It Got Up and Went!

A study by Norwegian Psychologist Sigmundsson has looked at how passion, resilience and mindset evolve in sporting folk between the ages of 14 and 77 (https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-athletes-way/202010/passion-grit-and-can-do-attitude-keep-the-spark-lit#:~:text=This%20study%20%28Sigmundsson%2C%202020%29%20from%20the%20Norwegian%20University,January%202021%20issue%20of%20New%20Ideas%20in%20Psychology.). He basically found his subjects were 'washed up' by the age of 54, as passion,'grit' and 'can do attitude' declined, along with a willingness to try new experiences. Although one might expect an early decline in athletes (it's a young person's sport), it is likely that the phenomenon will apply (albeit perhaps more slowly, I hope) to all sectors of life. This means that the elderly are likely to find it particularly difficult to deal with pandemic-related lockdowns and the other stresses produced by Covid-19.