Mastering Aging: What Does Successful Aging Really Mean? By Susanna P. Barton

By Susanna P. Barton

At 87, actress and activist Jane Fonda says she doesn’t feel “like an old person,” doubling down that she actually feels “younger in all the ways that matter” as she moves – and inspires people of all ages! – into her 90s. In a recent interview with People magazine about her fitness and longtime career, Fonda reflected on how a healthy mindset and lifestyle shape her experience of aging, earning her praise as a model of thriving in later life. Perhaps to some, that is what is called “aging successfully,” semantics we’ll explore in this piece.

Fonda isn’t the only high-profile older adult garnering attention for rocking life’s second half. Across culture and media, public figures like Angela Bassett, Lily Tomlin, Dick Van Dyke, Kate Winslet, and Jamie Lee Curtis are embracing their older adult roles and have received generous praise for approaching aging with passion. In another recent People magazine piece, Bassett emphasized that she “doesn’t let age limit her” and often forgets how old she is – a real example of how a positive mental outlook can play an award-winning role in the realm of aging well. 

These luminaries shine a bright light on a scientifically valid truth: chronological age, which is the number of years lived, often tells us very little about how people feel, act, and function in later life. Some older adults look or behave “younger” than expected for someone their age; others feel content, wise, or deeply connected to life even as they experience physical or health challenges. This disconnect between age and the aging experience gets right to the heart of a cornerstone idea in the field of gerontology and something we discussed often throughout my Master of Science in Gerontology courses at the University of North Carolina Greensboro: Rowe and Kahn’s Model of Successful Aging.

Let’s get into the history of successful aging and how it became such a (sometimes controversial) buzzword in the field. In the late 1980s and 1990s, geriatrician John Rowe and gerontologist Robert Kahn popularized a distinctive model of successful aging that would come to shape research and public discourse for decades. Their model emphasized three components of Successful Aging:

• Avoidance of disease and disability
• High cognitive and physical functioning
• Sustained engagement in social and productive activities

By Rowe and Kahn’s definition, someone who maintains robust health, stays mentally and physically active, and participates meaningfully in society qualifies as a person who is aging successfully. This thinking runs counter to the idea that aging is actually decline or that getting old inevitably means frailty and loss. Their model helped shift the cultural frame toward possibility, robustness, capability, and agency in later life. After all, most of us know someone who seems nothing like the stereotype of older adults: a 100-year-old marathoner, a retired professor who mentors younger scholars, or a grandparent starting a new business or creative pursuit.

Though Rowe and Kahn’s model brought a new perspective to what it means to age, it also revealed different definitions of successful aging, as it varies so much from person to person and community to community around the world. Here are a few reasons why the model should be embraced, but also carefully applied. 

Let’s start with the emphasis on avoiding disease. Some may interpret this measure to mean someone who has a chronic illness or physical limitation has actually “failed” at aging. We all know this is not true – there are no Fs in aging! Someone with a physical disability or who is battling a horrible disease like cancer may very well be as resilient and strong as a “well” person. Oversimplifying the diversity of aging experiences does not take into consideration things like emotional toughness or the ability to change or embrace new strengths. Another misconception is the value of a “youthful appearance.” Many assume someone who looks younger is aging more successfully. Again, not true! A person who has the financial resources, medical connections, and community pressure to invest in serums, surgeries, and “antiaging” treatments may look younger from an appearance perspective, but if they smoke, don’t exercise, live in a toxic environment, or abuse drugs, their physical aging success may be very low by comparison. For many people around the world, successful aging might mean access to nutritious food, clean water, safety from violence, or simply living in a community that honors their elders. For others, survival through war, poverty, or displacement, let alone thriving, in Rowe and Kahn’s sense, is itself a form of success.

The World Health Organization’s Decade of Healthy Ageing initiative emphasizes this broad, and highly diverse view of aging well, advocating for environments that foster physical, mental, and social well-being across all inputs and abilities. This research further underscores how many factors and demographic dynamics are at play that influence what it means to be successful at aging. The study reviewed many of the key factors facing older adults around the world today:

• All countries face major challenges to ensure that their health and social systems are ready to make the most of this demographic shift.
• In 2050, 80% of older people will be living in low- and middle-income countries.
• The pace of population ageing is much faster than in the past.
• In 2020, the number of people aged 60 years and older outnumbered children younger than 5 years.
• Between 2015 and 2050, the proportion of the world’s population over 60 years will nearly double from 12% to 22%.

Considering the landscape of aging today and the fundamentals of Rowe and Kahn’s important research, what does it mean to be a successful ager? More succinctly, what can we all be doing now to check boxes when it comes to successful aging by its many standards? What really matters?

The bottom line, in my opinion, is to embrace the complexity, diversity, and vastness of the definition. Aging successfully means different things to different people, whether they’re just down the street or living halfway around the world. Aging is not a competition, and being “successful” at it is not linear or one-sided. For one person, successful aging may look like daily walks and gardening, and for another, it’s mentoring youth or caring for grandchildren. For some, it may simply mean staying alive and well connected to loved ones in the face of hardship.

Research underscores the role of purpose in life as a critical determinant of health and well-being in later life, as well as community and connection. One of the strongest predictors of healthy aging across cultures is social engagement. So that means staying embedded in community and family and good friendships can help us find success in the second half. Connection is energizing and lessens stress. Lastly, we can all be better advocates for structural support that improves the greater good of our communities. Policies that ensure food security, access to healthcare, safe housing, and inclusive civic life expand what successful aging looks like for everyone.

Media that showcases inspiring stories like Fonda’s continued activism or Bassett’s vibrant outlook can help us broaden our collective understanding of successful aging: getting older is full of incredible possibilities. It’s not something we should fear. We can have the freedom to age on our own terms because there are so many different ways to find success in aging.

Rowe and Kahn’s model helped open the door to rethinking aging. It changed assumptions that decline is an inevitable part of getting older. But as gerontologists increasingly understand with more research, aging is incredibly diverse and rich beyond measure. Successful aging is more like a spectrum of experiences and inputs versus a checklist or formula. Is it physical? Yes. Is it cultural? You bet! Is it social? Of course, it is! As we all make our way through later life, we must remember that successful aging isn’t always about skipping disease or being limber enough to dust off that Jane Fonda workout video. That’s successful, no doubt, but it’s only one measure. Successful aging is about purpose and connection and how we find joy, wellness, strength, and dignity in our second half chapters. 

Susanna Barton, MS Gero, is a member of Jacksonville Mayor Donna Degan’s subcommittee on elder care and a TEDx Jacksonville 2026 keynote speaker. She has worked as a professional writer in Jacksonville for nearly 30 years and is the founder of the Grand Plans online community, podcast, newsletter, and blog.  Her book Grand Plans 2.0: How to Mitigate Geridrama in 20 Easy Steps and its accompanying workbook, the Grand Planner 2.0, are available in local stores and on Amazon. For more information, http://www.mygrandplans.com.