A Comparison of Self-Rated and Objectively Measured Successful Aging Constructs in an Urban Sample of African American Older Adults

Sixty-seven (N = 67) urban African American older adults were divided into successful and nonsuccessful aging groups based on objective MacArthur (i.e., physical and cognitive functioning) and on self-rated health criteria. Only 30% of the sample met objective MacArthur criteria for successful aging compared to 63% who rated themselves as successful. Self-rated successful aging was best predicted by regular exercise, whereas objective successful aging was best predicted by demographic characteristics and cognition. Reading ability mediated the relationship between both education and cognition to objectively defined success. Finally, objective successful aging was related to quantity and quality of education, whereas self-rated successful aging was related to a wider variety of variables. Defining successful aging on objective factors alone may limit our understanding of successful aging in urban African American older adults.     

Productive Activities and Perceived Well-Being in an African American Older Adult Urban Sample

Few studies have examined the relationship between productive activities and well-being among urban lower-income African American older adults. The purpose of this study was to examine (1) the pattern and prevalence of types and specific kinds of productive activities and (2) the association among sociodemographic data, individual capacity, kinds and levels of productive activity, and well-being at the individual level. Approximately 12% of 531 respondents participated in employment, whereas 20% participated in volunteer activities. The majority of the respondents (99.4%) joined in leisure activities. More than 75% engaged in religious activities. The respondents also reported that they participated in various kinds of productive activities. Age, physical health status, perceived social support, and perceived neighborhood satisfaction were the most important regression predictors of perceived well-being. Higher levels of involvement in religious activities and leisure activities were related to a greater perceived well-being.     

A New Multidimensional Model of Successful Aging: Perceptions of Japanese American Older Adults

This study examined the concept of successful aging using an ethnographic grounded-theory approach. Seventy-seven Japanese American older adults participated in focus groups. Participants perceived successful aging as optimal functioning in the following areas: Physical health, psychological health, cognitive functioning, socialization, spirituality, and financial security. The content of each dimension represents both culture-specific and culturally-universal elements. This new multidimensional model of successful aging was compared to Rowe and Kahn’s (The Gerontologist 37:433–440, 1997) and Phelan et al.’s frameworks (Journal of the American Geriatric Society 52:211–216, 2004) of successful aging. The model of successful aging generated from this study appears to be more comprehensive than existing models and incorporates sociocultural experiences.     

Successful Aging: Definitions and Subjective Assessment According to Older Adults

There is no standard method for measuring successful aging or a consensus on its definition. Surveys about successful aging were administered to 53 older adults in New Jersey. Participants defined successful aging as including activity/exercise (56% of responses), physical health (46%), social relationships (41%), and psychological/ cognitive health (33%). Successful aging, as assessed by one question, was positively related to social support, life satisfaction, and subjective health. By understanding more about the concept of aging successfully, researchers can develop interventions to promote successful aging for older adults.     

Characterizing and Explaining Differences in Cognitive Test Performance Between African American and European American Older Adults

The present study examined differences in cognitive performance of African American and European American older adults on cognitive and intellectual measures, and the extent to which literacy status or reading level was useful in explaining these group differences. African American elders performed more poorly than European American elders on 12 of 13 cognitive tests administered, p < .05. After controlling for reading level achievement, differences in performance became nonsignificant for 5 of these 12 tests. Nonetheless, some differences persisted, suggesting that other potential mediators of race differences remain to be explored in future research.     

Successful Cognitive Aging and Health-Related Quality of Life in Younger and Older Adults Infected with HIV

Neurocognitive impairments commonly occur and adversely impact everyday functioning in older adults infected with HIV, but little is known about successful cognitive aging (SCA) and its health-related quality of life (HRQoL) correlates. Seventy younger (≤40 years) and 107 older (≥50 years) HIV+ adults, as well as age-matched seronegative comparison groups of younger (N = 48) and older (N = 77) subjects completed a comprehensive battery of neuropsychological, psychiatric, medical, and HRQoL assessments. SCA was operationalized as the absence of both performance-based neurocognitive deficits and self-reported symptoms (SCA-ANDS) as determined by published normative standards. A stair-step decline in SCA-ANDS was observed in accordance with increasing age and HIV serostatus, with the lowest rates of SCA-ANDS found in the older HIV+ group (19 %). In both younger and older HIV+ adults, SCA-ANDS was strongly related to better mental HRQoL. HIV infection has additive adverse effects on SCA, which may play a unique role in mental well-being among HIV-infected persons across the lifespan.     

Recruitment and Retention of Older Adults in Aging Research

Older adults continue to be underrepresented in clinical research despite their burgeoning population in the United States and worldwide. Physicians often propose treatment plans for older adults based on data from studies involving primarily younger, more‐functional, healthier participants. Major barriers to recruitment of older adults in aging research relate to their substantial health problems, social and cultural barriers, and potentially impaired capacity to provide informed consent. Institutionalized older adults offer another layer of complexity that requires cooperation from the institutions to participate in research activities. This paper provides study recruitment and retention techniques and strategies to address concerns and overcome barriers to older adult participation in clinical research. Key approaches include early in‐depth planning; minimizing exclusion criteria; securing cooperation from all interested parties; using advisory boards, timely screening, identification, and approach of eligible patients; carefully reviewing the benefit:risk ratio to be sure it is appropriate; and employing strategies to ensure successful retention across the continuum of care. Targeting specific strategies to the condition, site, and population of interest and anticipating potential problems and promptly employing predeveloped contingency plans are keys to effective recruitment and retention.     

A Comparison of Narratives Told by Younger and Older Adults

ABSTRACT

The few studies that have examined verbal discourse in both young and older adults have yielded inconsistent results with respect to talkativeness and story quality. The disparity may arise from methodological differences. In this study the authors examined word count, irrelevant utterances, and ratings of quality of stories told by 24 young (mean age = 19.21) and 24 old (mean age = 72.13) adults. The authors found minimal age differences. A separate sample of 10 young and 10 older adults of ages similar to those of the storytellers read and rated all the stories. Raters were highly variable in their subjective evaluations of story quality, although satisfactory generalizability coefficients can be achieved with a sufficiently large number of raters. Most studies of discourse quality, however, use few raters, which produces unreliable measurement that can contribute to the inconsistent results reported in the literature.     

A Comparison of Older and Younger Adults Attending Alcoholics Anonymous

Abstract

This study was conducted to explore some of the differences between older and younger participants on measures of emotional support, depression, loneliness and life satisfaction. A total of 160 adults (72 males and 87 females), ranging in age from 18 to 83, who attended one of 18 different AA. meetings in Massachusetts were examined. The respondents were divided into three groups based on age (under 40, 40-65, 65+). The youngest group reported the greatest number of depressive symptoms and the lowest level of life satisfaction. The oldest group reported the lowest number of depressive symptoms and the greatest amount of life satisfaction. Most of the findings can probably be attributed to length of sobriety. While A. A. helped these elders maintain long-term sobriety, the program does not appear to be attracting older persons who are struggling to overcome dependency upon alcohol and/or drugs.