The present study explores the influence of the early retirement process on adjustment to early retirement, taking into account the roles of individual characteristics and social context in this process. We proposed a systematic model integrating perceived ability to continue working, organizational pressures toward early retirement and group…

This study examines the hypothesis that the outcome of the Eriksonian crisis of integrity vs. despair is dependent on successful coping with four developmental tasks: maintenance of active involvement, reevaluation of life satisfaction, developing a sense of health maintenance, and reevaluation of the sense of coherence (SOC). A selective sample…

The present study focused on changes in volunteering over time among Italian adults and examined a model in which motives from self-determination theory (SDT) were hypothesized to influence a series of social-cognitive processes including self-efficacy judgments and constructs from the theory of planned behavior (TPB). The study was conducted with…

Although aging well socially (Engagement with Life) is as important as aging well personally (Illness Avoidance and Functioning) (Rowe & Kahn, 1998), it has received less research attention. A Caring (CE) and a Productive (PE) form of Engagement were derived from an analysis of Chinese cultural meanings of engagement, and combined with Illness…

Current theoretical models support the existence of interactions between the individual and socio-environmental forces when it comes to the formation and enactment of life plans (Friedman & Scholnick, 1997; Shanahan & Elder, 2002). In this investigation, we examine the social, economic, and psychological forces that impact financial…

In order to test the hypothesis that retirement would be particularly stressful for this highly motivated cohort, forty retired members of Israeli kibbutzim (22 men, 18 women) were interviewed in an open-ended fashion, concerning their early history, their decision to join the kibbutz, their working life, and their post-retirement adaptation.…

Submits that useful quantitative measure of aging is provided by measures of athletic performance. Describes development of model for top athletic performance and for performance of any person at any age. Explains that model shows that athletic performance undergoes significant changes at certain ages and that these change points break the aging…

According to the dialectical model, the well-being of the older care recipient, the informal caregiver, and the professional care provider mutually affect each other. Particularly, the caregiver's strain can affect the care recipient's well-being both positively and negatively. Moreover, the task-specific model suggests that as social workers are…

Discusses the theoretical proposition that adolescent-young adults and the retired-aging bear a symmetrical relationship in terms of psycho-social propensities and "social location." Respondents from two age groups reflected personal views of goals, values, and satisfaction and stresses of life as they experienced it. (Author)

Develops explanation based on personal construct theory for why mourning and reminiscence are effective therapeutic processes in work with the elderly. Therapeutic case studies illustrate characteristics of these two processes and the relationship between them. (Author/TE)

Notes that Denmark and Sweden have achieved reduction in institutionalization of elderly individuals by increasing home care and housing with services and adaptation. Describes innovative model of nursing home care in Denmark--a self-care model that fosters independent living and decision making as long as possible. (Author/NB)

The future of the elderly in the People's Republic of China will be influenced by political agenda, degree to which traditional values toward the aged are preserved, degree to which eldercare support is built on the existing social structure, eldercare program institutionalization in the state budget, and the elderly's continued integration into…

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…

This study aimed to explore older peoples' definitions of, and priorities for, a good quality of life for themselves and their peers. Nine hundred and ninety-nine people aged 65 and over, living at home in Britain, were interviewed for the study. Good social relationships were the most commonly mentioned constituent that gave respondents' lives…

Since the global item of subjective health has emerged as a strong predictor of important health outcomes such as mortality, there have been many attempts to uncover its correlates. In this study, we tested whether personality as assessed via the five-factor model of personality predicted subjective health when physician-rated health and…