The study reports on factors predicting the longevity of 328 people over the age of 65 drawn from an English city and followed over 20 years. Both the reported activities score and the individual's comparative evaluation of their own level of activity independently reduced the risk of death, even when health and cognitive status were taken into…

This article explores a relatively new and little understood phenomenon, that of the Australian Grey Nomads. Every year increasing numbers of older Australians take to the road. This article explores the phenomenon both empirically and theoretically. A grounded approach is used by which the experience is explored from an ethnographic account…

Reviewed studies on reminiscence and life review to examine both developmentalist and interpretive approaches to interpreting such studies. Used interpretive approach, particularly Goffman's dramaturgical approach, to further understand objective of reminiscence and to see how social element emphasized by interpretive approach can be deciding…

Considers needs and potentialities for application of fundamental psychological knowledge of aging in areas of industrial and other work, clinical assessment and intelligence testing, assessment of attitudes, and coping with everyday problems in old age and with interpersonal relationships, especially in old people's communities and between old…

Statistics on place of death, validated against longitudinal evidence on entrance into nursing homes, shows the "final" rate of institutionalization to have risen in Sweden between 1938 and 1975. Issues concerning who is institutionalized and why appear more important than precise measurement of rates of institutionalization. (Author/NB)

Reviews literature dealing with the discrepancy between chronological age and a person's perception of age. Found little evidence to support the labeling theory which suggests that older people who feel young are denying their age. Data suggested feeling young represents various dimensions of physical, psychological, and social well-being. (JAC)

Examines factors related to differing trends in development of services for older persons in the United States and West Germany. Traces differing historical development of two countries and relates development to structure of services for elderly; role of professionals in developing services; and relative emphases on primary, secondary, and…

A cross-cultural content analysis of 2,295 prime-time television ads--859 ads from the United States and 1,436 ads from South Korea--was conducted to examine the differences in the portrayal of older people between U.S. and Korean ads. In two countries, the underrepresentation of older people in ads was found in terms of proportions of the actual…

The Bakongo tribe resides in Lower Zaire. The aging intervene in all important life situations: marriage, witchcraft, magic, native palavers, etc. They have authority and represent the tribe. Although the youth subscribe to modern western ideas, they still unconsciously fear the authority and power of the aging. (Author)

Conclusions were that: (1) meanings of mental health constructs cluster differently depending on the analysis; (2) happiness may be considered the most apposite representative of the mental health constructs employed by gerontologists; and (3) contemporary models of happiness favor neither the expansionist nor contractionist positions as a means…

Discusses the nature and importance of social skills for the elderly, including social skills deficits and psychological disorders related to aging, in five papers presented as part of a Symposium on Social Skills at the XII International Congress of Gerontology, Hamburg, July 1981. (JAC)