28th International Congress of Psychology August 8 ... - U-netSURF

Determinants of successful aging: Exploring the roles of resources, strategies, and beliefs
Convener and Chair: D. Jopp, Germany
Co-convener: C. de Frias, Sweden
5007.1 On the roles of resources, self-referent beliefs, and attitudes towards life for successful
aging: First results from the Heidelberg centenarian study, D. Jopp, C. Rott, V. d’Heureuse,
German Centre for Research on Ageing, Heidelberg, German
This study investigates how centenarians adapt to the negative age-associated conditions that
strain quality of life in very old age. As determinants of positive adaptation, we examined personal
resources (i.e., education, cognition, health, social network, and extraversion) as well as
self-referent beliefs and attitudes towards one’s life (i.e., self-efficacy, optimism, will to live, and
meaning in life) with respect to happiness as indicator of successful aging. Based on data from the
Heidelberg Centenarian Study, path analyses revealed that personal resources explain a great
proportion of the variance in happiness, but that their effects are mostly mediated through beliefs
and attitudes.
5007.2 Memory compensation in older adults: Change, variability, and correlates, C. de Frias,
Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
Recent research on the Memory Compensation Questionnaire (MCQ) has examined short-term
longitudinal changes, and cross-sectional correlates of compensatory strategy use in older adults.
The MCQ is a reliable and valid instrument for assessing aspects of memory resilience and
cognitive adaptation. Two new characteristics of memory compensation were examined. Using
3-wave (6-year) data from the Victoria Longitudinal Study (VLS), a sample of 521 adults (initially
aged 55-85 years) was assembled. The first goal was to examine 6-year change and variability in
change. The second goal was to investigate influences on variability, including personality,
memory beliefs, health, memory performance, and executive functioning.
5007.3 Marital satisfaction and health in older couples: The role of dyadic coping resources, M.
Schmitt, German Centre for Research on Ageing, Heidelberg, German
Although many studies show relations between marital satisfaction and health in old age, it
remains unclear which role both spouses coping style plays to maintain high levels of dyadic
satisfaction. The purpose of this paper is to answer this question with data on marital satisfaction,
health, and dyadic coping from N = 85 married older couples (mean age: 69 years). Results
showed significant relations between health and marital satisfaction and suggest a mediating effect
of problem-focused dyadic coping strategies. Findings are discussed in the context of the
mechanisms underlying the influence of coping on marital satisfaction and health.
5007.4 Self-transcendence and coping in later life, J. Patricia 1 , M.R. Levenson 1 , C.M.
Aldwin 1 , A. Spiro III 2 , D.K. Mroczek 3 , 1 University of California, Davis, CA, USA; 2 Boston
University, Boston, MA, USA; 3 Fordham University, Bronx, NY, USA
Self-transcendence has been hypothesized to be an important component of wisdom. The Adult
Self-Transcendence Inventory (ASTI) is an assessment of the construct found to have two factors:
self-transcendence and alienation. A mail survey sent to Normative Aging Study men and their
wives included the ASTI, as well as personality, stress, coping and affect measures.
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