Continuity Theory of Adult Aging
Looking at B. D. you would never know her strength. If you were generous you could say she was five feet tall, her face wrapped in leathery skin, and pepper gray hair sitting rather untamed on her head. Do not be mistaken, though, for B. D. has endured many hardships and has overcome them all. She is part Mexican, part Apache, and the mother of seventeen children, and one stepdaughter. She was the wife to a World War II Veteran, and the sole caregiver for a daughter paralyzed by spina bifida. At the age of eighty two B. D. is still very cognizant.
Life Story B. D. was born in El Paso, Texas in 1927, to a ranching family of eight. Her father was Apache and her mother was Mexican. She tells, rather affectionately, of her paternal uncles who rode around shirtless on their horses and that her mother often called them "damned horse thieves." B. D. was not greatly influenced by her father's Apache upbringing, he seemed to be the most even keeled of them all. She instead was raised in a very heavily Mexican influenced tradition on a ranch. During her early years B. D. recalls always having chores to do on the ranch. Every morning the girls were in charge of waking up early and starting breakfast for the family and any workers that might be staying at the ranch. Breakfast consisted of refried beans, homemade tortillas--which the girls were responsible for making--and hopefully some sort of meat, whether it was eggs or brisket or any other sort of meat they could come across. Then they were to clean after breakfast and clean the house before leaving to school. The boys were in charge of collecting the wood for the stove and tending to the animals outside, if they happened to have any at the time. B. D. was required to get a job as soon as she was old enough, and the money she made was to go to the family. Her first job was as a waitress in a local restaurant. B. D. recalls fond memories of having the opportunity to get out of the house and away from
Life Story B. D. was born in El Paso, Texas in 1927, to a ranching family of eight. Her father was Apache and her mother was Mexican. She tells, rather affectionately, of her paternal uncles who rode around shirtless on their horses and that her mother often called them "damned horse thieves." B. D. was not greatly influenced by her father's Apache upbringing, he seemed to be the most even keeled of them all. She instead was raised in a very heavily Mexican influenced tradition on a ranch. During her early years B. D. recalls always having chores to do on the ranch. Every morning the girls were in charge of waking up early and starting breakfast for the family and any workers that might be staying at the ranch. Breakfast consisted of refried beans, homemade tortillas--which the girls were responsible for making--and hopefully some sort of meat, whether it was eggs or brisket or any other sort of meat they could come across. Then they were to clean after breakfast and clean the house before leaving to school. The boys were in charge of collecting the wood for the stove and tending to the animals outside, if they happened to have any at the time. B. D. was required to get a job as soon as she was old enough, and the money she made was to go to the family. Her first job was as a waitress in a local restaurant. B. D. recalls fond memories of having the opportunity to get out of the house and away from
References: 1. American Society on Aging. "Continuity theory: How elders find wisdom in spite of it all". http://www.asaging.org/at/at-214/continuity.html. Retrieved 2007-12-16. 2. Atchley R. C. (1989). "A continuity theory of normal aging". The Gerontologist 29 (2): 183–190. PMID 2519525. 3. Richard Schulz, Linda S. Noelker, Kenneth Rockwood, Richard L. Sprott, ed (2006). "Continuity Theory". Encyclopedia of Aging. 1 (4th ed.). Springer Publishing Company. pp. 266–268. ISBN 0-8261-4843-3. 4. Achenbaum, W. Andrew; Daniel M. Albert (1995). Profiles in Gerontology: A Biographical Dictionary. Greenwood Press. ISBN 0-3132-9274-4. 5. Quadagno, Jill (2007). Aging and The Life Course: An Introduction to Social Gerontology (4th ed.). McGraw-Hill Humanities/Social Sciences/Languages. ISBN 0-0735-2816-1. • Atchley R. C. (1971). "Retirement and leisure participation: Continuity or crisis?". The Gerontologist 11 (1): 13–17. PMID 5579223. • Atchley R. C. (1989). "A continuity theory of normal aging". The Gerontologist 29 (2): 183–190. PMID 2519525. • Atchley, Robert C. (1999). Continuity and Adaptation in Aging: Creating Positive Experiences. Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 0-8018-6632-4. • Maddox, G. L. (1968). "Persistence of life style among the elderly: A longitudinal study of patterns of social activity in relation to life satisfaction". In B. L. Neugarten. Middle Age and Aging: A Reader in Social Psychology. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. pp. 181–183. ISBN 0-226-573-826.