Reich Afton J, Claunch Kelsie D, Verdeja Marco A, Dungan Matthew T, Anderson Shellie, Clayton Colter K, Goates Michael C, Thacker Evan L
Gerontology Program, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT, USA.
Department of Public Health, Brigham Young University, 2051 LSB, Provo, UT, USA.
J Cross Cult Gerontol. 2020 Dec;35(4):455-478. doi: 10.1007/s10823-020-09416-6. Epub 2020 Oct 16.
Successful aging is a concept that has gained popularity and relevance internationally among gerontologists in recent decades. Examining lay older adults' perspectives on successful aging can enhance our understanding of what successful aging means. We conducted a systematic review of peer reviewed studies from multiple countries published in 2010-2020 that contained qualitative responses of lay older adults to open-ended questions such as "What does successful aging mean to you?" We identified 23 studies conducted in 13 countries across North America, Western Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and Oceania. We identified no studies meeting our criteria in Africa, South America, Eastern Europe, North Asia, or Pacific Islands. Across all regions represented in our review, older adults most commonly referred to themes of social engagement and positive attitude in their own lay definitions of successful aging. Older adults also commonly identified themes of independence and physical health. Least mentioned were themes of cognitive health and spirituality. Lay definitions of successful aging varied by country and culture. Our findings suggest that gerontology professionals in fields including healthcare, health psychology, and public health may best serve older adults by providing services that align with older adults' priority of maintaining strong social engagement as they age. Lay perspectives on successful aging acknowledge the importance of positive attitude, independence, and spirituality, in addition to physical and cognitive functioning.
成功老龄化是近几十年来在国际老年医学家中日益流行且具有现实意义的一个概念。审视普通老年人对成功老龄化的看法，有助于我们理解成功老龄化的含义。我们对2010年至2020年期间在多个国家发表的同行评审研究进行了系统综述，这些研究包含了普通老年人对诸如“成功老龄化对你意味着什么？”这类开放式问题的定性回答。我们确定了在北美、西欧、中东、亚洲和大洋洲13个国家进行的23项研究。在非洲、南美、东欧、北亚或太平洋岛屿，我们未发现符合我们标准的研究。在我们综述所涵盖的所有地区，老年人在其对成功老龄化的通俗定义中，最常提到社会参与和积极态度的主题。老年人也普遍提到独立和身体健康的主题。最少提及的是认知健康和精神性的主题。成功老龄化的通俗定义因国家和文化而异。我们的研究结果表明，医疗保健、健康心理学和公共卫生等领域的老年医学专业人员，若要为老年人提供最佳服务，可通过提供与老年人随着年龄增长保持强大社会参与的优先事项相一致的服务来实现。普通大众对成功老龄化的看法承认积极态度、独立和精神性的重要性，以及身体和认知功能的重要性。
