Generative concern, political commitment, and charitable actions

The implications of psychosocial generativity (Erikson, 1950) for understan ding contemporary politics were explored. Study 1 replicated, in two sample s, previous findings that generativity concerns are related to a variety of political activities, including the expenditure of time and money in suppo rt of political organizations. Using path analyses, Study 2 extended these findings and demonstrated how midlife generativity concerns interacted with political orientation and interest in politics to produce stronger relatio nships with giving. These findings suggest that people view the political a rena as one important way to improve society and thereby manifest cultural generativity. Although focusing on the domain of politics, these studies hi ghlight the complexity of generativity as a construct; broad concerns with generativity operate within the context of ideological commitments to produ ce greater levels of generative activity.