Purpose: This study examines different types of individual-level social capital (bonding, bridging, and linking) and their relationships with physical and emotional health among older Chinese living in urban and rural settings. Design and Methods: Using the 2005 China General Social Survey, physical and emotional health were regressed on social…

Purpose: Many Baby Boomers are faced with the care of aging parents, as well as that of disabled or ill spouses or children. This study examines how Baby Boomers in Quebec, Canada, perceive and play their role as caregivers and how this might differ from their parents' generation. Design and methods: This was a qualitative and empirical study…

Purpose: Due to population aging, the need for long-term institutional care is increasing. We study the potentially modifiable sociodemographic factors that affect the rate of entry into and exit from long-term care. Design and Methods: A 40% sample from the population registration data of Finns aged 65 and older living in private households at…

Purpose: There is a fundamental knowledge gap regarding the experience of dementia within minority ethnic groups in the United Kingdom and elsewhere. The present study examined the subjective reality of living with dementia from the perspective of people with dementia within the 3 largest ethnic groups in the United Kingdom. Design and Methods:…

Purpose: Research concerned with the relationship between volunteer activity and psychological well-being has typically reported higher levels of well-being among older adult volunteers relative to nonvolunteers. However, few studies have examined nonlinear associations between frequency of volunteer activity and well-being. We examined nonlinear…

Used individual modernity as measure of modernization and decision-making power to assess status of aged at micro level. Examined how modernity, family environment, and demographic characteristics affect status of aged in extended family. Data were analyzed from 252 Korean elderly living with married child. Found that individual modernity was…

Purpose: This study investigates gender differences in the association between self-rated health (SRH) and mortality. This association has been well-documented, but findings regarding gender differences are inconsistent. The specific objectives were (a) to examine these differences in a short and a long time frame, (b) to examine these differences…

Purpose: This study assesses whether the stagnation of old-age (80+) mortality decline observed in The Netherlands in the 1980s continued in the 1990s and determines which factors contributed to this stagnation. Emphasis is on the role of smoking. Design and Methods: Poisson regression analysis with linear splines was applied to total and…

Purpose: This study examines the value of self-reported health (SRH) as an indicator of underlying health status in a developing country setting. Design and Methods: Logistic regression methods with adjustments for multistage sampling are used to examine the factors associated with SRH in 2,921 men and women aged 50 and older in rural Bangladesh.…

Purpose: In this prospective study, we examine the reasons for benzodiazepine use among Russian-speaking elderly people in Israel, and we discuss issues related to immigrants. We provide information that can be applied to the improvement of age-related health and social services. Design and Methods: During a 6-month period, we interviewed…

Used data from United States, Jamaica, Malaysia, and Bangladesh to explore gender differences in adult health. Found that women fared worse than men across variety of self-reported health measures in all four countries. Data from Jamaica indicated that gender disparities in adult health arose early and persisted throughout the life cycle, with…

Described rural-urban differences in health care utilization between 1971 and 1977 in 3,628 Manitoba elderly. Despite disparities in reported income and in the distribution of physician resources, ambulatory care use did not differ greatly. Hospital usage was consistently greater among rural than urban elderly. (JAC)

Examined same-gender and cross-gender friendships of 22 elderly Social Service Department clients in England. Findings raise issues about importance of cross-gender friendships to the housebound, about gender differentiation within friendships, and about different characteristics of the two kinds of friendships. (Author/NB)

Life expectancy in the USSR declined from 71 years in 1964 to 70 years in 1970, and to an estimated 68 years in 1983. Decline was due to increase in infant mortality and increase in mortality among middle aged and elderly, and reflects public health problems. (NRB)

Examined effects of Swedish partial pension system on workforce participation among older workers. Findings suggest that policy implementation altered pattern of work behavior among older men, but not among older women. Changes in pension compensation rates appear to have affected participation in partial pensions, including number of participants…