CULTURE IN THE USE, CARE, AND CONTROL OF THE AGING BODY CATHERINE HAGAN HENNESSY* University of California, Berkeley ABSTRACT: zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA Little systematic information exists on how the older adult reacts to normal physical changes with age. The personal perception and treatment of the aging body are partkularly significant given the predominantly negative cultural values associated with senescence in American society. This study used a qualitative approach to examine continuity and change in zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcbaZYXWVUTSR physical self-evaluation and self- care among a group of healthy men and women in their fifties and seventies. Focused interviews were conducted to identify the evaluative criteria that these individuals apply to the aging body and the behavioral outcomes of the self-assessment process. Analysis focused on sex differences, perception of personal control over health and well-being, continuity of approach to the body, and the perception of time left to live. Findings highlighted personal and social resources and common behavioral strategies employed by older persons in managing the aging physical self: INTRODUCTION Gerontologists have increasingly recognized the need for studies that document the variablility of socialization into late life and the psychological experiences of old age. Recent theoretical contributions in adult development and aging have emphasized the dynamic nature of the development process and “the need to replace the old conception of the self as a passive object of outside social forces with a new conception of the self as an active, self-reflexive agent in society” (Starr 1982- 1983, p. 255). According to Fry (198 l), Keith (198 11,and Marshall and Tinsdale (1978), for example, particularly necessary are studies conducted from an emit or “insider’s” perspective that “give _ *Direct all correspondence lo: Catherine H. Hennessy, Behavioral Sciences Program, School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720. JOURNAL OF AGING STUDIES, Volume 3, Number 1, pages 39-54 Copyright @ 1989 by JAI Press, Inc. All rights of reproduction in any form reserved. ISSN: 0890-4065.