The video starts with a short clip of Neil at age 7. Neil seems to be a normal child who talks a lot and is excited about life and the possibilities it holds for him. He wants to be an astronaut when he grows up, and if he is unable to do that, he would like to be a coach driver. He exclaims that he does not want children as they are naughty and make a lot of messes. His whole life is mapped out for him; he has no worries, and he seems to be a happy 7-year-old.
The clip of Neil at age 14 is even shorter than the one at age 7, but it seems that he is enjoying life and has the desire to be rich when he grows up. The short clip made it seem that Neil is still living a pretty normal life with friends and schoolwork.
The narrative changes when we reach Neil at age 21. He has a lot to say all of a sudden, and he explains that his life was not all roses growing up. He blames his parents for their lack of interest in him when he was younger and tells us that they forced God on him and left him to fend for himself a lot. He doesn’t think he has had enough obstacles in his life to challenge him, and that is why he is feeling lost right now. He quit college after only a few months because he did not get into Oxford and was quite bitter about that. He now lives as a squatter and doesn’t see a problem with that at all. He wants to hold an important position in life, but he doesn’t seem to want to work for it. He explains that he has never had stability or happiness growing up and that he doesn’t feel loved now. He talks a few times about his life when he was 16, and it seems that a lot of things shifted for him around that time. He started to be more eccentric and figured out that maybe he wants to be a writer.
At age 28, he is still unemployed and lives off social security. He moves around a lot and does not like to stay in one place for too long. He says he feels bad for living off the state, but he doesn’t do anything to change it. His view on religion is slowly changing as now he sees God as a person and unpredictable. He starts to think more about his faith, and he feels like he has a lot of obstacles in his life now. He exclaims that he would love a normal life and that that would make him happy, but he still does not want any children because he knows they will inherit something from him, and he would never want to burden them with that.
At age 35, he is very cut off from people and enjoys the quiet life in the country. He is now used to the lifestyle he has and knows that he will need to give it up one day. He still lives off social security and doesn’t seem to want to remedy that. He is involved with the theater in town and has actually directed a play. He is still depressed, but he can manage it without medication, as he does not want to be dependent on that. He knows he suffers from many different personality disorders, but he now trusts in God to help him. He knows he cannot offer stability, and that is why he is not married or in a relationship.
His life changed for a period when the camera caught up to him in London at age 42. He has found his way into politics and is a member of the Liberal Democratic Party, and was elected to the council. His political work is all voluntary, and so he is still living on social security. He worries that he is a drain on society, but he does nothing to fix that issue; he seems to be all talk and no action when it comes to his employment or finances. He is extremely involved with politics and is constantly busy.
This last phase didn’t last long, as by age 49, he was back in the countryside again, but this time with a car his brother gave him free of charge. He is involved with politics in his new area and tried to win elections there. Living in a rural setting makes him feel closer to God, and he is extremely dedicated to the church. He volunteers one day a week as well, and he gets a small allowance as a council member. He also gets a small allowance from the state for being a job seeker, even though he has been seeking but never retaining a job for many, many years. Because he is a council member, he also gets help with a small flat. He regrets that he never got married, but he explains that it would be hard for anyone to get along with him. He did have a girlfriend for 2 years at one time, but that didn’t work out either. His dad passed away about 5 years previous, and he reminisces about their relationship, or lack thereof. He remembers having a relationship with his dad when he was younger, but it deteriorated as he got older. He believes his dad gave him bad advice when he was younger, and that is why he lives the life he does now.
Physically, Neil seems to have had a pretty normal development through his life, as he has been able to take care of himself. He is seen walking everywhere in the videos and looks to be in fine shape as he makes sure he has shelter, food, and the basic necessities.
Mentally, he does feel that he suffers from depression and other personality disorders. He blames a lot of his troubles on his parents and their absence in his life from a young age. He talks about depression and not feeling settled, and that is why he moved around a lot. He grew up being told to always think about others before himself, and so he doesn’t feel like he knows how to take care of himself mentally as well. He also feels that his life has never been stable, and so it was hard to be happy.
He seems to enjoy the quiet life away from others, and so his social and emotional development is probably not where it should be. He isolates himself a lot and moves around, which makes it harder to create lasting friendships. He does have a friend who went through the study with him, but they drifted apart as they both got older. His relationship with his family is strained, and so he seems to be alone a lot. You can tell he gets enjoyment from being around other people. When he was in politics and he would eagerly talk to people he met to tell them about himself and his political platform. When he is interested and passionate about something, he seems to open up more and be more social.
The isolated times were probably hindering his development more than the times he lived in London and was around people more. Having a purpose and being excited about something helped him to stand out and be himself more than when he lived alone in a remote corner of the countryside.
The research performed with this longitudinal design was probably very time-consuming and expensive. Neil was not the only participant, as we found out, and so having to establish contact every 7 years would be hard. I liked how we could see the changes over time and how we could see his development in lots of different stages of his life. His language development was really cool to follow, as you could see him slow down as he aged and think more about his answers. His language became more mature and had deeper meaning with each stage. The physical changes were also noticeable as we did not see him every year, but every 7 years instead. His hair thinned out over time, and he aged in his face a lot as well between the ages of 42 and 49. I enjoyed watching the entire study and can see how a lot of information was gained during this long, extensive study of one person.
Watch the fascinating 50-minute documentary on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBS3_G7NhHg&t=501s
[Written for PSY 1100 class UVU Fall 2022]
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