Personal adjustment in old age

Abstract

Reviews Personal adjustment in old age (1949), by R. S. Cavan, E.W. Burgess, R. J. Havighurst and H. Goldhamer. The distinctive contribution of this book to applied psychology is seen to lie in its detailed account of the development, testing and application of an Attitude Inventory and an Activity Inventory for the study of persons past sixty years of age. Trends with age found in the study group who completed the schedules include increased feeling of economic security in spite of lowered amount of income, increase in religious activities and dependence on religion, decrease in feelings of happiness and usefulness, and a corresponding increase of lack of interest in life. Sex differences were also studied. The reviewer concludes that this is an exceptionally valuable contribution due to thorough, cautious, and critical development of the two inventories and by use of them with a large number of cases. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved)