Older Adults’ Narratives of Lifespan Development: A Qualitative Exploration of Developmental Experiences in Ibadan, Nigeria

Development is a lifelong process shaped by individual experience and by the social, cultural, and historical contexts in which people live. Older adults are valuable sources of developmental knowledge because their narratives offer retrospective accounts spanning childhood through later life. This qualitative study explored the life experiences of older Nigerian adults and examined developmental themes in their narratives, using Erik Erikson’s psychosocial theory as a guiding, primarily deductive framework. Ten older adults aged 65 and above (four men, six women) were interviewed individually in familiar settings, including homes and shops, in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria; seven participants were Yoruba, two were from Calabar, and one was from Benue. Eight open-ended questions derived from Erikson’s psychosocial stages guided the interviews, which were conducted with the support of a research assistant fluent in participants’ native languages, audio-recorded, transcribed, and analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Eight developmental themes were identified: early relationships and trust; autonomy within parental guidance; curiosity and initiative; self-acceptance and competence; identity formation within family expectations; intimacy and marriage; generativity through parenting and community contribution; and later-life reflection on achievement and regret. Findings underscore the centrality of family, religion, education, marriage, and historical context to development. The study contributes Nigerian older adults’ perspectives to lifespan developmental psychology and shows how a theory-informed qualitative approach can illuminate culturally situated development across the life course.

older adults, Erikson’s psychosocial theory, life-course narratives, qualitative research, Nigeria, reflexive thematic analysis

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