When we are young, we never think about what we will be like at 80 or 90 years old. We just think about the present. Aging is something that almost everyone experiences during their lifetime. Everyone ages at their own pace and pace, so no two people have the same experience. Some theorists believe that as we age we disengage from society, others believe that it is the choices we make that cause disengagement from society. This is a point that psychologists have long argued. There is not much research done on how adults age due to participants dropping out for many reasons; for example health problems, death or completely forgetting about the study. Older people do not choose to disengage from society; the choices they make are those that best suit their personal lifestyle. According to theorists Cumming and Henry, social disengagement affects everyone and no one can do anything about it. It was one of the most controversial theories and was championed by some of the greatest psychologists of its time (Achenbaum, 1994, p.756). Disengagement theory states that it is an “inevitable process of aging by which many relationships between the individual and society are impaired and ultimately broken” (Achenbaum, 1994, P. 758). In other words, the relationship between the individual and society is inevitable and changes made by the individual and society are unnecessary. It all started with the Committee on Human Development at the University of Chicago and their ideas on disengagement. Social phenomena were believed to affect older people's independent status over their physical state. The data collected was biased because it involved "3,000 white, English-speaking, mentally co...... middle of paper ...... signing, making and changing jewelry, knitting and sewing." Although she lives alone, she adopted a dog and has feral cats to take care of. Although both theories are good and make many interesting points, I think older people are more active in society than we think. This varies from person to person and depends on their health condition. My godmother is 80 years old and is still active in society as much as she can; She has knee problems and takes medication that has produced side effects. But she does her best given her age and the absence of family. I disagree with disengagement theory because I don't believe that older people are disengaging from society or that society is disengaging from older people. I believe older people choosing to disengage from society is due to health issues or the loss of a loved one..