b. how long that person would like to live
Valuation of life (VOL) represents a construct capturing active attachment to life put forward by M. P. Lawton (e.g., 1999). As old and very old individuals may differ in terms of endorsement and with respect to what makes a life worth living, the present study investigated whether mean levels and the explanatory value of sociodemographic, social, and health predictors for VOL differ between young-old and old-old individuals.
Age-differential predictive values of the resources seem to indicate positive adaptation to aging. Taking into account such prediction patterns may help to design specific interventions for young-old and old-old individuals. How much do old and very old individuals value their existence? How much are they attached to their life? As advancing into old and very old age is typically accompanied by multiple losses—worsening health conditions and disability, loss of loved ones, and restrictions in cognitive capacity—that crucially limit the extent to which an individual is able to live in accordance with his or her wishes, the question arises how many negative conditions are bearable in order to evaluate one's life as worth living. In his late work, M. Powell Lawton investigated attachment to life by advancing the concept of valuation of life
