[Survival in advanced age--a comparison of short- and long-lived probands of the Bonn gerontologic longitudinal...

A comparison between rather short-lived (n = 60) and rather long-lived (n = 88) participants of the initial sample of the Bonn longitudinal study on aging (BOLSA) yielded evidence - with regard to differences in the central tendencies of these two groups - for a variety of determinants of longevity in old age. The statistical analyses included eight constructs or clusters of variables, respectively, that were either empirically or theoretically based and were supposed to have predictive power (intelligence, health status, satisfaction, personality, family involvement, socioeconomic/ecological aspects, coping techniques/dominant themes of life, general social participation). Within each "cluster", it could be referred to several different aspects. Besides defining general characteristics of longevious people, the purpose of the study was to look for differentiating aspects. Thus, a host of evidence was yielded for gender- and cohort-linked differences in the structure and relevance of the included central clusters with regard to "prediction" of advanced longevity in old age.