Successful aging is important, especially in the efforts of psychologists to understand this continuous process that shapes and affects us all. Though misleading, ‘life expectancy’ simply means how much longer a person can expect to live. The problem is that we have no reliable way of judging the effects of several key factors on future life expectancy, including race (Stuart-Hamilton, 2012). As the number of older adults increases, the number of individuals who age unsuccessfully also increases. Psychologists have put forth much effort in trying to find ways to promote successful aging in older adults, but much of this research has involved White, educated, middle or upper class, and relatively healthy participants from select regions (Troutman
