This phenomenological inquiry explored what it is like to become and to be old. The principal aims of this study were to first characterize participants' lived experience of becoming and being an older person, then to determine the extent to which they were aging in a conscious way that evidenced aspects of gerotranscendence, and finally, to contextualize participants' responses within existing research on the phenomenon. In a concurrent embedded mixed-methods design using an interpretive inquiry strategy, 17 men and women living independently in their communities responded to questions about their experience of aging and completed measures of gerotranscendence and adjustment to aging and their psychosocial correlates. A structural analysis of the verbatim transcripts of the interviews employed a phenomenological-hermeneutic approach. The quantitative measures informed further interpretations of interview data. Most participants exemplified aging well with strengths and positive experiences across multiple domains; others evidenced optimal aging as physical challenges began to appear. Convergences and divergences between the themes identified in this study and prior literature on the phenomenology of aging are discussed. Findings from this and similar studies have implications both for older adults and for those who care for and about them. If an older person is motivated to adapt in positive ways, then the potential to continue developing and growing into very old age is enhanced. On the macro level, an increased understanding of and appreciation for the breadth of older adults' experience of their eighth, ninth, and tenth decades of life should inform the development of policies, programs, and services to enhance their day-to-day lives.

中文翻译：

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成为和成为老年人：关于衰老生活经历的混合方法研究


这一现象学探究探讨了变老和变老的感觉。这项研究的主要目的是首先描述参与者成为老年人和成为老年人的生活经历，然后确定他们以有意识的方式衰老的程度，以证明老年超越的各个方面，最后将参与者的反应结合起来在现有的现象研究范围内。在使用解释性询问策略的并行嵌入式混合方法设计中，17 名在其社区中独立生活的男性和女性回答了有关其老龄化经历的问题，并完成了老年超越和老龄化调整及其社会心理相关因素的测量。对访谈逐字记录的结构分析采用了现象学解释学的方法。定量测量为访谈数据的进一步解释提供了信息。大多数参与者都在多个领域展现了自己的优势和积极的经历，从而很好地体现了老龄化的特点；另一些人则证明，随着身体挑战开始出现，衰老效果最佳。讨论了本研究中确定的主题与先前关于衰老现象学的文献之间的趋同和分歧。这项研究和类似研究的结果对老年人以及那些关心他们的人都有影响。如果老年人有动力以积极的方式适应，那么继续发展和成长到高龄的潜力就会增强。在宏观层面上，对老年人第八、九、十岁人生经历的广泛理解和欣赏应有助于制定政策、计划和服务，以改善他们的日常生活。