THE ELDERLY LEARNER

Roger Hiemstra, Professor

Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY

This paper was presented at the National Adult Education Conferences, Anaheim, California, October 29, 1981.

(Some subjects were followed for several years)

THE ELDERLY LEARNER

The Setting

Introduction

Today's fastest growing minority cohort in the United States is the older adult. Almost 12% of the population is over 64. This 23 million plus number is growing daily by about 1000 people. Some demographers even predict up to half of the population will be 50 or older in about 25 years (Peterson, 1976). Thus, the U.S. will soon have the oldest population in history.

Unfortunately, many negative stereotypes or myths about aging permeate our culture. Helplessness, waning years in institutions, loss of interests, disengagement from life's activities, and loss of intellect are some associations people make with old age. A growing interest in aging recently has resulted in some rigorous challenging of many negative views. McClusky (1974) says many myths are being dispelled and that older persons generally are active, intelligent, and involved with positive feelings of self and personal potential.

Thus, much current literature about older adults as learners is very positive in nature with only a slow decline in intelligence with age reported (Jones, 1979). Once intelligence test speed factors are removed, intelligence change does not appear age related (Bolton, 1978). Some studies have even shown little loss and some actual gain in tests of vocabulary, general information, verbal reasoning, experience, and judgment with age (Jones, 1979). It appears that later life intelligence is best characterized by plasticity and flexibility rather than universal decline (Labouvie-Vief, 1976).

Older adults also appear to exercise this intelligence quite extensively. I earlier reported that older adults typically spend 300 or more hours annually in learning endeavors (Hiemstra, 1975, 1976). Ralston (1978) found that even when older adults were divided fairly equally by race, sex, and socioeconomic status, they spent about 250 hours a year in learning activities. Birren and Woodruff (1973) and McMahon (1979) suggest that rapidity of social change, changing career patterns, and changing attitudes toward education are some major reasons for this heavy involvement in learning. Such changes should only intensify in the future, most likely resulting in even more learning activity.

As described above, much is now known about older adults as learners. However, little is known regarding specific characteristics of, what constitutes "success" in, and factors that may have contributed to being a life long learner. Thus, the primary objective of this research is to study several older persons reputed to be highly successful learners in their naturalistic settings and determine through a qualitative research technique if there are some characteristics common among them. Determining such characteristics should enable adult educators, higher educators, human service practitioners, government workers, and older adults, themselves, to better plan educational programs, resources, and approaches. Indeed, it is quite probable that achieving this objective may facilitate a greater tapping of America's wisdom endowment.

Rationale

Historical knowledge about adults as learners reads much like western pioneering efforts; frontiers constantly are being pushed further out. Thorndike's (1928) pioneering research resulted in optimistic reports of only a gradual decline in learning ability until age 45, when a sharp decline could be expected. More comfort came from Jones and Conrad's (1933) Army Alpha Test research which revealed that general decline continued until age 60 rather than 45. Even more optimistic were longitudinal research reports of the fifties. Terman and Oden (1959), for example, demonstrated some actual gains with age on several cognitive measures.

In the early 1960's, an explosion in research on the older adult began. The earlier studies had been tied primarily to stimulus-response notions of human behavior, or what Hultsch (1977) calls the "associative" model. Learning and memory were believed responsive to learning stimuli; differences related to age were thought associated with various types of interferences. The next evolutionary change began emerging in the mid-sixties, when notions about the human organism were inserted in the S-R model. McClusky (1971) described the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) formula as a key to unlocking a door to communicating and interacting with learners. Hultsch (1977) calls this the "information processing" model. Individual differences in intellectual decline were believed tied to both cognitive and non-cognitive factors.

A new stage currently appears to be evolving. Labouvie-Vief (1977) suggested that much past research had built-in biases because many subjects were born in historical eras devoid of several rapid change issues. Today's older subject has experienced increasing complexity throughout life. The importance of developmental stages, interest in life-span education, under standing of success or failure in learning, research on cognitive development, and cognitive style differences are all related events. It may well be that this newest stage -- and the paying attention to ways of optimizing successful cognitive development throughout life -- will offer professionals interested in working with older adults the most future help.

Hultsch (1977) offered a name for this latest stage, "contextual," and suggested that social and psychological contexts of learning events (i.e., what the individual experiences) are extremely important. Thus, learning is the transaction between each individual and his or her restructuring of personal knowledge in light of new learnings. The research described here and the ongoing effort hopefully will provide some new insight into the contextual meaning of older adult's learning activities and the societal potential of a lifetime's accumulated wisdom by understanding more about what individuals do experience in their learning endeavors.

Significance for the Field

Tremendously important to people wishing for success in working with older persons is recognition that individual differences among older adults exist. The elderly simply cannot be treated as a single group; they should be viewed as heterogeneous, multi-dimensional in characteristics, and varied in terms of needs and abilities. While elderly people often appear as victims of stereotyping in terms of ability (Kasworm, 1978), some people in their seventh, eighth, and even ninth decades will do as well or better than many younger people (Arenberg & Robertson-Tchabo, 1977).

Important, too, is the fact that most of the research reviewed in this paper and, indeed, most of the research about older adult learners that has been reported anywhere has been quantitative in nature. In other words, researchers have tested to see how well older learners fit predetermined or theorized modes of behavior. This research uses qualitative techniques to seek out answers to different types of questions. Qualitative research approaches the finding of answers through a phenomenological, naturalistic model and seeks to build an understanding of important modes of behavior with out prejudging or predicting that behavior.

Thus, this research helps to delineate both important differences and commonalities among older persons as learners, adds to theoretical understandings about learning throughout life, and aids in the development of literature, approaches to instructional technology, and professional expertise in working with older persons. Perhaps the major contribution will be opening up some new areas of study for both quantitative and qualitative researchers.

The Study Design

Research Plan

I have carried out several studies of older adults as learners (Hiemstra, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1976, 1977/78, 1980; Hiemstra & Brown, 1979). In these writings I have stressed the lifelong potential for and pursuit of learning. In the fall of 1975 I received a sabbatical leave from the University of Nebraska and embarked on a longitudinal study of several elderly learners. My intent was to develop some understanding of what characterizes successful older learners, to develop some benchmark information for use in longitudinal follow-up efforts, and to synthesize some implications for educators who work with older adults. Underlying this entire effort was my desire to better understand and to highlight significant qualitative aspects of being, and perhaps preparing to be, a successful elderly learner.

I began by deciding how to proceed with this effort to identify important characteristics of, commonalities among, and implications from older adult learners. Although I had previously and have since carried out quantitative studies through questionnaire or interview approaches, I decided to employ a different approach, one that would not only provide some descriptive information but also one that would provide some explanation of any key qualitative factors related to success as an older learner.

Thus, "grounded theory," was chosen as the conceptual model (Glaser & Strauss, 1967). I was first attracted to this research model after reading a seminal article by Mezirow (1971). There have since been a few other excellent writings in adult education on the grounded theory technique (Darkenwald, 1980; Mezirow, Darkenwald, & Knox, 1975). Unfortunately, in my estimation, there have not been many reported research efforts involving the grounded theory model.

The grounded theory model is inductive in nature and utilizes both interview and participant observation techniques in natural settings to build theory grounded on the data rather than testing existing theory or describing empirical phenomena. Thus, the model: involves comparative analyses to determine some generalizable explanations for the social phenomena being studied. The researcher in this technique goes to the subjects to gather and look at information with a minimum of predetermined theoretical expectations. Similarities and differences among the subjects are sought until several conceptual categories and their attributes are understood. It is believed that the resulting themes and, when possible to ascertain. Grounded theory will provide useful sets of generalizations and suggest obvious implications for practice.

Methodology

In deciding to employ the grounded theory model, I also committed myself to beginning a longitudinal study of older adult learners. My first step was to select a sample of older learners. I purposely selected individuals who were known or thought to be successful as learners in their later years. I asked professionals who worked in educational gerontology, staff members of an Area Agency on Aging, and two nursing home administrators to identify people who they deemed as successful older learners. I suggested some general criteria as being active in learning, having been learning all their lives, and likely to enjoy engaging in a research study to guide the selections. I wanted individuals who are thought to be successful but I resisted providing more specific criteria like high amounts of formal education, certain occupational or income categories, and current activity in learning. As a matter of fact, I was interested to see how other people would interpret “success” in terms of elderly learners and how difficult it would be to obtain a list of names. A long list of names was obtained in only a few days.

I quickly obtained by telephone or by personal visit the permission and willingness of 30 Iowa or Nebraska residents in their sixties, seventies, eighties, or nineties. Initial case study data were obtained over a two month period utilizing in-depth interviews, participant observations, and good listening skills. The interviewing followed an unstructured format where probing and open-ended questions were used in an attempt to better understand the participants' views and interpretations regarding success in learning. Participant observation is a research tool where intense social interaction between the researcher and each subject takes place within naturalistic settings such as participant's homes (Bogdan and Taylor, 1975). Subsequent visits, letters, and phone calls have provided periodic follow-up information. Some 200 pages of handwritten notes, 60 hours of audio tape conversation, and numerous pages of preliminary analyses have been compiled. In addition, coded material has been transcribed onto McBee Key Sort cards for assisting with comparison needs.

Two trained coders working independent of each other and of me at separate time frames have been employed to cross-check and verify the meanings and interpretations of categories, themes, and emerging hypotheses. In addition, two other colleagues have dialogued with me on the data, the categories, and the meanings of any important findings. To date, the data have yielded several categories, themes, or conceptual elements. Emerging is a beginning under standing of success and increased knowledge regarding the importance of several personal characteristics or the heritage one is given in life. However, fully saturated categories, a clear explanation of all relevant/properties, and a well integrated set of theoretical propositions still remain to be developed. Thus, the study goes on. What you will receive today is a report of my under standing and thinking to date.

The Subjects

Table 1 provides a summary of various characteristics for the study subjects. If a composite picture female subject was in home with her spouse, can be drawn from the available information, the typical her seventies, of average income, living in her own a college graduate, and had taught school as her main source of income. No female perceived that home making was her primary role in life. The typical male was very similar except that although teaching still was noted often, professional backgrounds were varied. Thus, highly educated subjects, many with connections in some way to teaching, made up the bulk of the subjects. Later information, tables, and corresponding comments will delve into other personal characteristics such as health status, the intensity of involvement in learning, and professional background.

Table 1. Various Personal Characteristics of the Study’s Subjects at the Time of the Initial Interview (1975)

Characteristic	Male	Female	Percent
Gender	12	18	--
Age:
Sixties	02	01	10.00
Seventies	09	12	70.00
Eighties	00	03	10.00
Nineties	01	02	10.00
(Range = 67-96; Average Age = 76.13)
Income Status:^a
Below Average	01	02	10.00
Average	07	08	50.00
Above Average	05	07	40.00
Living Arrangements:
Apartment	01	06	23.33
Own Home	09	10	63.33
Living With Relative	01	00	03.33
Nursing Home	01	01	06.67
Retirement Village	00	01	03.33
Marital Status:^b
Married/Living With Spouse	08	08	53.33
Widowed	03	06	30.00
Never Married	01	04	16.67
Years of Education:
Some College	03	05	26.67
College Graduate	03	07	33.33
Graduate Training/Masters	03	04	23.33
Doctorate/Medical Degree	03	02	16.67
Profession/Occupation^c
Medical Doctor	01	00	03.33
Engineer	02	00	06.67
County Extension Agent	01	00	03.33
College Professor	01	04	16.67
Public School Teaching	03	08	36.67
Public School Administration	02	00	06.67
Consultant/Small Business Owner	00	02	06.67
Insurance Agent	01	00	03.33
Author/Newspaper Reporter	00	01	03.33
Postal Service Employee	01	00	03.33
Bookkeeper	00	01	03.33
Advertising Employee	00	01	03.33
Secretary	00	01	03.33

^aDetermined by the author based on answers to interview questions and personal observations. The categories are arbitrary and only provided for rough comparison purposes. Actual income figures were not obtained.

^bFive married couples are included within the study population.

^cDetermined by the author based on answers to direct questions about or inferences to work. Only what the interviewee or author believe to have been the primary occupational reference point is shown. Several subjects had more than one “occupation” during their working years.

Categories

One of the goals of the grounded theory researcher is to use comparative analysis techniques to build substantive theories that will have some general applicability. The building of this data from field study allows the researcher to develop an analytic description of human behavior as it exists in naturalistic settings. However, it should be noted that the subjects examined in this study were fairly well educated and more likely to exhibit features of learning activity if one accepts that education begets education.

Even given the homogeneous nature of subjects' educational backgrounds, there is much to be learned from an examination for other commonalities and for any differences. This process of learning from the subjects (in a sense they are co-researchers) to build toward useful theories is long and arduous. Considerable rigor was used in building several categories. Cross-checking audio tapes, re-reading field notes, utilizing the input of independent judges, and follow-up contact with subjects were employed in the building process. Thus, it is believed that considerable objectivity has been used in building and understanding the categories shown in this paper. Obviously, there is some subjectivity built into any study of human behavior, whether it is qualitative or quantitative in nature. Hopefully, such subjectivity has been minimized in this study.

Therefore, given the desire to be as rigorous as possible in building an understanding of meanings, the grounded theory approach calls for the researcher to begin a search for important categories by looking for various commonalities and differences. In this study several potential categories or common topics were derived during the interviews. The subsequent cross-checking and comparison efforts helped to fill in missing data or to suggest new categories. Because the richness of qualitative data comes from the words and thoughts of the subjects, themselves, some direct quotes will be interspersed throughout the next section to help describe how the researcher arrived at a decision or definition.

Major Themes

Personal Health

Several sub-categories for assessing a subject's health were developed. I only had to interview a few people to realize that several health-related factors appeared common and/or important. Thus, I attempted to construct a picture for comparison purposes of each person's physical, mental, and emotional health. I eventually arrived at ten distinct categories I believe to be representative of this personal health concept. Words in quote marks represent direct comments from a subject; "F.N." represents direct comments from my field notes.

Energy Level - a measure of perceived energy to pursue learning or other activities. "My energy is pretty good. I do have to be careful to get plenty of rest and take care of my diet which isn't a particular problem." "You will find that I'm in slow motion."

Vision - a measure of obvious or mentioned visual acuity. (F.N.) Some problems with seeing and learning. "I'm going up to Ames Saturday to see my eye surgeon. I had a cataract operation on both my eyes in the past few years and they aren't quite adjusted yet."

Hearing - a measure of obvious or mentioned hearing acuity. (F .N.) Hearing aid was used. “Well, the hearing aid doesn't solve all your problems."

Mobility - a measure of perceived or noticed mobility. (F.N.) He used a walker to move to another room and moved very slowly. "The worst trouble I've had lately is with my knees. I've had a couple of bad falls which seems to set off what seems to be arthritis in my knees."

Physical Health - a measure of perceived or observed overall physical health beyond the above measures. “I have had health problems, yes. I had a heart attack and a stroke, some lung surgery and so forth."

Mental Health - a measure of perceived, mentioned, and/or field noted mental vigor. (F.N.) A lot of bounce and energy. Obviously has a very alert mind. "Our granddaughter always says, 'Grandma has a thirsty mind. '"

Level of Relaxation - a measure of apparent ability to relax or stay calm during stressful times. "I read a lot in it; it’s sort of relaxing." "Things don't bother me anymore."

Enjoyment of Life - a measure of perceived or noted personal happiness in or satisfaction with life. "We love the theatre. It is so enjoyable." "I think that's one thing you have to do...be satisfied." (F.N.) Seemed so enthusiastic - so in love with life.

Enjoyment of self - a measure of perceived or noted thoughts about self concept or self-fulfillment. "I am pretty self-sufficient." "I'm fairly self-centered but don't believe that is bad."

Personal Grooming - a measure from field notes and personal observations of personal grooming and cleanliness. (F.N.) Beginning to show a lot of signs of cleanliness and grooming problems.

Using the above criteria and the types of data indicated from subjects' comments and my field notes, I assigned a low (L), medium (M) or high (H) rating for each person on each category. For example, some comments from a subject about difficulties in seeing or about cataract problems would result in a low rating. Similar comments about good vision or notes on how glasses corrected problems would result in a medium rating. Comments about vision being excellent or observations about never needing glasses or never having eye fatigue would result in a high rating. Similar decisions on the other categories were made from analyzing subjects' comments or field notes made during interviews, Occasional follow-up contact provided necessary information for verifying or completing a category rating. Obviously, there is a certain level of “arbitrariness” in assigning such ratings but I attempted consistency and received confirmation from the independent judges.

Thus, using Table 2 to display these interpretations and as a rough guide for comparison purposes, I suggest that what was common among the subjects was high mental alertness, a fairly high level of relaxation, good grooming habits, and a general enjoyment of life. Although the above may not be too surprising, what was surprising to the author was the fact that there were lots of differences on factors such as hearing ability, an assessment of overall physical health, and mobility, but not to the detriment of learning interests or activity.

Table 2. Personal Health Characteristics.^a

Age^b	Gender	Energy Level	Vision	Hearing	Mobility	Phys. Health	Mental Abilities	Level of Relaxation	Enjoyment of Life	Enjoyment of Self	Personal Grooming
75	Male	MED.	MED.	MED.	HI.	MED.	MED.	MED.	MED.	MED.	HI.
75	Female	MED.	MED.	MED.	MED.	MED.	MED.	MED.	MED.	MED.	HI.
81	Female	MED.	MED.	MED.	LOW	MED.	HI.	MED.	MED.	MED.	MED.
72	Female	HI.	MED.	HI.	MED.	MED.	HI.	MED.	HI.	HI.	HI.
75	Male	MED.	MED.	HI.	MED.	MED.	MED.	HI.	HI.	MED.	MED.
68	Female	HI.	MED.	HI.	HI.	HI.	HI.	HI.	HI.	MED.	MED.
72	Female	MED.	MED.	MED.	MED.	MED.	HI.	MED.	MED.