Intergenerational Interactions when Transmitting Wisdom from Older to Younger Generations

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of young people's reactions to changes in older people's generativity when wisdom is transmitted to the younger people. Participants included 48 male adults aged 63-77years. Each participant was assigned to either the condition of wisdom from experiences of failure or the wisdom from experiences of success condition. Participants expressed narratives to younger listeners or recipients, who were confederates and were instructed to respond either empathetically or neutrally. Results showed that only in the wisdom from experiences of failure condition, generativity was promoted when young recipients responded in an empathic manner. Generativity decreased when the young recipients responded in a neutral manner. Based on these results, the differential effects of responses from younger individuals to older persons' transmission of stories about negative experiences are discussed.