Assessing filial maturity through the use of the Filial Anxiety Scale.

This study was an investigation of a late-in-life stage of development known as filial maturity (Blenkner, 1965). The Filial Anxiety Scale (Cicirelli, 1988) was used in a cross-sectional design to assess whether the filial anxiety of adult caregivers of aging parents varied in a manner consistent with Blenkner's concept. Results clearly supported Blenkner's position that there is a late-in-life period of development during which some individuals experience heightened levels of filial anxiety, or a filial crisis, prompted by the caregiving demands of an aging parent. This crisis is then followed by a significant decrease in anxiety and results in the attainment of a developmental period characterized by filial maturity.