 PM – 1:30 PM ET

Subjective Views of Aging and Social Relationships Among Older Adults: Theory of Mind as a Mediator
Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Yoav S. Bergman, PhD – Ashkelon Academic College
12:00 PM – 1:30 PM ET

Rehabilitation Outcomes as a Function of Patients' and Healthcare Personnel's Views of Aging
Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Amit Shrira, PhD – Bar-Ilan University
12:00 PM – 1:30 PM ET

Self-Perceptions of Aging, Support from Close Social Ties, and Health Goal Progress in Everyday Life
Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Shannon T. Mejía, PhD – University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
12:00 PM – 1:30 PM ET

Daily Emotional and Physical Well-Being Predicted by Personal and Other Views of Aging
Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Shevaun D. Neupert, PhD – North Carolina State University