Indian Journal of Positive Psychology © 2014 Indian Association of Health, Research and Welfare

2014, 5(3), 236-244 ISSN-p-2229-4937e-2321-368X

http://www.iahrw.com/index.php/home/journal_detail/19#list

A comparative psychosocial frame of happiness,

relationship and narcissism of varied marital status of aged men
Sraboni Chatterjee
Bijoy Krishna Girls' College, Howrah, Kolkata

An attempt has been made to provide an understanding of the personality profile of elderly males belonging to
different marital status in terms of certain selected psychosocial correlates. The present study probes into the fact
whether or not marital status acts as an inevitable determinant in influencing the personality content in terms of
happiness, relationship, and narcissism of aged individuals. A total of two hundred elderly individuals (men)
belonging to each group, namely, married, widower, divorcee, bachelor were assessed on the above mentioned
variables by applying suitable standardized scales. Significant results were found out with respect to all the
dimensions of selected variables. Profile differences among elderly personnel revealed that Married males have
higher scores in happiness, healthy dependency, authority, self-sufficiency in comparison to the other counterparts
namely widower, divorcee and bachelor aged. Bachelor aged receives the higher mean magnitude in case of
destructive overdependence of relationship, superiority, exhibitionism, exploitativeness, vanity, entitlement and
overall narcissism than divorcee, married and widower sub samples. On the criteria of dysfunctional detachment
divorced aged positioned themselves at top than married, widower and bachelor counterparts. Widowers have lower
scores in happiness, authority, self-sufficiency, vanity and overall narcissism than the other counterparts.

Keywords: psychosocial correlates, marital status, elderly individuals

Positive psychology works under the assumption that happiness is a the history of narcissism theory and offers thumbnail sketches of
scientifically unwieldy term and that its serious study involves what narcissism looks like from the respective of several major
dissolving whole into at least three distinct better defined roots to theorists. From these conceptualizations are derived six key
happiness (Seligman, 2002). concepts that recur in narcissism theory, which are as follows:
n Positive emotions and pleasure. Psychosocial frame of happiness, relationship and narcissism of
n Engagement and aged men
n Meaning. n Differentiation
Argyle (2001) presented a tripartite conceptualization of happiness: n Internal objects
n The average level of satisfaction over a specific time period. n Primitive defenses;
n The frequency and degree of positive affect. n Envy;
n The relative absence of negative affect as depression and n Superego development
anxiety. n Affect regulation.
Again, Veenhoven (1994) stated, “happiness can be regarded as a The word narcissism is derived from a great myth which is about
trait if it meets three criteria (of) Narcissus, a handsome Greek Youth, who rejected the desperate
n Temporal stability. advance of the nymph echo. As punishment, he was deemed to fall in
n Cross situational consistency. love with his own reflection in a pool of water. Unable to
n Inner causation. consummate his love, Narcissus pined away and changed into the
flower that bears his name, the Narcissus (Sanyal, 2005). In other
Happiness involves a general average level of contentment and
words, it relates to an exaggerated self love. However the term may
well-being, with a high frequency of positive feelings such as good
consist of a variety of meaning depending on the orientation
humor, joy, laughter. Hope and enthusiasm, coupled with relative
freedom from negative feelings such as sadness, worry, anxiety, Foster et al. (2003) studied individual differences in narcissism
anger, irritability, dependency and despair. and their results showed that:
Narcissism refers to a “pervasive pattern of grandiosity” that is n Narcissism declines in older participants
characterized by arrogant behaviours, feelings of entitlement and n Which was consistent with previous findings where males report
superiority and a lack of sympathy for or concern about others (APA, being more narcissistic than females,
1994). A current investigation examined the association among n That ethnic differences in reported narcissism are generally
narcissism, age, ethnicity, world region, gender using a large comparable to those found in the self-esteem literature, and
(n=3445) sample, suggesting that narcissism declines in older n That world region appears to exert influence on narcissism, with
participants and males report being more narcissistic than females participants from more individualistic societies reporting more
(Foster, Campbell & Twenge, 2003). Hotchkiss (2005) summarizes narcissism than collectivistic ones.
The position of men in Indian society is of a complex nature. For
Correspondence should be sent to Sraboni Chatterjee male, his role as a major earner in the family is critical and he is
Bijoy Krishna Girls' College, Howrah, Kolkata likely to suffer in self-esteem if he sees himself as dependent. A man
 Indian Journal of Positive Psychology 2014, 5(3), 236-244 237

who is dependent on her son is likely to experience a sense of done years ago. They are more likely to recognize that the marriage
inadequacy in the non-traditional, urban setting (Muttagi, will not get better by itself and that the present situation is likely to
1997). damage the personalities of both spouses and their children; and that
Urban older males are in most advantageous position compared to they are more likely to do something. Some couples try professional
females. Urban men are better educated, likely to work in organized marriage counseling. This may help them work out their difficulties
sector, to retire with a pension-scheme and are more likely to be and save the marriage, or it may help both the individuals to decide
insured. They are also more likely to use health facilities often, have a that separation is best for everyone and to handle it in the best way
better health status (Prakash, 1997). As men retire, they abruptly possible.
loose power and influence in public sphere. They may indeed feel It is common knowledge and experience that never married men
less dominant. When self-concept and self-esteem suffer older men constitute a special human category which is different from such
and women tend to respond in different ways. Men are more likely to social categories as divorced and widower. Their life style, attitudes,
use alcohol than women, whereas, older women are more likely than behaviour patterns, purpose for savings and accumulation, patterns
men to become depressed (NIH Consensus Development of spending, relation with relatives, plans and attitudes after and
Conference, 1991). towards retirement, sexual needs, religious beliefs, and values are
Ageing may be understood in the context of different elderly likely to be different from those who belong to married categories.
samples like those of married, widowed, divorcee and never- The low level of happiness of the single woman is likely to be
married to have a better view of their differential ageing profiles, attributable either to lack of gratifications associated with marriage,
with effectiveness or ineffectiveness in certain respects. Married or to the difficulties of living in a marriage oriented world. It is the
elderly men constitute a bulk of the elderly population. To unfurl primary arena of identity and self-realization; providing “back
their psyche from the personality perspective, they form a chunk of stage” areas for personal control and intimacy (Laslett, 1978). To the
the sample in the present investigation. In fact, marriage has been extent that marriage is successful in fulfilling these needs, the never-
defined as a more or less durable connection between male and married may be less happy, precisely because they lack this
female, lasting beyond the mere act of propagation till after birth of “significant validating relationships”.
offspring. With family environment, marriage is seen as The present investigation aims to study psychosocial profile of
instrumental in fulfilling such personal needs as affection, security married, widower, divorcee and bachelor elderly men with respect to
and maintaining life style (Nye, 1967). Love, companionship, key variables of happiness, relationship and narcissism. The utility
escape from loneliness and unhappy home situation are few other of the present study seems to be manifold in character for which
reason that may constitute a person's dispositions for marriage fruitful use of the results of the present study is expected to prove
(Bowman, 1974). Sociologists have studied the change in attitude worthwhile for the betterment of human beings individually as well
towards marriage in the last few decades. It was found that in last as social welfare.
ten to twenty years, individuals' attitudes have changed from
viewing marriage as a sacrosanct, solemnized primarily for the
Method
good of the individual and for his personal happiness and Participants
satisfaction.
A total number of two hundred aged men among which fifty
The last stage of marriage is overwhelmingly one of widowhood.
belonging to each group namely married, widower, divorcee and
In fact, widowhood constitutes a chunk of the elderly population
bachelor aged men were selected. The subjects were selected on the
which necessitates its inclusion in the present investigation, to reveal
basis of the following criteria:
their psyche from mental health perspective. Widowhood is the
Inclusion Criteria:
status of person whose spouse has died and who has not remarried.
Becoming a widow or widower is a process that may involve the Sex- Male
spouses' illness to die (it is not a sudden death), the event of death and Age- 50 - 60 years
funeral and a period of grief. The effects of this process on widowed Educational level- Graduation
person vary considerably depending upon several factors. The Working status- Working at government offices and private sectors
society, its structure and culture and the striving spouse within it tend Marital Status- Married/Widower/Divorcee/bachelor
to influence the form and timing of death, rituals surrounding it and All of them were from middle class socio- economic status,
the roles, relations and life styles available to widow and widower. belonging to the Hinduism religion were Bengali.
There are approximately five times more widows over the age of Exclusion Criteria:
sixty five than there are widowers (Glick, 1979).
Marital Status- Remarried
When a marriage falls short of the partners' expectations, few
Working Status- Retired
people consider it shameful or immoral for them to seek a divorce.
Clinical Status- Presence of psychopathological symptoms
Divorce does not carry the social stigma it once did. Yet separation is
still not taken casually. The breakup of any intimate relationship is Instruments
painful, especially a marriage for which both partners once held such Information Blank: Consisting of informations like name, age, sex,
high hopes, and especially when children are involved. Individuals in religion, mother tongue, marital status, education, family history,
an unhappy marriage are concerned with failure, ranging from their working status, personal hobby, future economic plan, and major
inability to select the right mate to their inability to make the illness.
marriage work. The difference now is that people in an unhappy General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) by Goldberg and Hiller
marriage are less likely to accept the situation than they might have (1979): is used for eliciting psychiatric morbidity among the sub-
238 CHATTERJEE/ A COMPARATIVE PSYCHSOCIAL FRAME OF HAPPINESS

samples. GHQ-28 containing 28 items is derived from factor Urbina, 1997; Messick, 1995). It was hypothesized that the re-
analysis of GHQ-60 and consists of four subscales; each subscale test reliability co-efficient should exceed .60 in each case. Each
assesses separate factors like somatic symptom, anxiety and RPT subscale should show acceptable levels of internal
insomnia, social dysfunction and severe depression. It is as good as consistency (i.e., co-efficient α>.60), and acceptable ranges of
any other version of GHQ as a case detector. At the same time it gives item-total correlations (e.g., all item total correlations >.30,
scale sub-scores. Each item has four response alternatives. In GHQ, with most item total correlations>.50 (Nunnally and Bernstein,
correlation co-efficient of each item with total score is significant at 1994). All statistically significantly RPT correlations are
0.01 level. The split-half reliability is 0.97. Its sensitivity and expected to be in the .25 to .50 range, and comparable in women
specificity are 1 and 0.88 respectively. and men.
The Oxford Happiness Questionnaire (OHQ) by Hills and Argyle Procedure
(2002): An improved instrument OHQ has been derived from the
Preparation of information Schedule: An information blank /
Oxford Happiness Inventory (OHI). It consists of 29 items, each
questionnaire in the form of information schedule were prepared at
presented as a single statement which can be endorsed on a uniform
six point Likert scale. Sequential orthogonal factor analyses of the first in order to elicit certain basic information regarding the
OHQ identified a single higher order factor, which suggests that the respondent. The proposed criteria for preparation of information
construct of well-being it measures is uni-dimensional. OHQ is a self schedule were as follows:
administering questionnaire and instructions are given in the a) Personal Identity
beginning of the questionnaire. There is no time-limit to complete it. b) Educational level
The OHQ has high scale reliabilities with values of α (168) = 0.91 c) Family Background
respectively. The inter- item correlation for the OHQ ranged from - d) Information regarding profession
0.04 to 0.65. Highly significant difference (p<0.01) was obtained e) History of physical illness
between high and low group of OHQ score for every item of OHQ
f) Profile of interpersonal relationships
(Hills and Argyle, 2002). This indicates that all items of OHQ are
Several items under each category were written and the responses
making a valid contribution to the measurement of overall happiness.
were free choice type or open ended and the multiple choice type.
Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI) by Raskin and Hall (1979):
Administration: To conduct the study, first consents were taken from
It is a forty item measure that assesses narcissism as a normally
subjects individually. The questionnaires were administered in a
distributed personality trait (Raskin and Hall 1979). The NPI
single session; the questionnaires were filled in the presence of only
distinguishes seven different aspects of narcissism, namely:
the assessor so that any clarification could be done immediately.
n Authority
Sufficient amount of rest was provided in between each of the
n Self-Sufficiency questionnaires whenever required, to prevent the creeping of
n Superiority fatigue, boredom and monotony on the part of the subjects. The time
n Entitlement taken to administer all the questionnaires to each of the subjects was
n Exhibitionism approximately one and half hour.
n Exploitativeness Precautions
n Vanity
a) During the administration of each questionnaire, it was checked
The NPI is a self-administering test. There is no time-limit to
by the investigator whether the respondents were relaxed and
complete it. The instructions to complete the questionnaire precede
willing to participate. If there was any tension on the part of any
the items. Cronbach's α for internal consistency for NPI was
respondent, he/she was not forced to participate for that day, but a
0.81.The NPI has been used widely and shows satisfactory
second appointment was fixed with her.
convergent and discriminant validity (Bushman and Baumeister,
b) The respondents were made to sit in a well-lit and airy room and
1998; Emmons, 1987; Morf and Rhodewalt, 1993; Rhodewalt et.al,
made to feel comfortable. One respondent at a time was given the
1998; Rhodewalt and Morf, 1998).
questionnaire.
The Relationship Profile Test (RPT): The test has been developed by
c) No time limit was given to the respondents while answering the
Bornstein, Languirand, Creighton and Geiselman (2001). The aim of
questionnaires. However, it was found that most of the
this test is to measure the relationship profile with the help of three
respondents covered the questionnaires within scheduled time.
subscales scores namely: a) Destructive Overdependence (DO) b)
Dysfunctional Detachment (DD) c) Healthy Dependency (HD). The d) It was noted that each individual being tested should interpret the
RPT is a self- administering test. There is no-time limit to complete questions for themselves. The investigator answered questions
it. The instructions to complete the questionnaire precede the items. about any particular item.
The scale consists of thirty items. Total ratings for items 1-10 stands e) It was assured to the respondents that the results of tests would be
for destructive overdependence, total ratings for items 11-20 stands treated in strict confidence.
for dysfunctional detachment and total ratings for items 21-30 stands f) Lastly, the respondents were asked to answer the question freely,
for healthy dependency. Higher score indicates higher distorted or frankly and honestly.
healthy relationship on that particular domain. All three RPT After the collection of data, scoring was done for each test and the
subscales should show adequate reliability over 23 and 85 weeks. As scores were subjected to statistical analysis.
psychometricians have pointed out, no single cutoff defines
Sampling
acceptable retest reliability, which is affected by numerous variables
(e.g., interest interval, participants' characteristics, Anastasi and Purposive sampling was followed for the present study.
 Indian Journal of Positive Psychology 2014, 5(3), 236-244 239

Analysis Method of analysis

Scoring, Tabulations and Statistical analyses Data analyses were done by the methods described below:
Data for each of the questionnaires were scored following the Descriptive Statistics: Computation of mean and S.D
scoring schedule for each of them accordingly. The scores were Inferential Statistics: Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and Post-hoc
tabulated and statistical analyses were carried out that are presented tukey test will be used.
in the section entitled “Results”.
Results

Table: I Showing descriptive statistics, F and mean difference obtained from Post Hoc Tukey Test of selected
variable namely- happiness, relationship and narcissism of married, widower, divorcee and bachelor elderly men.
Variables Groups Mean S.D F Combination of Groups Mean Difference
Obtained from
Post Hoc Tukey Test
Happiness Married (N=50) 145.82 6.96 4949.708** Married and Widower 67.96**
Widower (N=50) 77.86 3.12 Married and Divorcee 79.02**
Divorcee (N=50) 66.80 1.70 Married and Bachelor 87.68**
Bachelor (N=50) 58.14 1.84 Widower and Divorcee 11.06**
Widower and Bachelor 19.72**
Divorcee and Bachelor 8.66**
Destructive Married (N=50) 12.72 1.25 3886.810** Married and Widower .30
Over Widower (N=50) 12.42 1.49 Married and Divorcee .46
dependence Divorcee (N=50) 12.26 1.03 Married and Bachelor 22.52**
Bachelor (N=50) 35.24 1.36 Widower and Divorcee .16
Widower and Bachelor 22.82**
Divorcee and Bachelor 22.98**
Dysfunc- Married (N=50) 14.80 1.64 871.491** Married and Widower 9.62**
tional Widower (N=50) 24.42 2.03 Married and Divorcee 16.12
Detachment Divorcee (N=50) 30.92 2.16 Married and Bachelor 14.80**
Bachelor (N=50) 29.60 0.90 Widower and Divorcee 6.50**
Widower and Bachelor 5.18**
Divorcee and Bachelor 1.32**
Healthy Married (N=50) 36.90 1.59 2012.057** Married and Widower 19.44**
Dependency Widower (N=50) 17.46 2.24 Married and Divorcee 23.14**
Divorcee (N=50) 13.76 1.76 Married and Bachelor 22.98**
Bachelor (N=50) 13.92 1.23 Widower and Divorcee 3.70**
Widower and Bachelor 3.54**
Divorcee and Bachelor .16
Authority Married (N=50) 5.18 0.77 133.944** Married and Widower 2.16**
Widower (N=50) 3.02 0.25 Married and Divorcee 2.04**
Divorcee (N=50) 3.14 0.99 Married and Bachelor .24
Bachelor (N=50) 4.94 0.55 Widower and Divorcee .12
Widower and Bachelor 1.92**
Divorcee and Bachelor 1.80**
Self-sufficiency Married (N=50) 2.88 0.48 36.506** Married and Widower 1.92**
Widower (N=50) .96 0.67 Married and Divorcee .56*
Divorcee (N=50) 2.32 0.88 Married and Bachelor 1.06**
Bachelor (N=50) 1.82 1.47 Widower and Divorcee 1.36**
Widower and Bachelor .86**
Divorcee and Bachelor .50*
Superiority Married (N=50) 2.64 0.69 192.279** Married and Widower 1.62**
Widower (N=50) 1.02 0.38 Married and Divorcee .76**
Divorcee (N=50) 1.88 0.52 Married and Bachelor 2.02**
Bachelor (N=50) 4.66 1.27 Widower and Divorcee .86**
Widower and Bachelor 3.64**
Divorcee and Bachelor 2.73**
Exhibitionism Married (N=50) 4.46 1.15 436.655** Married and Widower 3.30**
Widower (N=50) 1.16 0.58 Married and Divorcee 3.62**
Divorcee (N=50) .84 0.79 Married and Bachelor 1.90**
240 CHATTERJEE/ A COMPARATIVE PSYCHSOCIAL FRAME OF HAPPINESS

Bachelor (N=50) 6.36 0.98 Widower and Divorcee .32

Widower and Bachelor 5.20**
Divorcee and Bachelor 5.52**
Exploitativeness Married (N=50) 1.42 0.78 82.044** Married and Widower .46**
Widower (N=50) 1.88 0.32 Married and Divorcee 1.12**
Divorcee (N=50) 2.54 0.54 Married and Bachelor 2.00**
Bachelor (N=50) 3.42 0.91 Widower and Divorcee .66**
Widower and Bachelor 1.54**
Divorcee and Bachelor .88**
Vanity Married (N=50) 3.00 0.57 9.949** Married and Widower 4.00
Widower (N=50) .94 0.42 Married and Divorcee .48**
Divorcee (N=50) 3.74 0.56 Married and Bachelor 1.00
Bachelor (N=50) 5.30 1.11 Widower and Divorcee .44**
Widower and Bachelor .14
Divorcee and Bachelor .58**
Entitlement Married (N=50) 1.88 0.48 318.482** Married and Widower 2.06**
Widower (N=50) 1.84 0.37 Married and Divorcee .74**
Divorcee (N=50) 1.40 0.64 Married and Bachelor 2.30**
Bachelor (N=50) 1.94 0.74 Widower and Divorcee 2.80**
Widower and Bachelor 4.36**
Divorcee and Bachelor 1.56**
Narcissism Married (N=50) 21.46 2.46 912.450** Married and Widower 10.64**
Widower (N=50) 10.82 1.29 Married and Divorcee 5.60**
Divorcee (N=50) 15.86 1.07 Married and Bachelor 7.02**
Bachelor (N=50) 28.48 1.93 Widower and Divorcee 5.04**
Widower and Bachelor 17.66**
Divorcee and Bachelor 12.62**
Psychosocial frame of happiness, relationship and narcissism of aged men
*p<0.05 level of significance, **p<0.01 level of significance

Table-I describes higher mean magnitude for married aged in case of be offered in the following fashion:
happiness, healthy dependency of relationship, authority and self- Happiness: Statistical analysis of happiness among married,
sufficiency of narcissism in comparison to the other counterparts divorced, widower and bachelor males were found to have specific
namely widower, divorcee and bachelor aged. On the other hand significance .
bachelor aged receives the higher mean magnitude in case of Highest scores in happiness on the part of married males
destructive overdependence of relationship, superiority, (Mean=145.82 and S.D=6.96) suggest that their relatively stable
exhibitionism, exploitativeness, vanity, entitlement and overall features of personality, patterns of commitment affects the way the
narcissism than divorcee, married and widower sub samples. On the situational events are appraised in terms of their positive impact on
criteria of dysfunctional detachment divorced aged positioned well-being as well as influencing the way they have managed life
themselves at top than married, widower and bachelor counterparts. events (Lazarus & Delongis, 1983). Literature also indicates that
Widowers have lower scores in happiness, authority, self- positive relationship of this sub-sample has consistently been found
sufficiency, vanity and overall narcissism than the other counterparts between life satisfaction and socio-economic status, perceived
namely, married, divorcee and bachelor aged. adequacy of income and perceived health status (Kutner et al., 1956;
Cutler et al.,1965; Edwards & Klemmack, 1973).
Discussion
Bachelors at the opposite pole exhibit a kind of rigidity and
The total set of data was analyzed in terms of the descriptive statistics inflexible behaviour pattern in maintaining their relations.
of mean and standard deviations of all the selected groups of Basically, they fail to rely on somebody with whom they share their
samples. The significant differences obtained from F-test and feelings (Crumbaugh & Maholick, 1964; Yalom, 1980) and hence
PostHoc Tukey test in many instances of the selected variables of the suffer from excessive degree of unhappiness (Mean=58.14 &
study satisfied the theoretical assumptions that “Aging as S.D=1.84)
developmental phase” is expected to have more of problems than Unhappiness of elderly divorcees (Mean=66.80 & S.D=1.70) is
earlier stages of life (Patel, 1997; Jamuna, 1988). associated with negative affect and cognitively based evaluations of
In the present study, significant differences were found to exist well-being which invites depression, anxiety, low frustration
between the selected groups (i.e. married, widower, divorcee and tolerance and non-conforming attitude in behaviour pattern
bachelor) in terms of variables like happiness, relationship, (Chamberlain & Zika 1988; Diener, 1984; Viet & Ware, 1983)
narcissism. The findings are in line with other earlier supportive among them.
studies (Patel, 1998; Kanner et.al.1981); the possible reasons or Literature suggests that, spousal loss, non social support produce
probable contradictory factors behind the obtained differences may a kind of stress which deteriorates their mental health, reduces sense
 Indian Journal of Positive Psychology 2014, 5(3), 236-244 241

of well-being, invites depression, impairs psychological and social to have specific differences.
functioning and makes widowers (Mean=77.86 & S.D=3.12) victim Aged bachelors receive the highest position (Mean=28.487 &
of unhappiness (Hyman, 1983; Wan, 1984; Norris & Murrell, 1990). S.D=1.93) in this dimension. Due to dominating role of 'males' in
Relationship profile our society, this particular sample tends to develop a kind of
Destructive Over dependence: Individual profile of group difference grandiose feeling about themselves. Actually, with this weapon,
indicates that only the bachelor group had different profile in the they tend to closely guard their feelings of inferiority, insecurity,
respect from that of the other three groups, namely, widower, inadequacy, incapability and embarrassment, their awareness that
divorcee and married. Here aged bachelors (Mean=35.24 & they are bluffing, their doubts about themselves and their marked
S.D=1.36) had the highest score. In any social situation old bachelors sensitivity to criticism (Akhtar & Thompson, 1982; Kernberg, 1975;
may have a tendency to express a desire to maintain close ties but Kohut, 1971). Not only have that, lack of mutual understanding with
negative evaluation from others prevents them to develop such other family members and feelings of loneliness stamped them as a
bondage. This inadequacy creates a kind of helplessness in their self- separate category in our society. When these individuals with high
presentation (Bornstein & Languirand, 2003). narcissistic traits see the possible threats to their personal
importance, they see themselves in an unrealistically positive way
Considering the latter part of statistical analysis, it can be said that
(Gabriel, Critelli & Ee, 1994; John & Robins, 1994) and would
the status of being 'male' and being a part of conjugal life either for a
rather be admired than nurtured by others (Campbell, 1999).
short span or for long time they are being able to lead an independent
Literature also suggests that, they may adopt a highly defensive self-
life style. Though grief and bereavement exist in elderly married
regulatory style, denying negative experie-nces and overemphasi-
(Mean=12.72 & S.D=1.25), widower (Mean=12.42 & S.D=1.49)
zing positive ones (Tracy & Robins, 1994).
and divorcees' (Mean=12.26 & S.D=1.03) lives, they try to take into
their strides their gender-stereotyped sense of masculinity. On other side, married elderlies' (Mean=21.46 & S.D=2.46)
narcissism is associated with their useful interpersonal relationships
Dysfunctional detachment: Highest magnitudinal values on the part
which help them to enhance their self-concept. It is associated with
of elderly divorcee (Mean=30.92 & S.D=1.59) revealed that due to
attentional self-focus (Emmons, 1987). Being a part of satisfactory
marital discord the committed support of the group is less.
conjugal life, they have a tendency to use 'I' in every unstructured
Motivational tone pinpointed the fact that they have fewer problems
and unrehearsed speech (Raskin & Shaw, 1988). Actually, the basic
in personal lives and perceive others as harmful and untrustworthy
happiness in relationship profiles helps them to develop positive
and become distant from others (Bornstein & Languirand, 2003).
self-esteem (Raskin, Novacek & Hogan, 1991a; 1991b) and the need
Elderly bachelors (Mean=29.60 & S.D=.90) basically fail to for uniqueness (Emmon, 1984). Literature also suggests that their
cultivate social ties and engage in adaptive affiliative behaviours self feels admired by interactive process and this ensures a sense of
(Kantor, 1993; Millon, 1996). Excessive intrapsychic conflicts cohesiveness and boosts the idea that self is exceptional (Ryle &
regarding closeness and intimacy tend to make them separate from Kerr, 2002).
other counterparts. Actually, due to their temperamental instability
Elderly divorcees, (Mean=15.86 & S.D=1.07) due to emotional
they become detached from others (Birtchnell, 1996).
turning off in their interpersonal relationships, become distant and
Widowers (Mean=24.42 & S.D=2.03) due to their bereavement incapable of depending on others and develop a tendency of not
status, always exhibit negative emotionality, which ultimately experiencing the emotional side of relationships (Cooper, 1998;
impair their quality of life and hence emotional distance has been DiMaggio et al., 2002). Not only that, such relations also create a
formed in them (Caspi, 1998). tendency of not committing oneself to achievement of goals (Robins
Aged married individuals (Mean=14.80 & S.D=1.64) as a result of & Paulhus, 2001).
their consistent intimate ties with the fundamental nature are found to Last position was occupied by widowers (Mean=10.82 &
adjust with ups and downs of their interpersonal relationships (Deci S.D=1.29) in the context. Their behaviours are driven by emotions
& Ryan, 1991; Argyle, 1987; Myers & Diener, 1995) which leads to and negative beliefs (Bowlby, 1969; Fiscalini, 1994; Scannell,
the lowest detachment among them. 2003). They always try to elicit problematic emotions in others that
Healthy Dependency (HD): Dealing with group differences it was complacent with their own inferiorities (Safran & Muran, 2000). In
found out that married and widowers have different profiles from the reality, widower-ship invites some amount of insecurity and
other two groups, namely, divorcee and bachelors. helplessness which ultimately scratch them emotionally at the loss
Highest scores on the part of aged married (Mean=36.90 & of their partners.
S.D=1.59) indicates that stable relationships, general life
satisfactions, shared mutual interests, attitudes and values allow their Concluding comments
partner to be comfortable with them (Snyder, Gangestad & Simpson, In sum, the research project has unveiled the following informations:
1983). Basically, dependency among them seems to be achieved by
Married males have higher scores in
flexibility, situation-appropriate support-seeking behaviour
Happiness
(Bornstein, 1998; Pincus & Wilson, 2001).
Healthy dependency
Widowers (Mean=17.46 & S.D=2.24) on the other pole due to
their relationship scarcity have an underlying need for bondage but Authority
reality decorate their lives through black and white shades and tends Self-sufficiency
to position them at the lowest point of this dimension (Bornstein, Bachelor aged receives the higher mean magnitude in
1995,1998a; Cross, Bacon & Morris, 2000; Kobayashi, 1989). Destructive overdependence
Narcissism: Statistical analysis indicates that the four groups Superiority
namely, married, widower, divorcee and bachelor males were found Exhibitionism
242 CHATTERJEE/ A COMPARATIVE PSYCHSOCIAL FRAME OF HAPPINESS

Exploitativeness generalizations of the present findings as the present study

Vanity essentially supports the idiographic research.
Entitlement n A number of questionnaires were used in this study. However,
Overall narcissism questionnaires may invite falsification and faking behaviour on
Divorcee ageds have higher mean magnitude in the part of the subjects.
Dysfunctional detachment. But unfortunately, the present study, being a time-bound one, did
not permit the investigator to study the effect of marriage on aged
Widower ageds have lower scores in
individuals in such broader perspectives. It is therefore, left to future
Happiness
researchers working in this area who can make the use of these
Authority
variables and make some additional new observations in the process
Self-sufficiency of ageing.
Vanity
Overall narcissism
Suggestions for the further research
After a thorough investigation on the problems and different aspects
Implications of the present study of the psychology of ageing in context of different marital status, the
n The present findings are of immense value in understanding the researcher is of the opinion that the present study seems to have
mental profiles of four groups of aged males. opened newer avenues in the field that remain to be explored.
n The findings are also helpful for individual counseling in n Further research studies in this area may highlight on other
particular and family counseling in general if and when they are in aspects of the personality (e.g. locus of control, resilience,
requirement. emotional intelligence, aggression, value profile) to attain a
n The findings seem to provide general awareness regarding global psychosocial picture of elderly personnels differing in their
specific socio-emotional status of four groups of aged individuals marital status.
that would prompt us to take certain resolution to help them in n Comparative studies may be undertaken between elderly
required social direction in life, so that nature of their stay will personnel of different professional groups (e.g. doctors, lawyers,
improve qualitatively in the long run. engineers, teachers etc.) to determine differences borne out of the
In our country, probably no such systematic large scale study different professional choices in relation to the selected
incorporating the mosaic pattern of the selected variables in respect personality correlates.
of the psychology of ageing has been conducted before, so the n Longitudinal studies may be conducted using the same variables
research might be a contribution, reflected through this study and can to yield an in depth picture.
definitely be claimed to be a new and original one in this arena. n Elderlies belonging to different socio-economic status may be
Limitations of the present study taken up for future investigation to yield further trend of results in
this light.
No research is free from its limitations. This study is also not an
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