This qualitative study aimed to understand how educators view aging and emphasized how educators' past experiences with older adults and personal comfort level with aging influenced their beliefs and desire to teach about aging topics. Ageism harms older adults by creating adverse physical, mental, emotional, and socioeconomic health risks.…

As the U.S. population ages, Extension's need for associated organizational readiness increases. We conducted a needs assessment with a sample of 1,028 Extension professionals in the Extension North Central Region (NCR) to identify the current scope of aging-related community needs. Health care, chronic disease prevention and management, housing,…

Advanced manufacturing is growing and thriving in the United States. Companies are in great need of reliable employees who can communicate well, effectively make decisions, and are interested in long-term careers with opportunity for advancement. Employers have identified a need for a more robust talent pipeline to narrow America's skills gap--a…

Introduction: Fall prevention is important for maintaining mobility and independence into old age. Approaches for reducing falls include exercise, tai chi, and home modifications; however, causes of falling are multifactorial and include not just physical but cognitive factors. Cognitive decline occurs with age, but older adults with the greatest…

Purpose: This longitudinal study examines the association between physical function decline and the risk of elder self-neglect in a community-dwelling population. Design and Methods: Of the 5,570 participants in the Chicago Health Aging Project, 1,068 were reported to social services agency for suspected elder self-neglect from 1993 to 2005. The…

Purpose of the Study: Recent demographic growth of the U.S. Chinese aging population calls for comprehensive understanding of their unique health needs. The objective of this study is to examine the perceptions, social determinants of depressive symptoms as well as their impact on health and well-being in a community-dwelling U.S. Chinese aging…

The composition of the U.S. workforce is changing. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that by 2014 workers who are aged 55 and older will comprise 21.2% of the labor force--compared to 15.6% in 2004 and 11.9% in 1994. More corporations are beginning to pay attention to this trend and have begun to assess the needs and potential of older…

Purpose: This cross-sectional study takes a unique look at the association between patterns of walking and cognitive functioning by examining whether older adults with mild cognitive impairment differ in terms of the community settings where they walk and the frequency, intensity, or duration of walking. Design and Methods: The sample was based on…

This study attempts to examine the reciprocal effects between fear of crime and neighborhood attachment because aging is a critical factor in both discussions of fear of crime and neighborhood attachment (friendship, neighboring, social cohesion and trust, informal social control, and participation in neighborhood watch program). Using data from…

Physical fitness and recreation programs can be a deterrent to premature aging. State-funded physical activity programs for older adults in Illinois offer minimal benefits due to volunteer and untrained personnel. Results of this study are presented. (DF)

A total of 227 college students from Joliet, Illinois in the USA and Shanghai in the People's Republic of China (PRC) answered open-ended questions on their perception of being old. Topics also included participant's knowledge about older adults' regular activities, social policies and benefits for senior citizens, the happiest and the most…

This study investigated how lexical access in naming tasks (picture naming, naming to open-ended sentences, and naming to category exemplars) might be influenced by different lexical factors during adolescence and adulthood. Participants included 1075 individuals, ranging in age from 12 to 83 years. Lexical factors examined included word frequency…

This study examined the validity of Geriatric Depression Scale--5 (GDS-5) scores among older sedentary adults based on its structural properties and relationship with external criteria. Participants from two samples (Ns = 185 and 93; M ages = 66 and 67 years) completed baseline assessments as part of randomized controlled exercise trials.…

This document contains Phase I of the Illinois Department on Aging Human Services Plan for Fiscal Years 1986-1988. It describes planning efforts related to past, current, and future service delivery systems for Illinois' aging services network. The introduction describes the Department on Aging's programs and the service network within which they…

This guidebook provides information for caseworkers who investigate allegations of abuse, neglect, financial exploitation and who also provide ongoing case management and follow-up with victims of abuse. The program focuses on caseworkers' attitudes and their knowledge and skills in dealing with abusers, particularly abusers who are chemically…