Burbank P M
ANS Adv Nurs Sci. 1986 Oct;9(1):73-86. doi: 10.1097/00012272-198610000-00009.
Three major psychosocial theories of aging--activity theory, disengagement theory, and continuity theory--are summarized and evaluated. Some important problems are identified with each of the theories when the criteria of intersubjectivity of meaning, testability, and empirical adequacy are utilized in the evaluation process. An analysis of relevant research shows that none of these three theories is clearly supported by empirical evidence. Because of the tentative nature and lack of conclusive support for each of these theories, further exploration and theory development is needed. It is suggested here that a phenomenological approach may be a more productive way to study the psychosocial aspects of aging.
本文总结并评估了三种主要的衰老心理社会理论——活动理论、脱离理论和连续性理论。在评估过程中，当运用意义的主体间性、可检验性和经验充分性等标准时，发现每种理论都存在一些重要问题。对相关研究的分析表明，这三种理论均未得到实证证据的明确支持。由于这些理论的试验性质以及缺乏确凿支持，因此需要进一步探索和理论发展。本文建议，现象学方法可能是研究衰老心理社会方面更有效的途径。
