This helpful book explores mental health issues relating to elders who do not fit into the "usual" mold for research--white, married or widowed, urban or suburban persons with adult children. The Forgotten Aged focuses on those groups of elders often overlooked in gerontological literature--elder African-Americans, rural aged, gay and lesbian aged, parents of developmentally disabled offspring, older developmentally disabled persons themselves, and "orphan" elders (those who do not have close family members who can serve as caretakers). The book offers "how to" advice on issues such as outreach, intervention, residential placement and transition, assessment, psychotherapy, and team building to help readers learn effective ways of helping elderly persons from these various groups. With an optimistic tone, it explores how more attention and resources, combined with flexible modifications of programs and practices, can yield favorable results for everyone involved. In The Forgotten Aged, authors examine a variety of pertinent topics including: assessment of dementia and depression in African-Americans multidisciplinary team outreach to elderly living in rural areas therapeutic issues with gay and lesbian aged residential transitions for developmentally disabled elderly helping aging parents of developmentally disabled offspring intervention with "orphan" elderly with Alzheimer's diseaseSocial workers, psychologists, psychiatrists, geriatricians, nurses, and counselors involved in providing support and care for elderly persons will find The Forgotten Aged a useful guide in their daily work and decisionmaking. This book can also serve as an enlightening supplementary text in courses that study aging and the elderly.

The workforce is aging as people live longer and healthier lives, and mandatory retirement has become a relic of the past. Though workforces have always contained both younger and older employees the age range today has expanded, and the generational gap has become more distinct. This book advocates the need for talented employees of all ages as a way to prevent potential skill shortages and considers both the challenges and opportunities that these changes raise for individual organizations. The expert contributors discuss benefits including greater employee diversity with regards to knowledge, skills experience and perspectives, as well as challenges involving potential generational tensions, stereotypes and age biases. They further place an emphasis on initiatives to create generation-friendly workplaces; these involve fostering lifelong learning, tackling age stereotypes and biases, employing reverse mentoring where younger employees mentor older employees, and offering older individuals career options including phased retirement, bridge employment and encore careers. This wide-reaching book will be of use to academics, PhD students, human resource specialists, managers and government policy makers interested in the aging and multigenerational workforce. Contributors: A.-S.G. Antoniou, B. Baltes, J. Benson, S. Bisom-Rapp, R.J. Burke, L. Calvano, D. Campbell, C.L. Cooper, J.B. Cunningham, M. Dalla, J. Field, L. Fiksenbaum, A. Furnham, E.R. Greenglass, B.M. Hughes, J.K.Q. Katter, J. Kroeker-Hall, L.A. Marchiondo, J. McGinnis-Johnson, T. McNamara, D.M. McPhee, E.S.W. Ng, M. Pitt-Catsouphes, S. Sandhu, M. Sargeant, S. Sastrowardoyo, F. Schlosser, C. Scott-Young, S. Sweet, G. Thrasher, K. Zabel

Spousal bereavement seems to be one of the most devastating things a person can suffer through during the course of his or her life and it can result in adverse bio-psycho-social consequences for the left behind spouse. This book offers updated views from incorporating meaning making theory and social constructionist theory to examine the mediating roles of meaning making and help readers to understand grief and bereavement experiences of the widowed elderly population in China. The volume starts with elaborating on the meaning making model, followed by an overview of grief theories and traditional culture, including empirical feedback of the results of applying the model to Chinese elderly widows and widowers. Pan's book concludes with a discussion on the implications and limitations of this research as well as future directions. The volume provides valuable theoretical reflection and empirical evidence on grief and bereavement experiences of the elderly population in China. By combining meaning making theory with a social constructionist perspective, this research develops a novel approach to apply Western models and theories to the Chinese context and effectively study China's elderly population and their grief and bereavement experiences. This volume brings the readers the benefits of understanding Chinese cultural doctrines regarding death and life, getting a comprehensive view on meaning making theory, as well as learning the specific coping skills of Chinese elderly in widowhood. This volume merits the attention of those in the fields of mental health, social work, and gerontology to help further their understanding of meaning making systems in a non-western setting.

The ageing of the world's populations, particularly in Western developed countries, is a well-documented phenomenon; and despite many positive images of later life, in the media and public discourse later life is frequently depicted as a time of inevitable physical and cognitive decline. Against this background, Heinrichsmeier presents the results of her two-year sociolinguistic study examining how a group of older women of different ages negotiated their way through their own and others' expectations of ageing and constructed different kinds of older - and other - identities for themselves. Through vivid and nuanced analysis of their chat and practices in a small village hair salon, Heinrichsmeier reveals these women's subtle and skilful manipulation of stereotypes of ageing and the impact of the evolving talk on their identity constructions. Her study, which provides numerous short extracts of talk in both the hair salon and interview along with more detailed case studies, highlights the importance of such apparently 'trivial' sites - for both studying older people's identity work and as loci for positive identity constructions and well-being in later life. This book will be of particular interest to graduate students and scholars working in sociolinguistics, discourse analysis, conversation analysis, and gerontological studies, as well as those interested in approaches integrating ethnography and language.

Declining fertility rates and increased life expectancies over the last few decades have conspired to make China one of the more rapidly aging societies in the world. Aging Families in Chinese Society focuses on the accelerated social and demographic changes in China and examines their implications for family care and support for older adults. Contributors to this landmark volume portray various challenges facing aging families in China as a result of reduced family size, changing gender expectations, rapid economic development and urbanization, rural-to-urban migration, and an emerging but still underdeveloped long-term care system. Divided into four thematic areas - Disability and Family Support; Family Relationships and Mental Health; Filial Piety and Gender Norms; and Long-term Care Preferences - chapters in this volume confront these burgeoning issues and offer salient policy and practice considerations not just for today's aging population, but future generations to come. Combining quantitative data from social surveys in China, comparative surveys in Taiwan and Thailand, and qualitative data from in-depth interviews, Aging Families in Chinese Societies will be of significant interest to students and researchers in aging and gerontology, China and East Asian Studies and population studies.

As we grow up and grow old, embrace new experiences, try new roles, and adopt new technologies, our senses of time, space, connection, and identity are fundamentally explored through communication. Why, how, with whom, and to what end humans communicate reflect and shape our ever-changing life span position. And while the "life span" can be conceived as a continuum, it is also one hinged by critical junctures and bound by cultural differences that can be better understood through communication. The chapters in this collection, chosen from among the invited plenary speakers, top research papers, and ideas discussed in San Juan, explore the multiple ways communication affects, reflects, and directs our life transition. Capturing the richness and diversity of scholarship presented at the conference, chapters explore communication technologies that define a generation; communication and successful aging; stereotyping and family communication; sexual communication and physiological measurement; life span communication and the digital divide; and home-based care contexts across the world, among others.

Contemporary old age is fraught with contradiction and complexity-women portrayed either as incompetent and cuddly grandmothers or as young women trapped in old bodies, images that rarely reflect how women actually see themselves. Women in Late Life explores the thorny issues related to gender and aging, including prevailing but problematic cultural expectations, body image, ageism, the experience of chronic illness, threats to Social Security and the very possibility of a secure retirement while challenging a long-term care system that disadvantages women. Author Martha Holstein writes from a critical feminist perspective, drawing on her many years of experience in gerontology, as well as interviews and personal experience as a woman now in her seventies. The book highlights how women's experience of late life is shaped by the effects of lifelong gender norms, by contemporary culture-from gender stereotypes to ageism-and by the political context. The book blends critique with proposals aimed at resisting damaging inequities resulting from being simultaneously old and a woman. She focuses on changes needed on multiple levels-societal, cultural, political, and individual. This interdisciplinary look at key questions around gender and aging is nuanced and beautifully written.

Getting Old offers concise advice and practical suggestions for all readers interested in or worried about ageing, either in themselves or in someone they care about. With a focus on a positive view of ageing, it discusses central physical and mental aspects of getting old, as well as the social and psychological aspects such as choosing where to live and becoming more oneself. Rowan Bayne and Carol Parkes take a pragmatic approach to reviewing what is happening in many aspects of your life as you age. Essential topics covered include mobility; diet and digestion; understanding and improving sleep; memory problems and dementia; being an active participant in consultations about your own healthcare; attitudes to getting old; romantic relationships and loneliness; deciding where to live, moving house and choosing other types of living arrangements; and death and grief. They invite readers to focus on their own life and experience, to understand who they are and what they really want now. An important part of self-understanding is the application of personality theory to changes associated with getting old, and readers are encouraged to reflect on what might work for people with their personality characteristics, and how to improve their stress management, communication and decision making. With suggestions for further reading and useful organisations that offer support, Getting Old offers valuable, affirming guidance for all those and their relatives going through this life stage, as well as health, social care and counselling students and professionals.

Provides a critical synthesis of current models of aging. Offers a broader perspective that accounts for the wide diversity of human aging, just as it better explains how this diversity "groups" into familiar patterns. Written by a distinguished scholar of aging whose work has been internationally influential.

Contemporary old age is fraught with contradiction and complexity-women portrayed either as incompetent and cuddly grandmothers or as young women trapped in old bodies, images that rarely reflect how women actually see themselves. Women in Late Life explores the thorny issues related to gender and aging, including prevailing but problematic cultural expectations, body image, ageism, the experience of chronic illness, threats to Social Security and the very possibility of a secure retirement while challenging a long-term care system that disadvantages women. Author Martha Holstein writes from a critical feminist perspective, drawing on her many years of experience in gerontology, as well as interviews and personal experience as a woman now in her seventies. The book highlights how women's experience of late life is shaped by the effects of lifelong gender norms, by contemporary culture-from gender stereotypes to ageism-and by the political context. The book blends critique with proposals aimed at resisting damaging inequities resulting from being simultaneously old and a woman. She focuses on changes needed on multiple levels-societal, cultural, political, and individual. This interdisciplinary look at key questions around gender and aging is nuanced and beautifully written.

As we grow up and grow old, embrace new experiences, try new roles, and adopt new technologies, our senses of time, space, connection, and identity are fundamentally explored through communication. Why, how, with whom, and to what end humans communicate reflect and shape our ever-changing life span position. And while the "life span" can be conceived as a continuum, it is also one hinged by critical junctures and bound by cultural differences that can be better understood through communication. The chapters in this collection, chosen from among the invited plenary speakers, top research papers, and ideas discussed in San Juan, explore the multiple ways communication affects, reflects, and directs our life transition. Capturing the richness and diversity of scholarship presented at the conference, chapters explore communication technologies that define a generation; communication and successful aging; stereotyping and family communication; sexual communication and physiological measurement; life span communication and the digital divide; and home-based care contexts across the world, among others.

This volume seeks to bring readers to a deeper understanding of contemporary cultural and social configurations of Alzheimer's disease by analyzing 21st-century U.S. novels in which the disease plays a key narrative role. Via analysis of selected works, Garrigos considers how the erasure of memory in a person with Alzheimer's affects our idea of the identity of that person and their sense of belonging to a group. Starting out from three different types of memory (individual, social and cultural), the study focuses on the narrative strategies that authors use to configure how the disease is perceived and represented. This study is significant not only because of what the texts reveal about those with Alzheimer's, but also for what they say about us - about the authors and readers who are producing and consuming these texts, about how we see this disease, and what our attitudes to it say about contemporary U.S. society.

Understanding Young Onset Dementia provides a state-of-the-art overview of approaches to care and evaluation for people with young onset dementia. It reviews the challenges in providing care and services, outlines new innovations in treatment and explores the impact of the condition to offer guidance about best practice in care. Written by world-leading researchers and experts in the field, this book gives key evidence for best practice and focuses on lived experience of those with young onset dementia. It has a broad focus looking at aspects of care beyond diagnosis and gives a comprehensive summary of the current qualitative and quantitative research in the field of young onset dementia. This international collaboration fills a much-needed gap in the academic market and is vital to guide learning and deliver future innovations. This book will be of great interest for academics, scholars and post graduate students in the field of mental health and dementia research. It will also appeal to neurologists, psychiatrist, geriatricians and psychologists looking to update their knowledge or already working in the field.

Art Therapy and Creative Aging offers an integrated perspective on engaging with older people through the arts. Drawing from the author's clinical, research and teaching experiences, the book explores how arts engagement can intertwine with and support healthy aging. This book combines analysis of current development theory, existing research on creative programs with elders, and case examples of therapeutic experience to critically examine ageism and demonstrate how art therapy and creative aging approaches can harness our knowledge of the cognitive and emotional development of older adults. Chapters cover consideration of generational, cultural, and historical factors; the creative, cognitive and emotional developmental components of aging; arts and art therapy techniques and methods with older adults with differing needs; and examples of best practices. Creative arts therapists, creative aging professionals, and students who seek foundational concepts and ideas for arts practice with older people will find this book instrumental in developing effective ways of using the arts to promote health and well-being and inspire engagement with this often-underserved population.

How do we sustain agency and identity amidst the frailty of advanced old age? What role does care play in this process? Pushing forward new sociological theory, this book explores the theoretical and practical issues raised by age and infirmity. It begins with a theoretical examination of the fourth age, interrogating notions of agency, identity and personhood, as well as the impact of frailty, abjection and 'othering'. It then applies this analysis to issues of care. Exploring our collective hopes and fears concerning old age and the ends of people's lives, this is essential reading on one of the biggest social issues of our time.

"This is one of the best mental health and aging books I have ever read. It] is one that I will turn to often in my teaching of doctoral students, and in my work with older adults. One of the phenomenal aspects of this book is the research reviews; which are in-depth and broad in their scope. It is clear that Lee Hyer is an exceptional scholar-clinician and geropsychologist.."--Peter A. Lichtenberg, PhD

Drawing from current research and clinical practice, this text espouses a unique interdisciplinary approach to the assessment and treatment of psychosocial impairment in older adults. This approach, called "Watch and Wait," is grounded in a "whole person" model of care rather than one that addresses symptoms or syndromes in isolation. This model advocates relationship building, prevention, psychoeducation, multipronged interventions for comorbid problems, and communication. It does so in the context of a multidisciplinary health care team, the patient, and family.

The model encompasses five core factors of psychosocial impairment in older adults: depression, anxiety, cognitive deficits, adjustment or life problems, and health issues. Considered together, they provide an integrated understanding of the older adult that is more likely than single-disorder models to facilitate successful outcomes for common psychosocial difficulties that occur in later life. The book describes in depth the unique components and complex interactive influences of these five factors as they apply to older adults seeking mental health treatment. A cornerstone of the author's approach is treatment based on stringent care-based assessment and thorough monitoring of empirically supported interventions. Each factor is considered individually from its empirically supported basis as well as its interaction with the other factors. Distinct treatment modules are isolated for each factor and assembled to provide the optimal pathway for clinical treatment.

The text also addresses the unique difficulties of diagnosing the aging population, the pitfalls of existing treatments, and the need for brain-based models for care. Key Features: Advocates for integrative, interdisciplinary care and primary care involvement for the older adult Emphasizes core components of care: depression, anxiety, cognition, pain/sleep/health issues, adjustment in the community Demonstrates how a single-problem approach for older adults with psychiatric problems is not effective or efficient care Espouses a "Watch and Wait" paradigm of care, based on person-centered diagnosis and careful monitoring of treatment Translates and integrates current research findings with clarity Covers use of SSRIs and other medications, suicide, subsyndromal states, issues involving cost of care for the older patient, among other topics Plentiful case examples

Getting Old offers concise advice and practical suggestions for all readers interested in or worried about ageing, either in themselves or in someone they care about. With a focus on a positive view of ageing, it discusses central physical and mental aspects of getting old, as well as the social and psychological aspects such as choosing where to live and becoming more oneself. Rowan Bayne and Carol Parkes take a pragmatic approach to reviewing what is happening in many aspects of your life as you age. Essential topics covered include mobility; diet and digestion; understanding and improving sleep; memory problems and dementia; being an active participant in consultations about your own healthcare; attitudes to getting old; romantic relationships and loneliness; deciding where to live, moving house and choosing other types of living arrangements; and death and grief. They invite readers to focus on their own life and experience, to understand who they are and what they really want now. An important part of self-understanding is the application of personality theory to changes associated with getting old, and readers are encouraged to reflect on what might work for people with their personality characteristics, and how to improve their stress management, communication and decision making. With suggestions for further reading and useful organisations that offer support, Getting Old offers valuable, affirming guidance for all those and their relatives going through this life stage, as well as health, social care and counselling students and professionals.

As we age, society's negative assumptions mean we become a burden, a problem and the excluded 'other'. With a convincing call to embrace all that is positive about ageing comes this timely book from the authors of Retiring with Attitude. Debunking the myth of the ageing time bomb it presents a new, yet realistic, way for society to engage with older people from a myriad of perspectives, including consumerism, media, work, housing, community and 'beauty'. Brought alive by the voices of people aged 50 to 90, it proves ageing is not passive decline but a process of learning, joy, political engagement, challenges and achievement. Increased longevity has consequences for us all. By challenging our assumptions and stereotypes, this book demonstrates that we are capable of living better together longer in this new, older world.

Population ageing and globalisation represent two of the most radical social transformations that have occurred. This book provides, for the first time, an accessible overview of how they interact. Ageing has been conventionally framed within the boundaries of nation states, yet demographic changes, transmigration, financial globalization and the global media have rendered this perspective problematic. This much-needed book is the first to apply theories of globalisation to gerontology, including Appadurai's theory, allowing readers to understand the implications of growing older in a global age. This comprehensive introduction to globalisation for gerontologists is part of the Ageing in a Global Context series, published in association with the British Society of Gerontology. It will be of particular interest to advanced undergraduate and postgraduate students and academics in this area.

Failure to Launch is a book geared towards helping clinicians work with dependent adult children. The book first attempts to define the problem of failure to launch as well as identify the underlying causes such as entitlement, narcissism, enabling family systems, and undiagnosed mental health problems. Failure to Launch also lays out a step-by-step treatment plan to help guide clinicians with these clients to help facilitate change. The book includes case studies, sample chapters, and the latest research to help illustrate the theoretical basis for the treatments in this book.

This insightful study provides an overview of the changing employment context in industrialized nations, the risks associated with population ageing and how these are being tackled.Prolonging working lives is high on the agenda of policy makers in most of the world's major industrialized nations. This book explains how they are keen to tackle issues associated with the ageing of populations, namely the funding of pension systems and predictions concerning a dwindling labour supply. Yet the recent history of older workers has primarily been one of premature exit from the labour force in the form of redundancy or early retirement. Add to this a previously plentiful supply of younger labor and it is clear that much of industry will be unprepared for the challenges of ageing workforces. Older Workers in an Ageing Society includes up-to-date knowledge on issues of workforce ageing and provides useful commentary on policy responses and will appeal to scholars and public policy-makers. Contributors: D.M. Atwater, E. Besen, E. Brooke, V. Busch, N. Charness, A. Chiva, J. Edlund, P. Ester, G. Evers, F. Go, J. Ilmarinen, S. Little, V.W. Marshall, C. Matz-Costa, C. McLoughlin, G. Naegele, M. Oka, M. Pitt-Catsouphes, S.E. Rix, D.M. Spokus, M. Stattin, H.L. Sterns, P. Taylor, A.L. Wells

This ground-breaking study of the baby boomer generation, who are now entering old age, breaks new ground in ageing research. This post-war cohort has experienced a range of social, cultural, and medical changes in regard to their notions of body, from the introduction of the Pill and the decoupling of sex and procreation to the H-Bomb and Earthrise. Yet, paradoxically, ageing is also universal. This exciting book reflects the intersection of time, ageing, body and identity to give a more nuanced and enlightened understanding of the ageing process.

Ageless Talent: Enhancing the Performance and Well-Being of Your Age-Diverse Workforce provides organizational leaders, managers, and supervisors with clear, evidence-based tactics by which to develop and manage an aging and age-diverse talent pool. This volume provides an easy-to-implement set of tools for addressing the difficult problems related to employee performance and well-being amid ongoing technological and social change. Ageless Talent introduces a straightforward framework (PIERA) that translates scientific advances into actionable steps and strategies. Using this framework, this book provides practical illustrations to help readers design their own small-scale interventions to achieve desirable goals under diverse organizational constraints. Furthermore, the book addresses modern management challenges arising across the globe, and offers suggestions for leaders interested in short-term and long-term change. These suggestions, grounded in time-tested and leading-edge research evidence, include specific step-by-step guidelines, customizable to different types of organizations and industries. With economic, cultural, technological, and demographic shifts making the changing nature of work a pressing concern for organizations around the globe, Ageless Talent is an essential text for practitioners - HR professionals, organizational leaders, and managers - as well as management education programs and professional training and leadership programs. It will also appeal to instructors and students in the field of industrial/organizational psychology.

Ageless Talent: Enhancing the Performance and Well-Being of Your Age-Diverse Workforce provides organizational leaders, managers, and supervisors with clear, evidence-based tactics by which to develop and manage an aging and age-diverse talent pool. This volume provides an easy-to-implement set of tools for addressing the difficult problems related to employee performance and well-being amid ongoing technological and social change. Ageless Talent introduces a straightforward framework (PIERA) that translates scientific advances into actionable steps and strategies. Using this framework, this book provides practical illustrations to help readers design their own small-scale interventions to achieve desirable goals under diverse organizational constraints. Furthermore, the book addresses modern management challenges arising across the globe, and offers suggestions for leaders interested in short-term and long-term change. These suggestions, grounded in time-tested and leading-edge research evidence, include specific step-by-step guidelines, customizable to different types of organizations and industries. With economic, cultural, technological, and demographic shifts making the changing nature of work a pressing concern for organizations around the globe, Ageless Talent is an essential text for practitioners - HR professionals, organizational leaders, and managers - as well as management education programs and professional training and leadership programs. It will also appeal to instructors and students in the field of industrial/organizational psychology.

Of interest to all academics and researchers in gerontology, social work, psychology and nursing, as well as those interested in visual and innovative creative arts-based research methods. Uses innovative qualitative research methods in action, including participatory photography and poetry, to show what it is like to live in an aged care home. Stimulates debate and discussion about current practice, and the future of aged care in the context of rapid population ageing and automation.