Later‐life satisfaction: Does leisure contribute?

Abstract “Activity theories”; of aging as well as the common wisdom in recreation presume that greater activity leads to greater satisfaction with life in later years. Research, however, has produced conflicting results. Review and meta‐analysis of previous research on the contribution of leisure and social activity to subjective well‐being has produced a sequence of questions: (1) Do frequency and breadth of participation in leisure activity contribute to later‐life satisfaction? (2) Do some types of activity contribute more than others? (3) Do the types of activity that contribute most to subjective well‐being differ with age? Results of a telephone survey of 400 adults age 40 and above demonstrate the independent contribution of leisure to life satisfaction. Social activity and travel are associated with higher levels of life satisfaction for those age 65–74 and family and home‐based activity for those age 75 and over. Both the “core”; model of leisure and the tendency toward constriction of activity c...

[1]  T. Parsons,et al.  Growing Old: The Process of Disengagement. , 1962 .

[2]  E. Palmore.  Predictors of successful aging. , 1979, The Gerontologist.

[3]  B. Neugarten,et al.  The measurement of life satisfaction. , 1961, Journal of gerontology.

[4]  J. Kelly,et al.  Later life leisure: how they play in Peoria. , 1986, The Gerontologist.

[5]  J. Kelly,et al.  Leisure Identities and Interactions , 1984 .

[6]  R. Havighurst.  The Leisure Activities of the Middle-Aged , 1957, American Journal of Sociology.

[7]  D. L. Adams.  Correlates of satisfaction among the elderly. , 1971, The Gerontologist.

[8]  M. Stones,et al.  Some research issues and findings in the study of psychological well-being in the aged. , 1978 .

[9]  L. Peppers.  Patterns of leisure and adjustment to retirement. , 1976, The Gerontologist.

[10]  R. Larson,et al.  Thirty years of research on the subjective well-being of older americans. , 1978, Journal of gerontology.

[11]  B. Lemon,et al.  An exploration of the activity theory of aging: activity types and life satisfaction among in-movers to a retirement community. , 1972, Journal of gerontology.

[12]  N. Lohmann.  Chapter 2 – Life Satisfaction Research in Aging: Implications for Policy Development , 1980 .

[13]  C. Longino,et al.  Explicating activity theory: a formal replication. , 1982, Journal of gerontology.

[14]  J. Kelly.  Leisure Styles and Choices in Three Environments , 1978 .

[15]  J. Kelly.  Leisure styles: a hidden core. , 1983 .

[16]  Marilyn J. Haring,et al.  The Social Activity/Subjective Well-Being Relation , 1984 .

[17]  Aging in Mass Society: Myths and Realities , 1986 .