bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Judging the Competence of Older People: An Alternative?
Authors: Carney Terry 
Published: November 2008

AbstractOnly a minority of adults of all age groups experience difficulty with their finances and affairs, due to the combined effect of their diminished competence and their social circumstances in placing them at risk, from themselves, or from family, friends or others (well-meaning or otherwise). If unable to manage independently or with informal assistance, formal intervention (guardianship) may be required. Neither the traditional formality of courts, nor the tests and clinical processes of medicine are well equipped to judge this in the abstract. Informal (family) models have their place but they (and other options) pose ethical difficulties. A more practical approach is that taken by Australia's multi-disciplinary panels.
The Family and Ageing in Korea: A New Concern and Challenge
Authors: Choi Sung-Jae 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACTMany changes in familial factors under the influence of modernisation have limited the Korean family's function or capability to support and care for elderly members, and are contributing to the problems of ageing. Ageing as a social problem is a new concern in Korea which has never been experienced before, and a new challenge to the family and the state. It requires the state's responsibility to support elderly people and to strengthen the family in its care function by utilising services provided by non-familial persons. The problems of ageing may be categorised into four types: (1) poverty and economic dependence (2) difficulties in health care (3) absence or ambiguity of appropriate roles within the family (4) psychological conflicts and feelings of alienation. Present social welfare provisions are far from sufficient to respond to ageing in Korean society. Problems associated with current policies are discussed and recommendations for future development are made. Ways of promoting the traditional value of filial piety, which has acted as a barrier to the development of social welfare policy for elderly people in Korea, are suggested. For the value to be upheld and developed as one promoting welfare provision for elderly Koreans, the ways of practising the value could be reconstructed so that they may meet the needs of modern Korean life; practising filial piety at a societal level should be emphasised. The roles and responsibilities between the family and the state are also discussed.
Early Retirement Decisions and How They Affect Later Quality of Life
Authors: Maule A.J. , Cliff D. R. , Taylor R. 
Published: November 2008

AbstractOlder workers are often placed in an unenviable position in the face of stereotypes which define them as increasingly marginal in the work force, and view retirement in terms of status loss and disengagement. Yet voluntary early retirement schemes have been a recent feature of work organisations of all types in Britain, Western Europe and North America. The nature of the decision-making processes of those involved in such schemes has not been widely researched and such studies as have been conducted have not drawn on the existing framework of decision analysis. This paper reports the findings of two linked studies into the early retirement decisions of men working in Britain for a large multinational company in the manufacturing sector. The first investigated the factors deemed to be important for a group of men at the point of decision whilst the second investigated both the factors deemed to be important and the quality of life of a group of men who had taken the decision to retire early between 18 months and 3 years previously. Both studies indicated that the decision-making process is complex and cannot be reduced to single-factors like health or financial status. The most important factor in the quality of life of early retirees was the matching of expectations of further work at the point of decision. The studies illustrated the utility of a decision analysis approach to the study of early retirement.
Does It Matter How You Slice It? The Relationship Between Population Ageing and Use of Hospital and Posthospital Care in the United States
Authors: Steiner Andrea 
Published: November 2008

AbstractIn the context of demographic transition, one would expect public health planners to allocate resources according to changing needs. This paper explores the effects that definitions of population ageing have on the images of, and subsequent responses to, demographic transition in the United States. Data are drawn from the 1988 U.S. Census and from a 20-percent national random sample of Medicare patients during the same period (n = 1.9 million). Main findings are that supply and use of acute services do differ according to definitions and the way in which population ageing has occurred; that, regardless of definition, older people in high-ageing states make far greater use of posthospital home health care than in low-ageing states; and that, although individual-level clinical factors appear central to rehabilitative decisions, all states seem to use very old age (85-plus) as a proxy to determine who goes where, with low-ageing states also affected by structural constraints at the hospital and market levels.
Financial Management and Elderly People with Dementia in the U.K.: As Much a Question of Confusion as Abuse?
Authors: Langan Joan , Means Robin 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACTThis article explores a range of issues relating to financial management and elderly people with dementia. The law relating to personal finances for those who lack capacity is outlined and discussed with a stress upon its complexity and the key gaps in present coverage. The article goes on to outline findings from research on these issues carried out within a social services authority in the north of England. Professionals were found to have a wide range of anxieties relating to what they felt was the financial abuse of their elderly clients with dementia, as well as more general concern about how best to deal with financial issues for this group on a day to day basis. The financial abuse of elderly people does occur, but the article concludes by arguing that the issues raised by the research are wider for three main reasons. First, relatives and professionals are often ignorant or confused by the options available to them rather than being intent on defrauding elderly people. Second, the desire to hand down and to receive money from the one generation to the next is a powerful force in society and elderly people with dementia may wish their children rather than the state to have their money. And third, fee assessment and collection for this group raise real practical challenges to social services.
Sociopsychological Perspectives on Older People's Language and Communication
Authors: Williams Angie , Giles Howard 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACTThis paper overviews a series of recent investigations of the sociopsychological meanings of older people's language and communication. The first set of studies investigated young people's perceptions of younger and older voices. Older voices were, in general, downgraded relative to younger voices by young people. In addition, younger people's messages were recalled significantly better than older people's messages. The next set of studies was concerned with whether people seek information differently from people of various ages. The findings indicate that different questions were posed depending on the target's age. Further studies show that young people's information-seeking strategies draw on various ageist assumptions to formulate questions to both younger and older targets. The next investigation examined how young people address both younger and older people when they are requesting different kinds of assistance from them. Not only do we find ageist assumptions mediating the kinds of compliance-gaining young people use with older people, but also negative stereotypes emerge when younger people are asked what kinds of compliance-gaining strategies older people themselves usually adopt. Finally, the above findings are meshed with a new model being developed concerning the relationships between language, health and the elderly.
Talk to Elders: Social Structure, Attitudes and Forms of Address
Authors: Wood Linda A. , Ryan Ellen Bouchard 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACTIn the present paper we analyse some of the problems in talk to elders by examining evaluative dimensions of talk in general and of address forms in particular. We first introduce status and solidarity as primary dimensions underlying talk. We briefly review research on attitudes and talk to elders, and develop a framework in terms of status and solidarity for understanding the evaluation of talk to elders. The framework, speech accommodation theory, and politeness theory are then employed in a specific analysis of various aspects of problematic address usage: title and last name v. first name; third person; first person plural; and no-naming. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications of the analysis for future research, for practical applications, and for the extension and integration of theory
Day Care in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands: A Comparative Study
Authors: Nies Henk , Tester Susan , Nuijens Jan Maarten 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACTThe United Kingdom and the Netherlands differ significantly with respect to structure, policy, legislation and financing of their care delivery systems. Day care services for elderly people thus developed in considerably different policy and socio-historical contexts. In this article various aspects of day care in the two countries are compared. The most marked distinctions between the countries concern supply and distribution of services. The practice of day care, however, appears to be very similar, as indicated by similar objectives, care and activities, staffing and premises, and demographic, social and medical characteristics of users. Some differences are noted concerning problems with transport and organisational linkages of day care services. It is concluded that the supply and distribution of services are largely determined by government policy and that design, quality and day-today practice are primarily a consequence of professional standards and the needs of users and their relatives. Further, a new conceptualisation of day care is advocated: different terminology, more flexibility and a wider range of activities. Finally, the future contributions of day care within both countries' policy contexts are discussed.
Generativity in Culture Context: The Self, Death and Immortality as Experienced by Older American Women
Authors: Alexander Baine B. , Rubinstein Robert L. , Goodman Marcene , Luborsky Mark 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACTTheoretical approaches to conceptualising the notion of generativity have been psychologically or psychosocially based and assume generativity to be a universal phenomenon. Because psychological issues are subsumed within a cultural context, we suggest that generativity is not a universal psychological principle but rather a cultural construct. In this paper we argue that generativity must be analysed as a product of American culture and its embeddedness in individualism. Through an analysis of ethnographically based interviews with 161 older women we illustrate how generative behaviour is inextricably tied to a constellation of American beliefs about the nature of the self, the meaning of death, and attempts to attain immortality that are informed by the ideology of individualism.
‘I Don't Feel Old’: Subjective Ageing and the Search for Meaning in Later Life
Authors: Thompson Paul 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACTA critique of the study of ageing by sociologists and historians is provided in this paper, on the basis of the comparative neglect of life history studies across the whole lifespan. It points to the skewed nature of studies reported in the literature. As a corrective, results from a UK life history based study are presented. It focuses on leisure, grand- parenting and intimate relationships between adults, leading to conclusions about the relationship between class factors in the determination of late life experiences and self perceptions of the meaning of old age.
Forum Selecting Senior Citizens for the American Vice Presidency
Authors: Kiser George C. 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACTOne of the most significant trends in twentieth century America is the constant expansion of the senior citizen population (age 65 and over) – in both absolute and relative terms. While social scientists have developed a huge literature on America's older population, they have largely ignored its vast political implications. This topic is particularly timely inasmuch as senior citizen George Bush has replaced senior citizen Ronald Reagan in the Presidency, two-thirds of the Supreme Court justices are past age 65, and as usual many of the most powerful members of Congress are senior citizens. This article turns attention to the nation's eight senior citizen Vice Presidents, focusing primarily on explanations for their nomination. It also examines trends in the incidence of senior citizen Vice Presidents. Although the nation has had such Vice Presidents during each third of its history (the first one inaugurated in 1805, the most recent one in 1974), they have served with relatively greater frequency since the 1920s. Probable factors underlying this trend include continually increasing life expectancy, the growth in the senior citizen segment of the nation's population and its political mobilisation, and some decline in ageism.
What is the Justification for a Qualitative Approach to Ageing Studies?
Authors: Murphy John W. , Longino Charles F. 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACTIn this essay, a theoretical approach that underpins qualitative research is discussed, thereby illustrating how this outlook differs philosophically from that which underlies quantitative investigations. The purpose of this essay is to promote a firm theoretical foundation for qualitative inquiry in ageing research, which appears to be neglected in many current studies. Key to the theoretical shift attendant to qualitative research is the idea that every aspect of social life is embedded in symbolism. Therefore, those who do research in ageing should be sensitive to the ways in which persons interpret their lives, instead of simply focusing on empirical indicators. Only in this way can socially relevant research be conducted.
Caring for China's Ageing Population: The Residential Option — A Case Study of Shanghai
Authors: Harper Sarah 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACTChina is a rapidly ageing nation. With nearly 10 % of its population over sixty, forecasts predict that this proportion will double by 2025. Such ageing is particularly acute in some of the large cities, where the impact of population policies has combined with lengthening life expectancies, to increase rapidly the percentages of elderly residents. Following a brief review of health and welfare policies directed towards elderly people, the paper draws on documentary and field research, carried out in Shanghai, to assess the current development and administration of residential homes in that city. Using a variety of case- study material the paper discusses the current situation of residents in relation to their former life experiences. It appears that in communist China, as in western democracies, former positions and allegiances in younger life help construct the experience of old age.
Towards a Theory of Dementia Care: Personhood and Well-being
Authors: Kitwood Tom , Bredin Kathleen 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACTSome foundations are laid for a social-psychological theory of dementia care. Central to this is a conceptualisation of personhood, in which both subjectivity and intersubjectivity are fully recognised. Evidence is brought forward concerning relative well-being even in those who are, from a cognitive standpoint, severely demented. In the light of this it is argued that the key psychological task in dementia care is that of keeping the sufferer's personhood in being. This requires us to see personhood in social rather than individual terms.
Innovations and Care of the Elderly: The Cutting-edge of Change for Social Welfare Systems. Examples from Sweden, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom
Authors: baldock John , everst Adalbert 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACTThis article is based on an international study which investigated innovations in home care for the elderly in three European countries:Sweden, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. It is argued that the particular changes taking place in services for the elderly may be indicative of what will happen more generally throughout welfare systems. This is because patterns observed in an area of acute pressure are often precursors of further developments. Welfare systems change first at points of pressure where established policies and solutions are no longer working or cannot be sustained. Innovation and reform become necessary. This is certainly true of social care policies for the elderly in industrial countries. It is no coincidence that in each of the three countries we studied government has commissioned major inquiries into the operation of the care system and that the early 39905 will see the introduction of substantial reforms. We argue that the changes that are taking place, although mediated by particular national traditions and politics, have much in common. They are part of a shift away from the state-dominated post-war welfare settlements towards more diffuse and pturalist forms of social care. The frail elderly, for demographic and etonomic reasons, are in tne front line of this shift to new patterns.
Long-term Care Policies in Comparative Perspective
Authors: Maddoc Georgel L. 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACTThe European Communities provide a contemporary naturally occurring laboratory for the comparative study of social policy formation and implementation. This is particularly the case regarding social policies for ageing populations. The substantive focus of this paper is long-term care policy and, more particularly, policy choices regarding relative emphasis on medical in contrast to social care of dependent older adults. The strategy of the paper is to discuss, first, the limits of comparative theories of social policy formation in predicting policies in a highly value-laden topic like long-term care. The paper then summarises factors which may explain the extraordinary but inconclusive attention given to long-term care policy in the United States. Finally, the paper outlines some questions about LTC policy in the EC which would benefit from comparative policy analysis. Particular attention will be directed to the balance of medical and social care for dependent elderly people, the role of housing policy in the context of general care policy, and the generic issue of public and private sector interaction in welfare states. Systematic exchange of LTC information among EC countries and between these countries and the US is encouraged.
Geriatric Medicine and the Categorisation of Old Age; The Historical Linkage
Authors: Kirk Henning 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACTGeriatric medicine became a part of medical science in the middle of the nineteenth century, more than haifa century before ‘geriatrics’ was named, and a century before it was established in British health care. It was born in Germany along with ancient theories that ageing was in itself a disease, but was increasingly influenced by new pathological and physiological knowledge on ageing and disease, and further developed during the great French clinical era of the latter part of that century. As part of the development of this particular branch of medical science, a gradual categorisation of old age took place, with much credit to the Belgian statistician Quetelet, who may be regarded as the inventor of the category ‘the elderly’ defined by age. The developing biomedical images of old age were given much space in encyclopaedias, dictionaries and popular health literature after 1870. Therefore, the defined existence of old-age limits must also have influenced the legislators responsible for the first national Acts on old- age pension, which now celebrate their centenary.
Social Integration and Caregiving among Seniors in Bermuda
Authors: Chappell Neena L. , Marshall Victor W. 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACTThis paper examines social interaction among seniors in Bermuda, the relationship of various interaction variables with psychological or emotional well-being, and caregiving. The data come from the first ever social science survey conducted among seniors in this country. The findings are compared with selected industrialised countries. Bermudian seniors have strong social ties, somewhat stronger than have been reported in other developed nations. Overwhelmingly, perceived health is related to life satisfaction and functional disability is related to self-esteem among Bermudian seniors. The lack of relationship with social support may well be due to the lack of variation in social support, with virtually everyone having strong social ties. Informal assistance is strong in Bermuda as has been demonstrated for seniors elsewhere. Similarly, the predictors of informal assistance were no surprise, including functional disability, perceptions of health, and having a household member. That is, Bermudian seniors were somewhat distinctive, particularly in their strong social ties, but otherwise appear to be quite similar to seniors in other developed nations. Their geographical isolation and relative small size are believed to be related to their strong social network.
The Status of Rural Elderly in Southern Italy: a Political Economic View
Authors: Bonanno Alessandro , Calasanti Toni M. 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACTDiscussions of the position of the elderly have typically been cast in terms of demographic considerations and/or level of industrialisation. In contradistinction to this approach we employ a political economic perspective which reveals the contradictions present in the situation of aged small farmers in southern Italy. Using a dialectic approach, it is argued that the function performed by the small farm sector, that of keeper of the surplus labour force, is extended to deal with the elderly population. Within this context, rurality assumes a permanent posture as the aged farmers are maintained at the margin of the labour market and are eventually expelled from it. At the same time, this farming segment substitutes for other social agencies as a caretaker for a portion of the older population. This function, however, creates social tensions for it mandates continuous State support for the survival of these farms, demands which are resisted by the bourgeoisie and certain segments of the working class. Even if it were deemed appropriate, the State cannot extend its support to small farms without simultaneously calling forth a fiscal and legitimation crisis stemming from its policy coverage.