Theorizing in Family Gerontology: New Opportunities for Research and Practice

• Published date: 01 December 2006
• Author: Rosemary Blieszner,Karen A. Roberto,Katherine R. Allen
• Date: 01 December 2006
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3729.2006.00422.x

Theorizing in Family Gerontology:

New Opportunities for Research and Practice

Karen A. Roberto Rosemary Blieszner Katherine R. Allen*

Abstract: We examine the extent to which theory has been used in empirical studies of families in later life, identify

prevalent types of theoretical frameworks, and assess connections between theory and both focal topics and analytic

methods in the family gerontology literature. The paper is based on content and methodological analysis of 838

empirical articles with a family-level focus published in 13 social science journals during the 1990s. Approximately

one half of the articles included theory, with micro-interpretive (social psychological) theories being used most often

to guide and inform research and practice. To advance the field and understand better the intricacies of family life

among older adults, we suggest that investigators and practitioners explicitly incorporate theoretical frameworks into

their endeavors.

Key Words: community practices, family gerontology, late life families, research methods, theory.

Theory is the gateway into an exciting process of

exploration, discovery, and explanation. Scholars

and practitioners alike often find their way initially

into the field of social gerontology through one of

the classic theoretical texts that enliven our disci-

pline. The early works of Erikson (1950), for exam-

ple, first shed light on the developmental pathway of

aging, long before others had conceptualized matu-

rity as a normative stage of life. Erikson’s ideas about

individual psychosocial development still resonate

more than 50 years later, influencing empirical re-

search and gerontology practices. Indeed, the inter-

generational linkages suggested in Erikson’s idea of

generativity in the later stages of life served as a basis

for the emergence of life course theoretical notions

such as ‘‘linked lives,’’ which joins individual- and

family-level influences to understand intergenera-

tional connections (see Fischer’s [1986] analysis of

adult daughters and aging mother relationships).

Building upon theories of individual develop-

ment and theorizing about life course influences,

family gerontology, a branch of social gerontology,

has come of age. Family and gerontology scholars

studying aging families embrace a definition of fam-

ily that includes ‘‘relationships determined by biol-

ogy, adoption, marriage, and, in some societies,

social designation, and existing even in the absence

of contact or affective involvement, and in some

cases, even after the death of certain members’’

(Bedford & Blieszner, 1997, p. 526). This definition

of family takes into account relationships with the

fictive or chosen kin that are actively engaged in the

lives of many old adults.

Tremendous growth has occurred in the scope of

topics investigated, as revealed in four decade-based

reviews of the literature (Allen, Blieszner, & Roberto,

2000; Brubaker, 1990; Streib & Beck, 1980; Troll,

1971). However, as noted in those reviews and dis-

cussed in this paper, identification of the theoretical

underpinnings of family gerontology research has

lagged behind the empirical output. Many aca-

demic scholars, as well as practitioners, do not acknowl-

edge explicitly the influence of theory on their

research, teaching, and programmatic efforts. Without

*Karen A. Roberto is Director of the Center for Gerontology and Professor of Human Development, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg,

VA 24061 (kroberto@vt.edu). Rosemary Blieszner is Alumni Distinguished Professor of Human Development and Associate Director of the Center for Gerontology,

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061 (rmb@vt.edu). Katherine R. Allen is Professor of Human Development and Faculty Affiliate

of the Center for Gerontology, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061 (kallen@vt.edu).

Family Relations, 55 (December 2006), 513–525. Blackwell Publishing.

Copyright 2006 by the National Council on Family Relations.