Drawing on cutting-edge research, award-winning journalist Jonathan Rauch answers all these questions. He shows that from our 20s into our 40s, happiness follows a well-documented U-shaped trajectory, a "happiness curve", declining from the optimism of youth into what's often a long, low trough in middle age, before starting to rise again in our 50s.

This isn't a midlife crisis, though. Rauch reveals that this downturn is instead a natural stage of life - and an essential one. By shifting priorities away from competition and toward compassion, you can equip yourself with new tools of wisdom and gratitude to head positively into your later years.

And Rauch can testify to this personally - it was his own slump, despite acclaim as a journalist and commentator that compelled him to investigate the happiness curve. His own story and the stories of many others from all walks of life - from a steelworker and a limo driver to a telecoms executive and a philanthropist - show how the ordeal of midlife malaise can reboot our values and even our brains for a rebirth of gratitude.

Full of insights and eye-opening data, and featuring practical ways to endure the dip and avoid its perils and traps, The Happiness Curve doesn't just show you the dark forest of midlife, it helps you find a path through the trees.

This book examines the everyday-life patterns of young adults under circumstances of vulnerability and precariousness. Its main focus is on the web of social relations that structure the everyday life of young people, for instance by providing resources and tools of solving problems, exerting pressures and voicing expectations, and shaping the person's self-conception, identity, and well-being. Based on more than 120 in-depth interviews with young long-term unemployed in six European countries, this book puts social support and the young jobless' webs of social relations at center stage. It expands knowledge by raising awareness of the multidimensionality and complexity of the social conditions of young jobless, drawing, on the one hand, a more differentiated picture of unemployment, vulnerability and social exclusion amongst young people and, on the other hand, taking a close look at the social reality of young adults' unemployment in different European cities.

1. Innovative wellness group model for veterans and older adults 2. Offer two formats provided: process-focused and activity-based (for persons with disabilities or needs additional guidance) 3. Includes group activities for practitioners 4. Evidenced-based group intervention

1. Innovative wellness group model for veterans and older adults 2. Offer two formats provided: process-focused and activity-based (for persons with disabilities or needs additional guidance) 3. Includes group activities for practitioners 4. Evidenced-based group intervention

This book explores the unresolved paradox at the heart of population aging, namely how to account for the fact that death rates from most non-communicable diseases rise as people age, yet aggregate death rates from such diseases have decreased overall despite an increasingly aging population. It provides a long-term historical perspective on this issue, presenting evidence that the underpinnings of modern aging extend as far back as the nineteenth century, and that aging has boosted per capita healthcare spending. The book first outlines the three eras of the Epidemiologic Transition, taking readers from its first stage where the threat of infectious diseases loom large, through the transitional stage, and on to the modern era, where non-communicable diseases are the primary cause of death. Next, the book examines the age-profiles of people whose childhoods coincide with the different stages of the Epidemiologic Transition. Using data from England and Wales, one of the few places that have recorded the data necessary for such an exploration, the book resolves the aging paradox by studying hidden generational change. It traverses historical time and identifies the distinct socio-economic and epidemiologic childhood conditions that may appear in it. It then compares, for instance, aging of children brought up in an earlier epidemiologic stage with aging of ones raised in a modern one. In the process, it explores the influence of childhood development on aging. Overall, the book has a quantitative bent, engaging the reader with analytical issues that will help develop a deeper understanding of modern aging.

Population aging is a matter of global concern. It often occurs in tandem with changes in the health profile of the population. In Africa, many countries are already facing a high burden of communicable diseases. However, as more and more children survive childhood and move on to adult years and old age they are also more likely to experience health problems associated with the aging process. Population aging in Africa is occurring in the context of high levels of poverty, changing family structures, an immense disease burden, fragile health systems and weak or poorly managed government institutions. This book shows that aging is likely to lead to increased social and economic demands for the continent. However, most national governments in Africa have not begun to address the issue of how to respond effectively to the needs of the older population. This will require a better understanding of the socio-economic and demographic situation of the older population in Africa. This book fills the gaps that exist by exploring the social realities of population aging in Africa. It also focuses on the policy and programmatic responses, gaps and future challenges related to aging across the continent.

Riot grrrls, punk feminists best known for their girl power activism and message, used punk ideologies and the literacy practice of zine-ing to create radical feminist sites of resistance. In what ways did zines document feminism and activism of the 1990s? How did riot grrrls use punk ideologies to participate in DIY sites? In Writing a Riot: Riot Grrl Zines and Feminist Rhetorics, Buchanan argues that zines are a form of literacy participation used to document personal, social, and political values within punk. She examines zine studies as an academic field, how riot grrrls used zines to promote punk feminism, and the ways riot grrrl zines dealt with social justice issues of rape and race. Writing a Riot is the first full-length book that examines riot grrrl zines and their role in documenting feminist history.

Mistreatment of the elderly became recognized as a serious and growing problem in the late 1970s, as a result of governmental investigations and research in the public and private sectors. Although in most states elder mistreatment is handled by social service agencies, other professionals are also needed to broaden the identification team and help alleviate the risk to the older adults. This book is designed for human services professionals who are not necessarily adult protective services specialists, but who provide direct ongoing services to elder adults. Its purpose is to offer guidelines for detecting elder mistreatment, so that assistance can be given to the vulnerable older adults to preserve their particular quality of life. The book is arranged into seven chapters. The first discusses why elder-serving human services professionals should become involved in mistreatment identification, while chapter two focuses on the various starting points in the definition of elder mistreatment. Chapters three and four review research on risk factors in elder mistreatment and detail varieties of mistreatment measures and methods for distinguishing between them. A review of risk instruments used in adult protective services and non-adult protective services settings forms the basis of chapter five, and chapter six outlines a proposed risk assessment model, specially designed for elder-serving human service professionals. The final chapter offers some prospects for the future of elder mistreatment risk assessments. The work concludes with a set of four appendices, covering contact persons in lead agencies, report-receiving authorities within jurisdictions, health status risk assessment, and prevention strategies. This volume will be a useful tool for human services professionals, mental health care providers, and social health care and legal services professionals, as well as a useful addition to reference collections in public, academic, and medical libraries.

The seventh edition of this classic multidisciplinary text for students of gerontology continues to offer practical, user-friendly, and comprehensive information about the physical changes and common pathologies associated with the aging process. Fully updated with current information regarding diagnosis, risk factors, prevention recommendations, treatment approaches, and medications along with new statistics on prevalence and evidence-based clinical guidelines, this textbook focuses on physical changes and common pathologies of aging, while also considering the psychological and social implications with which they are inextricably linked.Through a systems-based approach, positive aspects of aging are emphasized, showing the reader how older adults can gain greater personal control through lifestyle changes and preventive health strategies. Included is important content related to teaching, health, and well-being, such as nutrition, medications, aging with lifelong disabilities, complementary and alternative therapies, and death and dying. The seventh edition features a new chapter on gerontechnology, with new content on the influence of pandemics, including COVID-19, on death, dying, grieving, and funeral rituals. This multifaceted text also delivers new and updated information on diagnosis and treatment, along with stressed behaviors and interventions to promote more personal control the individual aging process. Helpful appendices include practical suggestions for improving safety for older adults and websites of relevant organizations, along with a glossary of medical terms used in the text. Purchase includes digital access for use on most mobile devices or computers. New to the Seventh Edition: A brand-new chapter on gerontechnology Updated information on diagnosis and treatment, risk factors, and prevention recommendations New statistics for prevalence and clinical guidelines/recommendations Focus on behaviors and interventions providing personal control over aging process Practical suggestions for improving older adult safety Influence of COVID-19 on death, dying, grieving, and funeral rituals Test bank and PowerPoint slides Key Features: A unique systems-based approach covering the anatomy and physiology of each organ system Focuses on common health problems within each body system Addresses psychological and social implications of aging Provides evidence-based treatment strategies Describes practical applications of aging data - how to use the data to so adults can gain greater personal freedom Useful as textbook, practitioner's guide and family caregiver resource

"Aging and Everyday Life" presents a balanced and penetrating view of the aging experience. The research in this book reveals that many, if not most, of the triumphs and trials experienced in later years are not unlike those confronted at other points in life. Just like younger people, the elderly experience both change and stability, shedding old roles and entering new ones. The process takes place in varied spheres of life: the worlds of home and family, work, and friendship.

This thoughtful, engaging text brings together twenty-eight essays by leading researchers in social gerontology to explore the everyday aspects of aging. Readers will come away viewing the elderly as people whose lives are as complex and diverse, and therefore as nuanced, as any.

This innovative book provides a new conceptual analysis of loneliness - a condition associated with severe health consequences, including increased morbidity and early death. Arguing that social connection is not the only answer, it explores pathways for transforming loneliness to healthy solitude. The first part of the book draws on the humanities and arts, including psychology, philosophy, and literature to analyse the common, and potentially serious, problem of loneliness. It makes the case that the condition is less a deficiency than a state of self-disconnection that modernity feeds through social forces. The second part of the book looks at how person-centred health care can help educate persons to transform loneliness into healthy solitude. It provides an analysis of self-connection and spiritual connection, discussing how these forms of contact can mitigate risks associated with both lack of social connection, and social connection itself, such as self-disconnection and rejection by others. It goes on to demonstrate that connection to the self and spirit can make aloneness a resource and facilitate access to benefits of connecting with others. This thought-provoking book provides students, scholars, and practitioners from a range of health and social care backgrounds with a new way of thinking about, researching, and practising with lonely people.

This book engages with the concept of age-friendly environments, adopting multi-perspectivity to demonstrate how age-friendly environments can contribute to shifting how we think, feel and act toward issues of age and ageing and operate as a vehicle to improve understandings of ageism. Drawing from traditionally distinct fields, the text demonstrates theoretical and applied dimensions of the age-friendly global agenda, with several chapters discussing topics that have to date been underrepresented in age-friendly scholarship, including education, health and justice systems. The case studies encourage critical engagement with the issue of ageism in age-friendly scholarship. It presents a clear understanding of the inequalities, challenges and opportunities of ageing and of the ways international, regional, national and sub-national commitments in health, development and human rights, and are further impacted by, ageing through designing, implementing, monitoring and evaluating policies and programmes. The essays utilise a critical and interdisciplinary dialogue to enhance discussion of the age-friendly environment agenda through the inclusion of age-friendly perspectives in addition to its processes and destinations in an ageing society. The book serves as a catalyst to stimulate research, policy and public interest in the physical, social and regulatory environments in which we age and the consequent impact upon health and well-being. It will be of interest to professors, graduate students and undergraduate students in policy, sociology, health, planning and gerontology. It is also recommended reading for policy makers, politicians, think tanks and lobbyists, who are concerned with age all-age-inclusiveness.

This book explores positive aging through the lens of precarity, aiming to ground positive aging theories in current social contexts. In recent years, research on aging has been branded by growing disagreements between supporters of the successful aging model and critical gerontologists who highlight the widening inequalities, disadvantages and precarity that characterize old age. This book comes to fill a gap in knowledge by offering an alternative view on positive aging, informed by precarity and its impact on projections concerning aging. The first part of the book places aging in broader theoretical and empirical context, exploring the complex links between views on aging, successful aging theories, policy and social reality. The second part uses results from a qualitative research conducted in Germany to illustrate the dissonance between successful aging ideals and both negative and positive views on aging as well as aging preparation strategies inspired by precarity. Findings from this section provide a solid starting point for comparisons with countries that are both similar and different from Germany in terms of welfare regimes and aging policies. The final part of the book discusses the psychological implications of these findings within and beyond the German case study and outlines potential solutions for practice. This book provides health psychologists, gerontologists, sociologists, social workers, health professionals as well as students and aging individuals themselves with better understanding of the meaning of aging in precarious times and builds confidence about aging well despite precarity.

This book presents studies of the main conditions that affect health and well-being of old people. Considering the present scenario of COVID-19, the effects of this viral infection on individuals older than 65 years are also discussed. The content enables professionals of health and government for the present and future actions in this important area. Readers go through the changes occurring in organs and tissues that can interfere with susceptibility to infections, low response to vaccines, cancer, and loss of cognition during the aging process. A discussion of the central role played by the immune system in the age-related diseases and how the immunity can be impaired during the ageing process is presented. Possibilities to circumvent these conditions via healthy habits in diet, physical exercise, and new pharmacological interventions are part of the content. This book discusses how human healthy longevity is dependent, at least in part, of a functional immune system. Chapters were written for researchers in the field of aging and is especially suited for those interested in the study of immunosenescence and inflammaging affecting the health of old individuals.

Designing User Interfaces for an Aging Population: Towards Universal Design presents age-friendly design guidelines that are well-established, agreed-upon, research-based, actionable, and applicable across a variety of modern technology platforms. The book offers guidance for product engineers, designers, or students who want to produce technological products and online services that can be easily and successfully used by older adults and other populations. It presents typical age-related characteristics, addressing vision and visual design, hand-eye coordination and ergonomics, hearing and sound, speech and comprehension, navigation, focus, cognition, attention, learning, memory, content and writing, attitude and affect, and general accessibility. The authors explore characteristics of aging via realistic personas which demonstrate the impact of design decisions on actual users over age 55.

Very timely to the region - "The ageing of the world's population is rapidly growing primarily due to an increase in life expectancy as well as to declining fertility rates. The 2016 Population Data Sheet by United Nations ESCAP disclosed that approximately 16% (1.3 billion) of the population in the Asia-Pacific Region would be 60 years or older by 2050. All countries, including those in Asia, are facing significant challenges (social, economic and political) with this rapid demographic transition characterized by reductions in infectious and acute diseases overshadowed by the rapid emergence of non-communicable and degenerative diseases."

A Handbook of Geriatric Neuropsychology: Practice Essentials (Second Edition) brings together experts in the field to integrate the knowledge and skills needed to understand and treat older adults who are experiencing problems with memory and other thinking skills. With three new sections, including coverage of other conditions beyond neuropsychological disorders, special assessment contexts, and more on interventions and ethics, as well as multiple new chapters, and significant updates from the first edition, this book provides a strong foundation for clinicians, educators, and researchers invested in the wellbeing of older adults. The impact and experience of aging, like the practice of neuropsychology, evolves over time. Similarly, through advances in science and professional techniques, neuropsychological practice has continued to evolve. Neuropsychological evaluation remains the most effective method of diagnosing age-related cognitive decline, cognitive difficulties that result from psychological factors, and other related disorders, as well as determining how the various disorders impact functioning and quality of life. This book explores these areas and offers state-of-the-art assessment techniques to assess changes in cognition and behavior and to distinguish normal changes from neuropathology. This book is a go-to resource and key reference for psychologists who serve older adults with known or suspected cognitive problems, as well as those who are invested in promoting brain wellness. It provides much of the information needed to establish and improve foundational and functional competencies in geriatric neuropsychology and establish practices that are personally and professionally rewarding, all aimed at promoting the understanding and wellbeing of older adults.

Includes special applications for TA with diverse populations Incorporates case examples and illustrations with test data, sample feedback letter, and call-boxes Guides reader step-by-step through all the stages of TA including the assessor's thinking processes and conceptualizations Includes handouts

This book approaches the concept of adjustment to aging and endeavors to build reader understanding of this construct through a critical review and discussion. Once the reader understands the origins and nature of adjustment to aging, a second innovation encompasses the development of a proposed empirical model of adjustment to aging and the analysis of its components and correlates. Measures to assess adjustment to aging, policies, programs and interventions comprising adjustment to aging and its components and correlates will also be addressed. Another innovation includes the multidimensional experience of adjustment to aging from the cultural perspective. Lastly, it addresses areas of future development related to this construct.Future policies and interventions in older populations need to integrate and debate the role of adjustment to aging, and ultimately consider a variety of different strategies, each with a different set of costs and benefits. Health and social professionals will be at the vanguard of policy making and community and institutional interventions. Hence, resources and tools to adequately prepare these individuals for the future years will be vital. It is the author's hope that this resource can be valuable for professionals and students working within the field of aging, as they develop research and intervention policies encompassing adjustment to aging in the coming years.

This stimulating, carefully-researched book on The Late Life Legacy of Very Early Life by Dr. Gabriele Doblhammer is the second volume of a new series of Demographic Research Monographs published by Springer Verlag. The topic of the book is fascinating. Is a person's lifespan influ enced by health and nutrition in-utero and shortly after birth? If so, why? The answers uncovered by the diligence, demographic and statistical ex pertise, and probing intelligence of the author are surprising but convinc ing. To pry open the mystery of the lingering impact of very early life, Dr. Doblharnmer focuses on month of birth. It turns out that people born in some months live substantially longer on average than people born in other months, not because of astrological forces but for reasons of health and nutrition. Dr. Doblhammer was educated in statistics and demography and earlier this year was the first person ever to receive the "Habilitation" de gree, the recognition given in the German-speaking world to proven scho lars who are qualified to become professors, in Demography. This book, which is evidence that she fully deserves this award, will not only provide important new fmdings about the legacy of early life but will also serve as a comprehensive foundation of knowledge on which future scholars can build. The series of Demographic Research Monographs is under the editorial supervision of the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research. Prof. James W. Vaupel, Founding Director of the Institute, is Editor-in-Chief."

For students and practitioners of gerontology, this indispensable text examines all aspects of administering services to older adults. Jeffrey A. Giordano and Thomas A. Rich, both professors of gerontology with extensive experience in administration, surveyed practicing administrators over a two-year period. The resulting integration of administrative theory and practice is evident throughout this book's 13 chapters, which address everything from leadership styles and management techniques to ethical issues and community relations. In addition, the authors thoroughly examine the most widely encountered facets of the typical gerontologist administrator's career, including communication, organizational structure, the role and function of human resources administration, motivation and productivity, supervisory responsibilities, staff development, financial management, strategic planning, program evaluation, and organizational change.

Both undergraduate and graduate students of gerontology will benefit from using Giordano and Rich's book as a core text for administration courses. Professors of gerontology administration will be relieved at last to have found a work that emphasizes the unique requirements of administrating older adult programs. The authors consider all three service sectors--private, public, and not-for-profit--in addressing those who are now in administration, those who aspire to be administrators, and those who will be surprised someday to be offered administrative responsibilities. Assuming a basic knowledge of gerontology, the text includes a learning experience following each chapter that allows readers to apply their knowledge of the field in a practical manner. Other special features include information on such contemporary challenges as how to use volunteers effectively, how to integrate ethics into programs for older adults, how to involve staff in administrative activities, how to make the most of public relations and fund-raising opportunities, and how to develop special projects.

This book examines claims that aging populations will create serious economic problems for various nations. It examines the question in large part through the eyes of researchers and legislators in three target countries: Australia, Japan, and the United States. These countries were chosen because of similar states of economic development and because all were experiencing a rapid aging of their populations. A comprehensive overview is provided of the economic issues related to aging populations. Several aspects are explored in more depth. To date, it is the most complete and thorough study of economic issues associated with population aging. After a brief review of the phenomenon of demographic aging, the authors give a summary of the major economic programs offered to the aged. Extensive research is used to evaluate the concept of dependency ratios and to predict the impact on younger and older persons of future economic and demographic growth. This discussion then provides the basis for a review of evolving retirement policies in the three countries. Special attention is given to the way pension plans have been designed, especially early and mandatory retirement policies. An assessment of the adequacy of retirement income follows. The final three chapters are devoted to policy options for the future, given trends in demographic aging. Social scientists and economists will be most interested in this study.

This provocative book considers the changing status of older workers, the evolution of public policy on age and work and the behaviour of employers. It attempts to answer the critical question: in an ageing society, can older workers look forward to the prospect of longer working lives with choice and security and make successful transitions to retirement? Ageing Labour Forces challenges the current stance of many governments and observers concerning policies to extend working lives. It utilises perspectives and case studies from public policy, employment policy and the attitudes and behaviour of older people. Philip Taylor argues that older workers have been at the forefront of industrialized society's efforts to respond to the crisis facing social welfare systems and the economic threats associated with population ageing. Their involvement has forced the restructuring of economies, adjustments to social welfare systems as well as redefinitions to the actual concept of old age. Containing contributions from leading researchers in a number of countries, this work will appeal to academics and researchers interested in work, ageing and public policy as well as labour economics.