Educational Media Reviews Online

This program, a follow-up to On Old Age: A Conversation with Joan Erikson at 90 delves into the changes that have occurred in Joan's life in the two years since making the first video. Set in the same interview style format, Joan explains the profound change her husband's death had on her life, how she came to change residences, and her observations on caring for older people.

She points out how our culture has isolated seniors by changing their physical environments. She also comments on elder caregivers, and how important it is to make connections with an elderly patient. Her thoughts on this topic should be required listening for nurses and others who take care of the elderly. This leads to an explanation of Joan's Life Cycle Tapestry, which she created after she and her husband developed the Eight stages of the Life Cycle.

Joan now proposes a Ninth Stage, where things are seen from the other point of view, inverting the Eight Stages. For example, the first phase of Trust vs Mistrust becomes Mistrust vs Trust. An older person withdraws the trust they had in things that once worked, and they must forgive the unstable and move on.

Once again, Frances Davidson has successfully provided an intimate look at the inner thoughts and works of an inspiring and eloquent woman. Even though the Ninth Stage is discussed in detail, this video is a little more relaxed than its companion video. On Old Age II: A Conversation with Joan Erikson at 92 is a comfortable conversation with Joan Erikson, full of insightful views on aging and how we deal with aging in our culture. Most viewers won't even realize they've had an important lesson in develomental psychology. Highly recommended for library collections supporting psychology, aging, and health sciences curriculums.