Self-Concept and Altruism in Old Age1

This study investigated the relationship between self-concept and old age and altruistic behavior as a function of self-concept and social influence. The Tennessee Self-Concept Scale was administered to 162 elderly women living in a low-income senior housing project. A 3 X 3 factorial design was employed: High, Middle, and Low self-concept scorers were placed in positive, neutral, and negative social-influence conditions effected by the experimenter's verbal instructions. Each subject was pre-sented a lottery ticket and asked to indicate the amount she would share with others in case she won $100. The sample's self-concept was higher than the norm representing general population, yet no significant relation was found between self-concept and age within the sample. Self-concept related positively to defensiveness and adjustment. High self-concept scorers were more altrustic than low self-concept scorers, and subjects were more generous in positive rather than in negative social-influence condition. nr^HE relationships of (1) age to self-concept, •* • and (2) altruistic behavior to self-concept and social influence were the foci of this study. Self-concept.—There have been no longitu