The effects of life review on ego integrity versus ego despair in the geriatric population: A case study

The field of life review is growing in many directions. The pioneering work on life review was written by Robert N. Butler, M.D. Butler's view that life review is not only non-pathological in nature but a therapeutic and adaptive function created much interest in the field of geriatrics. Current research on life review is attempting to verify its potential therapeutic applications. It was hypothesized that a life review would increase ego integrity while decreasing ego despair.;This paper which contains a literature review, focuses on the potential effects of life review on Ego Integrity vs. Ego Despair in a single case design. A 75 year old White female of Jewish descent was the participant chosen. She agreed to have her life videotaped for both research purposes as well as her own records.;The participant completed a pre-test and post-test consisting of the Death Anxiety Scale (DAS), the Life Satisfaction in the Elderly Scale (LSES), and the Measures of Psychosocial Development (MPD). The pre-test was administered one week prior to the intervention while the post-test was administered one week after the intervention.;The intervention was an operationally defined life review developed by Haight and Webster (1995). The interviewer followed the Life Review and Experiencing Form (Haight, 1979) during the six 1 hour sessions.;Results from the pre and post test suggest that the life review did have an effect on ego integrity and ego despair. However, the effect appeared to be negative increasing ego despair while decreasing ego integrity. Several possible explanations are discussed as well as suggestions for further research.