A SYSTEMIC-WHOLISTIC VIEW OF PSYCHOLOGICAL FUNCTIONING IN VERY OLD-AGE - INTRODUCTION TO A COLLECTION OF ARTICLES FROM THE BERLIN AGING STUDY

Introduced are articles from the Berlin Aging Study (BASE) that collec tively illustrate systemic-wholistic approaches to psychological funct ioning in old age. A systemic-wholistic perspective aims to elucidate structural and Functional interdependencies between domains and to pro vide an integrative account of individual functioning. The special fea tures of BASE (age range, 70-105 years; heterogeneous sample stratifie d by age and gender; and multidisciplinary data collection) are suited to this purpose. This article outlines the design of BASE, describes the cross-sectional sample (N = 516: 258 men and 258 women), and repor ts sample selectivity analyses on 25 criterion variables in which the Pearson-Lawley selection formulas were used. Although the BASE sample is positively biased, it is not restricted in heterogeneity and does n ot exhibit major differences in patterns of covariation among variable s. This finding supports the use of BASE data for the intended systemi c-wholistic analyses.