DIFFERENTIAL EXPECTATIONS AND REALITIES - RACE, SOCIOECONOMIC-STATUS AND HEALTH OF THE OLDEST-OLD

Comparisons by race indicate that African Americans are significantly more disadvantaged than whites in their socioeconomic status. Despite complaints about their situation, however, African Americans report th at their situation is better than they had expected. Although they per ceive their health as poorer than whites, they are no more disabled fu nctionally, and they have significantly better morale. Within-group co rrelations find the predictable associations between socioeconomic sta tus and physical, psychological, and social outcomes for both groups. Nevertheless, both qualitative and quantitative data indicate that eco nomic well-being is related to the congruence between expectations and the realities of life in advanced old age, making objective and subje ctive factors of similar importance.