Minorities, Women Accept Aging More Gracefully

Baby Boomers who are members of ethnic minority groups tend to accept the physical changes of aging better than do Caucasians.

That's one finding from surveys done by Dr. Charles Walker, associate professor of nursing at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth.

A boomer's age, by contrast, seems to reveal little about how he or she views aging.

"Chronological age is a poor predictor of aging readiness," says Dr. Walker. "There are no identifiable differences between early and late baby boomers as to how well-prepared they are to accept the aging process. This finding challenges the conventional wisdom that identifies salient differences between these boomer cohorts, including their social histories, political ideologies, occupational status, and affluence."

Dr. Walker has developed a 15-question instrument called the "Readiness for Aging Profile" (RAP) that he has tested on hundreds of baby boomers born between 1946 and 1964. He says the RAP reveals aging readiness in three parts:

* Competently doing what is possible in mid-life about aging.

* Fearlessly facing the uncertainties of old age (such as chronic or disabling illness, social isolation and poverty).

* Accepting changes in appearance and ability.

He will present some of his findings on February 19 , 2004 at the Southern Nurses Research Society Conference to be held in Louisville, KY.

Among his findings:

* The baby boomers who seem to accept changes in their physical appearance and ability tend to be ethnic minorities.

* The boomers who seem to be doing the most to prepare themselves for aging, financially and otherwise, are women who hold advanced academic degrees.

* Those who most fearlessly face the uncertainties of old age tend to be financially secure married women.

"Women seem to view their aging with intensity and immediacy while men deny aging because it threatens their sense of personal efficacy," says Dr. Walker. "For men aging is far removed from their immediate experience. Perhaps this is because men lack a dramatic biological event to herald aging's onset, which become evident to women through menopause."

The results, Dr. Walker says, have implications for the nursing profession as nurses cope with the strain that 78 million aging baby boomers will place on the nation's health care resources. Knowledge of boomer aging issues gives nurses an idea of how different boomers will approach related health issues, such as the need for long-term care.

Dr. Walker suggests that nurses could enlist the aid of older persons who exhibit readiness for aging.

"Like the aging Professor Schwartz in Mitch Albom's (1997) Tuesdays With Morrie, these 'mentors' could assist boomers in their transition from mid-life to old age," he says.