Age Structuring in Comparative Perspective


Book Description

This volume studies age as a basis for social organization by uniting research from the social science disciplines while implementing both cross-cultural and historical perspectives. The contributors, a distinguished interdisciplinary group of scholars, advance our understanding of age structuring by relating the changing societal level processes and individual aging experiences, and examining retirement practices, age and power in society, and cultural conceptions of age.




Age Structuring in Comparative Perspective


Book Description

This volume studies age as a basis for social organization by uniting research from the social science disciplines while implementing both cross-cultural and historical perspectives. The contributors, a distinguished interdisciplinary group of scholars, advance our understanding of age structuring by relating the changing societal level processes and individual aging experiences, and examining retirement practices, age and power in society, and cultural conceptions of age.




Old-age Security in Comparative Perspective


Book Description

This book examines a central element of social welfare, old age security, exploring the history of policies in both developed and underdeveloped countries to assess their structure, ideology and effectiveness. The authors test five theoretical perspectives on old-age security policy in four industrial nations (the United States, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Germany) and three developing countries (India, Nigeria, Brazil), challenging the view that old age policy is the outcome of class conflict between capital and labour. Instead, the authors adopt a neo-pluralist perspective which emphasizes the influence of ethnic religious and regional groups, as well as "the grey lobby", over that of class-based groups. The authors attempt to test ideas derived in part from these historical case studies by analysing quantitative data from a broader sample of countries (18 industrial nationa and 32 developing nations), and they use these results to anticipate future policy developments in the U.S.










Democratic Justice


Book Description

Democracy and justice are often mutually antagonistic ideas, but in this innovative book Ian Shapiro shows how and why they should be pursued together. Justice must be sought democratically if it is to garner legitimacy in the modern world, he claims, and democracy must be justice-promoting if it is to sustain allegiance over time. Democratic Justice meets these criteria, offering an attractive vision of a practical path to a better future. Wherever power is exercised in human affairs, Shapiro argues, the lack of democracy will be experienced as injustice. The challenge is to democratize social relations so as to diminish injustice, but to do this in ways that are compatible with people's values and goals. Shapiro shows how this can be done in different phases of the human life cycle, from childhood through the adult worlds of work and domestic life, retirement, old age, and approaching death. He spells out the implications for pressing debates about authority over children, the law of marriage and divorce, population control, governing the firm, basic income guarantees, health insurance, retirement policies, and decisions made by and for the infirm elderly. This refreshing encounter between political philosophy and practical politics will interest all those who aspire to bequeath a more just world to our children than the one we have inherited.




Handbook of Theories of Aging, Second Edition


Book Description

The field of gerontology has often been criticized for being "data-rich but theory-poor." The editors of this book address this issue by stressing the importance of theory in gerontology. While the previous edition focused on multidisciplinary approaches to aging theory, this new edition provides cross-disciplinary, integrative explanations of aging theory: The contributors of this text have reached beyond traditional disciplinary boundaries to partner with researchers in adjacent fields in studying aging and age-related phenomena. This edition of the Handbook consists of 39 chapters written by 67 internationally recognized experts in the field of aging. It is organized in seven sections, reflecting the major theoretical developments in gerontology over the past 10 years. Special Features: Comprehensive coverage of aging theory, focusing on the biological, psychological, and social aspects of aging A section dedicated to discussing how aging theory informs public policy A concluding chapter summarizing the major themes of aging, and offering predictions about the future of theory development Required reading for graduate students and post doctoral fellows, this textbook represents the current status of theoretical development in the study of aging.




Social Structure and Aging


Book Description

This volume presents a systematic examination of the impact of social structures on individual behaviors and on their development in adulthood and old age. These papers and responses attempt to improve the reciprocal relationship between changes in social macro- and micro-structures and the process of psychological development in relation to issues of human aging. Using and combining concepts and data from various fields, this research promotes a better understanding of the effects of demographic patterns and social structures on the psychological development of adults.




Aging and Old Age


Book Description

Observing that people change both physically and cognitively as they age, Posner suggests that each of us has, in succession, two separate selves - younger and older - with different abilities, interests, and behaviors, an insight that helps clarify a number of issues concerning the elderly.




Handbook of the Psychology of Aging


Book Description

The Handbook of the Psychology of Aging, Seventh Edition, provides a basic reference source on the behavioral processes of aging for researchers, graduate students, and professionals. It also provides perspectives on the behavioral science of aging for researchers and professionals from other disciplines. The book is organized into four parts. Part 1 reviews key methodological and analytical issues in aging research. It examines some of the major historical influences that might provide explanatory mechanisms for a better understanding of cohort and period differences in psychological aging processes. Part 2 includes chapters that discuss the basics and nuances of executive function; the history of the morphometric research on normal brain aging; and the neural changes that occur in the brain with aging. Part 3 deals with the social and health aspects of aging. It covers the beliefs that individuals have about how much they can control various outcomes in their life; the impact of stress on health and aging; and the interrelationships between health disparities, social class, and aging. Part 4 discusses the emotional aspects of aging; family caregiving; and mental disorders and legal capacities in older adults. Contains all the main areas of psychological gerontological research in one volume Entire section on neuroscience and aging Begins with a section on theory and methods Edited by one of the father of gerontology (Schaie) and contributors represent top scholars in gerontology