Living Too Long or Dying Too Soon? Exploring How Long Young Adult University Students in Four Countries Want to Live

Bowen, Catherine E.; Christiansen, Solveig Glestad; Emelyanova, Anastasia; Golubeva, Elena; Stonawski, Marcin; Skirbekk, Vegard

doi:10.1007/s10804-019-09335-y

Cited by 10 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…As a concrete example, people who perceive their own future as an older person in a more positive light report preparing more for anticipated age-related changes, since they believe that they can shape their development accordingly (Kornadt et al 2015 ). Although most research has focused on how VoA affect self-directed development specifically in later life, together with some further evidence the study of Kornadt and colleagues also indicates that age stereotypes and ageing self-perceptions affect self-directed development already at younger ages (see also Bowen et al 2019 ; Klusmann et al 2019b ).…”

Section: Linking Views On Ageing To Fundamental Principles Of Lifespamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Young adults with more overall positive VoA, in contrast, may avoid taking risks because they wish to live as long as possible (Popham et al 2011b ). Similarly, young adults with more positive and less negative VoA indicate a preference to live longer (Bowen and Skirbekk 2017 ), and young adults who want to live longer are also less likely to smoke or be physically inactive—presumably because they are more motivated to invest in behaviours that may extend their lifetimes (Bowen et al 2019 ).…”

Section: Three Core Propositions Of a Lifespan Approach To Views On Amentioning

confidence: 99%

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Views on ageing: a lifespan perspective

et al. 2019

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Views on ageing (VoA) have special relevance for the ageing process by influencing health, well-being, and longevity. Although VoA form early in life, so far, most research has concentrated on how VoA affect later middle-aged and older adults. In this theoretical article, we argue that a lifespan approach is needed in order to more fully understand the origins of VoA, how they change over ontogenetic time, and how they shape development across the full breadth of the lifespan. We begin by explicitly linking VoA to fundamental principles of lifespan development. We review existing theories of VoA and discuss their respective contributions and limitations. We then outline a lifespan approach to VoA that integrates existing theories and addresses some of their limitations. We elaborate on three core propositions of a lifespan approach to VoA: (1) VoA develop as the result of a dynamic, ongoing, and complex interaction between biological-evolutionary, psychological, and social-contextual factors; however, the relative importance of different sources changes across the lifespan; (2) VoA impact development across the whole lifespan; however, different outcomes, mechanisms, and time frames need to be considered in order to describe and understand their effects; and (3) VoA are multidimensional, multidirectional, and multifunctional throughout life, but their complexity, meaning, and adaptivity change across the lifespan. We conclude with recommendations for future lifespan research on VoA.

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Section: Linking Views On Ageing To Fundamental Principles Of Lifespamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Three Core Propositions Of a Lifespan Approach To Views On Amentioning

confidence: 99%

Views on ageing: a lifespan perspective

et al. 2019

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“…Research on the desire to reach advanced ages has shown similar results across different age groups and countries. For instance, in a study of 715 university students in Austria, Norway, Poland, and Russia, Bowen et al (2020) found that 25.8% of the participants wanted to live 100 or more years, while the great majority (74.2%) did not. Of the participants, 21.2% wanted to live fewer than 80 years, and 53% wanted to live to their 80s or 90s.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

To Live or Die: What to Wish at 100 Years and Older

et al. 2021

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Previous research has shown that will to live is a strong predictor for survival among older people, irrespective of age, gender, and comorbidities. However, research on whether life at age 100 is perceived as worth living is limited. The available literature has presented evidence for good levels of positive attitudes and life satisfaction at such an advanced age, but it has also suggested that a longing for death is common. This study aimed to add to the existing data on this matter by exploring centenarians' will to live and the associated factors. The sample comprised 121 centenarians (mean age, 101 years; SD, 1.63 years), 19 (15.7%) of whom were males, from two centenarian studies (PT100). Answers to open questions were analyzed to identify the centenarians' will to live and the reasons behind it. Three groups were created (willing to live longer, not willing to live longer, no clear positioning) and further analyzed in terms of sociodemographic characteristics, health status, social functioning, and well-being. Of the total sample, 31.4% expressed willingness to live longer, 30.6% did not, and 38% presented no clear positioning. The presence of the Catholic religion (God) was referred for centenarians in all three groups. Annoyance, uselessness, loss of meaning, disconnection, and loneliness were the most common justifications for being reluctant to live longer. Positive valuation of life and good self-rated health, followed by having a confidant and reduced pain frequency, were the factors associated with being willing to live longer. The results of the study contribute to the understanding of the psychological functioning of individuals with exceptional longevity, particularly concerning the factors behind willingness to live at such an advanced age.

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“…22See, e.g., Bowen and Skirbekk (2017) and Bowen et al. (2019) for recent studies on the link between expectations about quality of life and the preference to die rather young and subjective expectations about the length of life, respectively.…”

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confidence: 99%

Aging, Proximity to Death, and Religiosity

Lechler¹,

Sunde

2020

Population & Development Rev

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Considerable evidence has documented that the elderly are more religious and that religiosity is associated with better health and lower mortality. Yet, little is known about the reverse role of life expectancy or proximity to death, as opposed to age, for religiosity. This paper provides evidence for the distinct role of expected remaining life years for the importance of religion in individuals' lives. We combine individual survey response data for more than 300,000 individuals from 95 countries over the period 1994-2014 with information from period life tables. Contrary to wide-held beliefs, religiosity decreases with greater expected proximity to death. The findings have important implications regarding the consequences of population aging for religiosity and associated outcomes.

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Living Too Long or Dying Too Soon? Exploring How Long Young Adult University Students in Four Countries Want to Live

Cited by 10 publications

References 37 publications

Views on ageing: a lifespan perspective

Views on ageing: a lifespan perspective

To Live or Die: What to Wish at 100 Years and Older

Aging, Proximity to Death, and Religiosity

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