Life Review

Definition

Life review is a psychological process in which individuals reflect on their past experiences, values, and achievements, often occurring during late adulthood or near the end of life. This process can help individuals make sense of their lives, find meaning, and cope with impending mortality. Engaging in a life review can foster emotional healing, increase life satisfaction, and promote acceptance of one's life choices.

5 Must Know Facts For Your Next Test

1. Life review often involves storytelling and sharing memories, which can facilitate connection with others and enhance social support.
2. Engaging in life review has been shown to reduce feelings of depression and anxiety in older adults by promoting positive reflections on life.
3. The process of life review can aid in preparing for end-of-life decisions by allowing individuals to clarify their values and priorities.
4. Life review is sometimes used in palliative care settings to help patients confront their life experiences and achieve peace before death.
5. Research indicates that individuals who engage in life review are more likely to experience greater overall life satisfaction and emotional well-being.

Review Questions

• How does the process of life review contribute to emotional healing for individuals facing the end of life?
  • Life review plays a crucial role in emotional healing by allowing individuals to reflect on their past experiences, reconcile unresolved feelings, and affirm their identity. This reflective process helps individuals find meaning in their lives, which can mitigate feelings of regret or despair as they confront mortality. By sharing stories and memories, individuals also foster connections with loved ones, which enhances their emotional support during this challenging time.
• Discuss the relationship between life review and reminiscence therapy in improving psychological well-being among older adults.
  • Life review and reminiscence therapy share common goals in promoting psychological well-being among older adults. Both involve reflecting on past experiences but differ in their implementation; reminiscence therapy is a structured approach that uses guided prompts to evoke memories, while life review is often a more spontaneous and personal process. Together, these practices can help reduce depressive symptoms, enhance self-esteem, and reinforce social bonds as older adults reconnect with their narratives.
• Evaluate how the concept of ego integrity vs. despair relates to the process of life review during late adulthood.
  • The concept of ego integrity vs. despair directly ties into the process of life review as it highlights the critical evaluation of one's life at the end stage. Successful engagement in life review fosters ego integrity by helping individuals recognize their accomplishments, reconcile regrets, and accept their life's journey. In contrast, those who struggle with this reflection may experience despair, feeling dissatisfied with unfulfilled goals or unresolved conflicts. Thus, the process of life review can significantly influence whether an individual attains a sense of completeness or experiences deep-seated regret as they approach the end of life.

Related terms

Reminiscence Therapy: A therapeutic technique that encourages individuals to recall and share memories from their past to enhance mood and improve psychological well-being.

Gerotranscendence: A developmental theory suggesting that as people age, they shift from a materialistic and rational view of the world to a more transcendent perspective focused on deeper connections and meanings.

Ego Integrity vs. Despair: A stage in Erik Erikson's psychosocial development where older adults reflect on their lives to achieve a sense of fulfillment or experience regret and despair.