As we age we are each faced with an assortment of developmental tasks to master. The best we can hope for is to reconcile with each task and arrive at a place that Erik Erikson referred to as “integrity.” To fall short of mastering these tasks can leave us in a state of “despair.”
We can all think of people who fall on either end of the “integrity v/s despair” continuum. Some are happy about the life they have lived. Others have many struggles and regrets.
To age and move into our later years, feeling a sense of “integrity” rather than “despair” we want the following:
- Healthy and active lifestyle
- Adequate income
- Revised work roles
- Acceptable living conditions
- Meaningful identity and social status
- Good companionship and friendship
- Leisure time
- Rewarding new family roles
- Acceptance of one’s life
Here is a chart that talks more about the developmental tasks in late adulthood.