Study: Late midlife is a time of less regret and increased acceptance

BUFFALO, N.Y. – We get better as we age. That’s the general theme of a novel study by a University at Buffalo psychologist who examined narrative self-transcendence in the life stories of a group of late-midlife adults shared over eight years.

“This research supports the idea that late midlife is a time of possible positive change and that one has the power to work towards personal growth, fulfillment, understanding and acceptance,” says Hollen Reischer, PhD, visiting assistant professor of psychology in the UB College of Arts and Sciences and corresponding author of a new study published in the Journal of Personality.

“Late midlife is an opportunity for increased self-transcendence, especially acceptance of oneself and one’s life – and it’s associated with many positive effects,” says Reischer, an expert in narrative identity and self-transcendence.

“Self-acceptance isn’t an endorsement for the bad things that have happened, nor is it ‘just’ an attitude. It’s an active understanding of how one’s life experiences have contributed to an understanding of oneself in the present.”

Self-transcendence is a term psychologists use for the experience of connection beyond the self. It can have spiritual implications, but self-transcendence also relates to personal connections. It’s a multifaceted process, evolving over the life course, that involves greater attention to the meaning of one’s own life and to the perspectives of and connections with others.

High self-transcendence is associated with increased well-being, better mental health,  coping skills and optimism.

Narrative self-transcendence refers to the indicators or the aspects of self-transcendence that surface when people talk about their lives.

Unlike self-report measures that rely on fixed questions, narrative self-transcendence shows up in the open-ended articulation of a life story. Rather than being limited to the choices presented to them, as with self-reporting, participants in this case provide researchers with a richer account of experiences and reflections. Most of the time, participants are narrating stories from their lives that have little to do with self-transcendence, at least on the surface.

“The increases in narrative self-transcendence we observed suggest one path for healthier and happier aging,” says Reischer. “What’s interesting about this narrative approach is that how people interpret their lives may be more impactful than what they experienced in life.”

Reischer’s longitudinal study is the first to investigate changes in self-transcendence in adults using life story narrative techniques.

“Aging is fraught, on individual and societal levels, so it’s important to uplift the positive aspects that are within people’s reach and understand that we have some control when it comes to well-being,” says Reischer. “There are certain ways of interpreting and narrating our lived experiences that are associated with flourishing and making meaning.”

Reischer’s research uses data from a Northwestern University-based longitudinal study where three extensive interviews were conducted with 163 participants as each of them moved from age 56 to 65. Reischer’s team then coded those interviews for closure (low regret) and self-actualization (realizing your full potential) based on predictive narrative themes for self-transcendence that she had identified in previous research.

Self-transcendence in late midlife is not to be confused with the myth of the midlife crisis, which arises from the uncertainty about identity and roles as people age.

“The midlife crisis myth is that people can’t cope with aging and act out in maladaptive ways,” says Reischer. “But this research suggests that these transitions, typical of midlife, are in fact opportunities to examine one’s own identity and to shift toward adaptive perspectives that provide psychological support as one continues in life’s journey.”