Age identity, self-rated health, and life satisfaction among older adults in Dakar, Senegal

The objectives of this quantitative study were to (1) ascertain to what extent older adults aged 50 and above feel and desire
to be younger than their age, and classify themselves as young versus old; (2) compare these patterns with those found among
other cross-cultural populations; and (3) assess the extent to which self-rated health and life satisfaction predict age identities.
This study was carried out on a sample of 500 dwellers of the Senegalese capital aged 50 and older. This sample was constructed
using the quota method to strive for representativeness. Most of the respondents wanted to be younger than their chronological
age (51.8 %), but only 27.8 % felt younger than they were. Moreover, 80 % of the sample claimed to be old. Self-rated health
predicted felt age and the feeling of being old. Furthermore, the less-satisfied Dakar residents were with their life, the
younger they wanted to be. We first discuss our results in a comparative perspective focused on how orientations toward individualism
and collectivism could be related to age identity, and on demographic characteristics of the Senegalese population—where life
expectancy is 59.3 years old. We then analyze the relevance of age identity dimensions as indicators of successful aging in
Dakar.