Risking Old Age In America

Risking Old Age In America PDF

Author: Richard J. Margolis

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2019-06-18

Total Pages: 272

ISBN-13: 1000310205

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Originally published in 1990. Research into the provison made for the 30 million Americans, aged sixty-five and up, whom society calls "old."

Social Isolation and Loneliness in Older Adults

Social Isolation and Loneliness in Older Adults PDF

Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2020-05-14

Total Pages: 317

ISBN-13: 0309671035

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Social isolation and loneliness are serious yet underappreciated public health risks that affect a significant portion of the older adult population. Approximately one-quarter of community-dwelling Americans aged 65 and older are considered to be socially isolated, and a significant proportion of adults in the United States report feeling lonely. People who are 50 years of age or older are more likely to experience many of the risk factors that can cause or exacerbate social isolation or loneliness, such as living alone, the loss of family or friends, chronic illness, and sensory impairments. Over a life course, social isolation and loneliness may be episodic or chronic, depending upon an individual's circumstances and perceptions. A substantial body of evidence demonstrates that social isolation presents a major risk for premature mortality, comparable to other risk factors such as high blood pressure, smoking, or obesity. As older adults are particularly high-volume and high-frequency users of the health care system, there is an opportunity for health care professionals to identify, prevent, and mitigate the adverse health impacts of social isolation and loneliness in older adults. Social Isolation and Loneliness in Older Adults summarizes the evidence base and explores how social isolation and loneliness affect health and quality of life in adults aged 50 and older, particularly among low income, underserved, and vulnerable populations. This report makes recommendations specifically for clinical settings of health care to identify those who suffer the resultant negative health impacts of social isolation and loneliness and target interventions to improve their social conditions. Social Isolation and Loneliness in Older Adults considers clinical tools and methodologies, better education and training for the health care workforce, and dissemination and implementation that will be important for translating research into practice, especially as the evidence base for effective interventions continues to flourish.

Families in Later Life

Families in Later Life PDF

Author: Alexis Walker

Publisher: Pine Forge Press

Published: 2001-01-22

Total Pages: 348

ISBN-13: 9780761987024

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The introductory essays and readings, drawn from both literature and social science research, vividly illustrate the diversity of aging experiences both within and across American families diversity conditioned by social space, historical time, and individual biography.

Critical Perspectives on Aging

Critical Perspectives on Aging PDF

Author: Meredith Minkler

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2020-11-25

Total Pages: 373

ISBN-13: 135186842X

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This unique volume brings together 20 critical essays on aging within the context of the broad social, political, and economic factors that help shape and determine the realities of growing old. Rather than viewing aging in isolation, it explores the social creation of old age dependency and the profound influence of race, gender, and social class on what it means to grow old. It looks too at such topics as the "biomedicalization" of aging; the role of business and the media in changing societal images of the old; the fact and fiction behind "senior power"; the multibillion dollar nursing home industry; and the role of advanced capitalist nations in creating economic dependency among elders in the Third World.

Handbook of Aging and the Family

Handbook of Aging and the Family PDF

Author: Rosemary Blieszner

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA

Published: 1996-07-30

Total Pages: 534

ISBN-13: 0313389659

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No other reference provides such a comprehensive and timely overview of theory and research on family relationships, the contexts of family life, and major turning points in late-life families. It includes many suggestions for theoretical and practical applications for future research on a score of important topics. This multidisciplinary survey is an invaluable library reference and teaching resource intended for upper-level undergraduate and graduate students, teachers, and practitioners — for gerontologists, family scholars, psychologists, sociologists, historians, social workers, health-care providers, and policy makers.

Remainder of Their Days

Remainder of Their Days PDF

Author: Carolyn J. Rosenthal

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2021-04-14

Total Pages: 156

ISBN-13: 1317947452

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First published in 1993. This present volume, co-edited by two sociologists, Jon Hendricks of the United States and Carolyn Rosenthal of Canada, focuses on a comparative, cross-national discussion of social policies of the United States and Canada, especially those related to health care. The uniqueness o f this work lies in the fact that it views family experiences from both a Canadian and an American perspective. In addition, this book not only fills a gap in our know ledge of social policies, but contributes to our understanding of how these policies shape and effect the lives o f older fam ilies in both countries.

Arts - Therapies - Communication

Arts - Therapies - Communication PDF

Author: Line Kossolapow

Publisher: LIT Verlag Münster

Published: 2001

Total Pages: 490

ISBN-13: 9783825857288

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Arts - Therapies - Communication is designed as two volumes, with this being the first volume. The book deals with art therapy studies from Great Britain and the non-European countries. The second volume offers topic-related contributions from other European regions and countries. Under the auspices of the European Consortium for Art Therapies Education (ECArTE) a European art therapy, which is concerned with the development of a European-oriented discipline with training and fostering of successors at universities, is articulating itself. The book is aimed at art therapists, music therapists, drama and dance therapists but also at psychotherapists and clinical psychologists, teachers, sociologists and doctors. With regard to method and theory different directions and psychoanalytical approaches are represented and it also addresses a wide spectrum of clinical and non-clinical contexts and illnesses. In this way diverse interests in art therapy can be satisfied.

Services to the Aging and Aged

Services to the Aging and Aged PDF

Author: Paul K. Kim

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2021-03-04

Total Pages: 346

ISBN-13: 1317954327

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This series attempts to address the topic of aging from a wide variety of perspectives and to make available some of the best gerontological thought and writings to researchers, professional practitioners, and students in the field of aging as well as in other related areas.This volume is an invaluable resource for those persons seeking a broad, comprehensive coverage of current public policies and service programs for the elderly. Besides dealing with present gerontological services, it also explores the emerging challenges that these services must face in the future. One of the outstanding features of the book is that its contributors include some of the most prominent authorities in the field of gerontology. This is an exceptionally important and timely volume and is a much needed addition to the literature on aging.

Aging, Social Inequality, and Public Policy

Aging, Social Inequality, and Public Policy PDF

Author: Fred C. Pampel

Publisher: SAGE

Published: 1998-02-25

Total Pages: 191

ISBN-13: 0803990952

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Author, Fred C. Pompel, treats age as a component of social inequality which gives rise to the three major themes of the text: diversity in the experience of individuals, differences in public policy, and variations across nations. Comparison of the United States with other nations is a central component of the book, providing a greater understanding of the larger forces that shape old age.

Market Friendly or Family Friendly?

Market Friendly or Family Friendly? PDF

Author: Madonna Harrington Meyer

Publisher: Russell Sage Foundation

Published: 2007-08-16

Total Pages: 246

ISBN-13: 1610443934

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Poverty among the elderly is sharply gendered—women over sixty-five are twice as likely as men to live below the poverty line. Older women receive smaller Social Security payments and are less likely to have private pensions. They are twice as likely as men to need a caregiver and twice as likely as men to be a caregiver. Recent efforts of some in Washington to reduce and privatize social welfare programs threaten to exacerbate existing gender disparities among older Americans. They also threaten to exacerbate inequality among women by race, class, and marital status. Madonna Harrington Meyer and Pamela Herd explain these disparities and assess how proposed policy reforms would affect inequality among the aged. Market Friendly or Family Friendly? documents the cumulative disadvantages that make it so difficult for women to achieve economic and health security when they retire. Wage discrimination and occupational segregation reduce women's lifetime earnings, depressing their savings and Social Security benefits. While more women are employed today than a generation ago, they continue to shoulder a greater share of the care burden for children, the disabled, and the elderly. Moreover, as marriage rates have declined, more working mothers are raising children single-handedly. Women face higher rates of health problems due to their lower earnings and the high demands associated with unpaid care work. There are also financial consequences to these family and work patterns. Harrington Meyer and Herd contrast the impact of market friendly programs that maximize individual choice, risk, and responsibility with family friendly programs aimed at redistributing risks and resources. They evaluate popular policies on the current agenda, considering the implications for inequality. But they also evaluate less discussed policy proposals. In particular, minimum benefits for Social Security, as well as credits for raising children, would improve economic security for all, regardless of marital status. National health insurance would also reduce inequality, as would reforms to Medicare, particularly increased coverage of long term care. Just as important are policies such as universal preschool and paid family leave aimed at reducing the disadvantages women face during their working years. The gender gaps that women experience during their work and family lives culminate in income and health disparities between men and women during retirement, but the problem has received scant attention. Market Friendly or Family Friendly? is a comprehensive introduction to this issue, and a significant contribution to the debate over the future of America's entitlement programs. A Volume in the American Sociological Association's Rose Series in Sociology