Ego Integrity in the Lives of Older Women: A Follow-Up of Mothers From the Sears, Maccoby, and Levin (1951) Patterns of Child Rearing Study

James, Jacquelyn Boone; Zarrett, Nicole

doi:10.1007/s10804-005-7084-y

Cited by 31 publications

(31 citation statements)

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“…Last, we did not add measures for the resolution of other psychosocial crises such as generativity versus stagnation or identity versus role confusion. Other studies in the Eriksonian tradition did not only find that ego integrity is related more to the resolution of previous crises than to chronological age (e.g., James & Zarrett, 2005;Torges et al, 2008). They also suggest that other dualities, such as identity versus role confusion, are not just important in adolescence but refer to a continuous process of consolidation and revision in relation to age-graded life contexts (Kroger, 2007;Westerhof, 2010;Whitbourne, 1986).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Cross-sectional studies have indeed shown a relation of ego integrity with generativity and identity (Domino & Affonso, 1990;Hannah, Domino, Figueredo, & Hendrickson, 1996;Ryff & Heincke, 1983;Webster, 2003). Longitudinal studies also found that ego integrity is related to the resolution of the identity crisis 45 years earlier in life (James & Zarrett, 2005) and to generativity 9 years earlier (Torges, Stewart, & Duncan, 2008). However, most cross-sectional studies did not find differences according to age (Hannah et al, 1996;Ryff & Heincke, 1983;Webster, 2003;see however, Domino & Affonso, 1990).…”

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confidence: 99%

“…A number of studies found ego integrity and despair to be related to feelings of depression and anxiety (James & Zarrett, 2005;Santor & Zuroff, 1994;Van Hiel & Vansteenkiste, 2009) as well as to feelings of well-being and meaning in life (Dezutter, Wiesmann, Apers, & Luyckx, 2013;James & Zarrett, 2005;Phillips & Ferguson, 2013;Torges et al, 2009;Van Hiel & Vansteenkiste, 2009;Webster, 2010;Wiesmann & Hannich, 2011). However, these studies did not use the more encompassing dual continua model.…”

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confidence: 99%

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The Relation of Ego Integrity and Despair to Personality Traits and Mental Health

Westerhof

Bohlmeijer

McAdams

2015

GERONB

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Objectives: Existing studies in the Eriksonian tradition found that ego integrity and despair are important indicators of life-span development. The present study relates ego integrity and despair to contemporary theories of personality and mental health. Method: A cross-sectional study of Dutch adults aged between 50 and 95 years (N = 218) was carried out, using the Northwestern Ego Integrity Scale, the subscales for neuroticism, extraversion, and openness to experience of the NEO-FFI, the Mental Health Continuum-Short Form, and the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale-Short Form. Results: Extraversion and openness to experience have an indirect relation to ego integrity that is mediated by well-being. Neuroticism was related to despair and explained the relationship of depressive symptoms to despair. Chronological age did not moderate these findings. Discussion: Ego integrity appears to be related to fluctuating states of mental health, whereas despair is more an expression of a general trait-like disposition of neuroticism. Implications for further research are discussed.Keywords: Depression-Despair-Ego integrity-Erikson-Mental health-Personality-Well-being Ego integrity and despair form one of the fascinating conceptual pairs that Erik Erikson coined in his theory of human development across the life span. In contrast to identity versus role confusion (Kroger, 2007) or generativity versus stagnation (McAdams, 2009), it has not been the subject of intensive empirical research. Existing studies have mainly been carried out in the Eriksonian tradition, relating ego integrity and despair to the resolution of earlier psychosocial crises, to the acceptance of the past and the finitude of life. The present study addresses ego integrity and despair from recent theories of personality and mental health to bring it closer to contemporary psychology. We use a cross-sectional study of Dutch adults in their second half of life (50-95 years) to assess hypotheses derived from this broader framework. We are especially interested how ego integrity and despair are related to more stable dispositional traits as well as to mental health as a more momentary and fluctuating state.Erikson (1950, 1982) distinguished eight phases in his model of life-span development, each of which is characterized by a particular psychosocial issue. The last phase of life is characterized by the duality of ego integrity versus despair. Erikson described ego integrity as "the acceptance of one's one and only life cycle as something that had to be" (1950, p. 268) and later as "a sense of coherence and wholeness" (1982, p. 65). At the same time, late life brings reasons for experiencing despair, such as aspects of the past, present, and future that are difficult to integrate into a meaningful whole. Late life is therefore characterized by both integrity and despair as alternating states that need to be balanced.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

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confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

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The Relation of Ego Integrity and Despair to Personality Traits and Mental Health

Westerhof

Bohlmeijer

McAdams

2015

GERONB

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“…Multiple studies have linked Erikson’s [9] stages of identity formation [39], generativity [40–42], and ego integrity [43, 44] to psychological well-being. Across these endeavors, those reporting higher levels of ego development tend to show higher well-being.…”

Section: Scientific Advances On Psychological Well-beingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychological Well-Being Revisited: Advances in the Science and Practice of Eudaimonia

Ryff

2013

Psychother Psychosom

2,025

1,506

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This article reviews research and interventions that have grown up around a model of psychological well-being generated more than two decades ago to address neglected aspects of positive functioning such as purposeful engagement in life, realization of personal talents and capacities, and enlightened self-knowledge. The conceptual origins of this formulation are revisited and scientific products emerging from 6 thematic areas are examined: (1) how well-being changes across adult development and later life; (2) what are the personality correlates of well-being; (3) how well-being is linked with experiences in family life; (4) how well-being relates to work and other community activities; (5) what are the connections between well-being and health, including biological risk factors, and (6) via clinical and intervention studies, how psychological well-being can be promoted for ever-greater segments of society. Together, these topics illustrate flourishing interest across diverse scientific disciplines in understanding adults as striving, meaning-making, proactive organisms who are actively negotiating the challenges of life. A take-home message is that increasing evidence supports the health protective features of psychological well-being in reducing risk for disease and promoting length of life. A recurrent and increasingly important theme is resilience - the capacity to maintain or regain well-being in the face of adversity. Implications for future research and practice are considered.

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“…Ego Integrity versus Despair is arguably the least studied of all Erikson's psychosocial stages of development (James & Zarrett, 2005). However, with the growing population of elderly people and the increase in life expectancy, the psychological processes involved in acceptance of one's self, one's life, and one's death takes on a renewed importance.…”

Section: Ego Integrity Versus Despairmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Relationship Between Ego Integrity and Death Attitudes in Older Adults

Parker¹

2013

AJAP

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This study investigates how one's ability to accept the past contributes to death attitudes within the elderly population. 115 individuals (47 men and 68 women) participated by filling out self-report questionnaire packets collected from a variety of residential settings. The Death Attitudes Profile -Revised (DAP-R) was used to assess the individuals attitude towards death and the Ability to Accept the Past scale (ACPAST) was used as a measure of ego integrity. A linear regression analysis was used to determine the predictive relationship between the two variables. The results indicate that scores on the ACPAST are significant predictors of DAP-R subscales Neutral Acceptance Fear of Death and Death Avoidance. The results did not show a significant relationship between the scores on the ACPAST and the DAP-R subscales Approach Acceptance or Escape Acceptance. Thus, the ability to accept the past was a significant predictor of Fear of Death, Death Avoidance, and Neutral Acceptance. Yet, accepting the past was not a significant predictor of Approach Acceptance or Escape Acceptance.

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Ego Integrity in the Lives of Older Women: A Follow-Up of Mothers From the Sears, Maccoby, and Levin (1951) Patterns of Child Rearing Study

Cited by 31 publications

References 30 publications

The Relation of Ego Integrity and Despair to Personality Traits and Mental Health

The Relation of Ego Integrity and Despair to Personality Traits and Mental Health

Psychological Well-Being Revisited: Advances in the Science and Practice of Eudaimonia

The Relationship Between Ego Integrity and Death Attitudes in Older Adults

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