Altruism and Life Satisfaction Among LGBT Older Adults

Authors

Boaz Kahana, Cleveland State University
Eva Kahana, Case Western Reserve University
Tirth Bhatta
Minzhi Ye, The University of Texas Rio Grande ValleyFollow
Jiao Yu

Document Type

Book Chapter

Publication Date

2017

Abstract

Altruistic attitudes have been found in our prior longitudinal studies to promote positive affective states and life satisfaction in late life (Kahana, Bhatta, Lovegreen, Kahana and Midlarsky 2013). Such attitudes reflect a willingness to help others and an orientation characterized by generosity of spirit. It may be anticipated that such qualities are easier to maintain for older adults who are well integrated members of society and who do not face stigma and discrimination. In this chapter, we extend our research interest in altruism and in prosocial behaviors to LGBT older adults, who had encountered adversity and lack of acceptance in society, based on their sexual orientation. We explore the relationship between altruistic attitudes, volunteering and social participation and life satisfaction in old age. We report data based on 192 older adults who attended programs at an LGBT Senior Center in South Florida and completed surveys about altruistic orientations and life satisfaction. A majority of these older adults reported having experienced stigma and discrimination based on their sexual orientation. Nevertheless, these elders showed evidence of aging successfully, reporting active participation in their social networks. We also found a high prevalence of altruistic attitudes and prosocial behaviors, as reflected in volunteering. Consistent with findings of our prior longitudinal research, altruism was found to be associated with higher levels of life satisfaction in this group. Altruism was also found to be positively associated with number of hours spent in engagement in social activities and number of hours spent in volunteering. We discuss how prosocial orientations, such as altruism can facilitate psychological well-being for older adults who have faced stressors of discrimination and stigma and who are aging in a nonheterosexual context.

Comments

Original published version available at https://novapublishers.com/shop/advances-in-psychology-research-volume-120/

Recommended Citation

Kahana, B., Kahana, E., Bhatta, T., Ye, M., & Yu, J. (2017). Altruism and life satisfaction among LGBT older adults. In A. M. Columbus (Ed.), Advances in Psychology Research (Vol. 120, pp. 43-58). Nova Science Publishers.

First Page

43

Last Page

58

Publication Title

Advances in Psychology Research