Religiosity and social support in Polish older adults: the mediating role of wisdom. Perspectives on Lars Tornstam’s theory of gerotranscendence

ABSTRACT

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to examine whether wisdom is a mediator in the relationships between religious meaning system and social support among older adults. According to the theory of gerotranscendence, associations of religiousness and social support are complex and suggest the existence of wisdom in their internal structures.

Method: The study included 466 persons aged 50–75. Three measures were used: Religious Meaning System Scale (RMSS), Three-Dimensional Wisdom Scale (3D-WS) and Berlin Social Support Scales (BSSS).

Results: The analyses allowed for a partial verification of the hypothesis that wisdom is a mediator in the relationship between the religious meaning system and the multidimensional social support in late adulthood. It was confirmed that wisdom mediates the relationship between the religious meaning system and three out of the five dimensions of social support (perceived available support, actually received support and protective buffering support).

Conclusion: These findings suggest that wisdom is an important element of religious meaning system and social support that is used by people as a part of their maturing into gerotranscendence to cope with life’s difficulties and challenges.

Keywords:

• Religious meaning system
• wisdom and old age
• positive aging
• theory of gerotranscendence
• social support

Note

1. Worth noting is the negative relationship between wisdom and protective buffering support. This result may be a source of numerous hypotheses for future research on wisdom in older adults. It indicates that older adults who show a higher level of wisdom are less likely to hide their difficulties from family and friends and fake a good mood when they are actually experiencing negative emotions. This observation is consistent with Ardelt’s (2003) conception, according to which wisdom allows individuals to perceive life the way it is and not through the prism of their own anxieties, projections, impulses and desires. Wisdom helps them overcome their own subjectivism and avoid blaming other people or external circumstances for their current situation

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Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.