Idiographic Assessment of the Self in the Aged: A Case for the Use of the Q-Sort

Abstract

Literature bearing on the use of the Q-sort in gerontological research is discussed. It is argued that the measurement of self-concept and the design of outcome measures with elderly clients should be rooted in a perspective emphasizing 1) multiple, interactive determinants of life-span development; 2) increases in intraindividual variability/interindividual differences with age; 3) ecological validity; and 4) a growing concern for the practical utility and acceptability of nontraditional counseling and psychotherapy and the aged. Suggestions for the development and use of the Q-sort in evaluating intervention-oriented efforts from within such a perspective on the self in old age and on outcome research with elderly clients are offered.