P4,M2)

P4) Explain two theories of aging

• Disengagement theory

This theory is about old people that withdraw from society and personal relationships with friends and family. They might disengage because their physical ability and loss of opportunities has made them distance themselves from the world. This shows that society encourages this behaviour. This theory was the first every theory made about aging this theory made by Elaine Cumming & Warren Earl Henry in 1961. This theory is one of three major aging theories.They made up nine postulates to back up their theory about why people who know that death can happen soon and who have seen their peers pass away. These postulates are:

1. Everyone expects death and the person's ability may start to fade. Which means they will start to lose relationships
2. Individuals interaction between people strengthen norms( a rule that is made by members of a community) an individual who has less varieties of interactions has a lot of freedom. This means that they will form a disengagement this becomes circular process
3. Women and men disengage from different things because men have centrally roles and women have socioemotional roles
4. The person's ego starts to change, aging is a form of ego change because your knowledge and skills starts to decrease. But if you have succeeded in an industrialized society you will need to have knowledge and skill. To satisfy these demands, age-grading ensures that the young possess sufficient knowledge and skill to assume authority and that the old retire before they lose their skills. This kind of disengagement is affected by the individual, prompted by either ego changes or the organization, which is bound to organizational imperatives, or both.
5. When the individual and the society are both accepting to disengage. When individuals are ready and society is not a disjunction between the expectations of the individual and of the members of this social systems results, but engagement usually continues. When society is ready and the individual is not, the result of the disjunction is usually disengagement.
6. The men focus on work and the women focus on marriage and building a family. The individual starts losing interest in their roles which mean they start to pay no interest into their social life. They start to suffer crisis and demoralization unless they assume the different roles required by the disengaged state.
7. This postulate contains two main concepts.
   (a) Readiness for disengagement occurs if:
           - An individual is aware of the shortness of life and scarcity of time.
            - Individuals perceive their life space decreasing.
             - A person loses ego energy.
   (b) Each level of society grants individuals permission to disengage because of the following:
          - Requirements of the rational-legal occupational system in an affluent society
           - The nature of the nuclear family
            - The differential death rate
8. Because they are no longer engaged in the role that their doing which means the relationship in the role will start changing. Relation awards start to become diverse and vertical solidarities( a bond between individuals sharing a common goal or a common enemy) are formed into horizontal ones
9. Disengagement theory is independent of culture, but the form it takes is bound by culture.

• Activity Theory

This theory was made by Robert J Havighurst in 1961 this theory was in response to the disengagement theory. This theory is about old people staying socially and mentally activity so that they don't disengage from the world. The theory says “the more you do, the better you will age”. People who are active and stay engaged will the world are more happier. Doing activities after retirement are helpful because it replaces the life that you.

Research shows that this theory is more accurate that the disengagement theory. This activity helps the community and keeps the older people mentally and physically engaged with the world. It makes the older people feel important which makes them feel happy.

But some people look at this theory as just keeping yourself busy. This theory was used by many old people to be able to do this theory you need to choose an activity that is fun, engaging and that you won't get bored of it quickly.

Even though this theory is good it has many flaws such as if your job was very active and you retired from that job doing an activity that's less active, is that aging successfully? Also this theory overlooks that if you're in a unfair health and economic place it affects how the older people want to engage to be able to do the activity that they want to do. Not all older people want to do activities.  

M2) Discuss two major theories of ageing in relation to the development of the individual

My celebrity did not reach to an elderly stage because she died at the age of 27, from alcohol poisoning. But I will be basing my information on what I have found out about my celebrity and how it would have affect her if she lived and went through her old age.

• Disengagement theory

This theory is about old people that withdraw from society and personal relationships with friends and family. They might disengage because their physical ability and loss of opportunities has made them distance themselves from the world. This shows that society encourages this behaviour. This theory was the first every theory made about aging this theory made by Elaine Cumming & Warren Earl Henry in 1961. This theory is one of three major aging theories.They made up nine postulates to back up their theory about why people who know that death can happen soon and who have seen their peers pass away. These postulates are:

1. Everyone expects death and the person's ability may start to fade. Which means they will start to lose relationships
2. Individuals interaction between people strengthen norms( a rule that is made by members of a community) an individual who has less varieties of interactions has a lot of freedom. This means that they will form a disengagement this becomes circular process
3. Women and men disengage from different things because men have centrally roles and women have socioemotional roles
4. The person's ego starts to change, aging is a form of ego change because your knowledge and skills starts to decrease. But if you have succeeded in an industrialized society you will need to have knowledge and skill. To satisfy these demands, age-grading ensures that the young possess sufficient knowledge and skill to assume authority and that the old retire before they lose their skills. This kind of disengagement is affected by the individual, prompted by either ego changes or the organization, which is bound to organizational imperatives, or both.
5. When the individual and the society are both accepting to disengage. When individuals are ready and society is not a disjunction between the expectations of the individual and of the members of this social systems results, but engagement usually continues. When society is ready and the individual is not, the result of the disjunction is usually disengagement.
6. The men focus on work and the women focus on marriage and building a family. The individual starts losing interest in their roles which mean they start to pay no interest into their social life. They start to suffer crisis and demoralization unless they assume the different roles required by the disengaged state.
7. This postulate contains two main concepts.
   (a) Readiness for disengagement occurs if:
           - An individual is aware of the shortness of life and scarcity of time.
            - Individuals perceive their life space decreasing.
             - A person loses ego energy.
   (b) Each level of society grants individuals permission to disengage because of the following:
          - Requirements of the rational-legal occupational system in an affluent society
           - The nature of the nuclear family
            - The differential death rate
8. Because they are no longer engaged in the role that their doing which means the relationship in the role will start changing. Relation awards start to become diverse and vertical solidarities( a bond between individuals sharing a common goal or a common enemy) are formed into horizontal ones
9. Disengagement theory is independent of culture, but the form it takes is bound by culture.

This theory was made in a time that men and women weren't treated equally. But today men and women are treated more equally from when they made this theory. Which means that some people, may think that in this theory you can look at Amy Whinehouse as a “man” because she focused on her work which was making music she didn't focus on marriage and building a family as much as she focused on her music.  

If Amy Whinehouse was to take part in this theory it would have a large impact on her life from when she was young, a lot of things in her life would be different. For example she would disengage from her family, friends and also her career. If Amy Whinehouse career was to go far she might even find it hard to even disengage herself from her music. Since Amy Whinehouse was a victim of substance abuse, it would have affected her physical ability for example her memory wouldn't have been good and she would have got chest or lung infection. This means that her physical ability would have been less so there's a possibility that she would have disengaged with the world.

• Activity Theory

This theory was made by Robert J Havighurst in 1961 this theory was in response to the disengagement theory. This theory is about old people staying socially and mentally activity so that they don't disengage from the world. The theory says “the more you do, the better you will age”. People who are active and stay engaged will the world are more happier. Doing activities after retirement are helpful because it replaces the life that you.

Research shows that this theory is more accurate that the disengagement theory. This activity helps the community and keeps the older people mentally and physically engaged with the world. It makes the older people feel important which makes them feel happy.

But some people look at this theory as just keeping yourself busy. This theory was used by many old people to be able to do this theory you need to choose an activity that is fun, engaging and that you won't get bored of it quickly.

I believe that if Amy Whinehouse was to stop taking drugs, alcohol and to get help for example go to rehab or to get a therapist  she would be able to do this theory. The reason why I’m saying this is because Amy Whinehouse had big plans for her career so if she blowed as an artist she wouldn't want to leave the music industry because that was her passions that was what she loved. So i feel that if she was to do an activity that involved music such as coaching young artist she would be happy because she is still doing what she loves but she's engaging socially and mentally with her family, friends and music. Or if her body can take the work she might still carry on singing I also feel that Amy Whinehouse wouldn't want to disengage herself from her family and friends becuase there a big part of her life and she loved them very much.   

References: Wikipedia. 2017. Disengagement theory - Wikipedia. [ONLINE] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disengagement_theory. [Accessed 03 February 2017].

Boundless. 2017. Activity Theory. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.boundless.com/sociology/textbooks/boundless-sociology-textbook/aging-18/the-functionalist-perspective-on-aging-128/activity-theory-722-9146/. [Accessed 03 February 2017].