Module Outline: Understanding Late Adulthood and Social Gerontology

Module Outline: Understanding Late Adulthood and Social Gerontology
I. Introduction
A. Case Studies 9.1, 9.2, and 9.3
i. 9.1 The Smiths in Early Retirement
ii. 9.2 Ms. Ruby Johnson, Caretaker for 3 Generations
iii. 9.3 Joseph and Elizabeth Menzel, a German Couple

II. Demographics of the Older Population

i. Late adulthood: covers one quarter to one third of a person’s life and includes active and less active healthy and less healthy working and nonworking persons
ii. Starts at 65 and continues through 85 and older population
iii. Increased life expectancy
iv. Dependency ratio: demographic indicator that expresses the degree of demand placed on society by the young and the aged combined, or the ratio of dependent age-groups to the working-age population

a. Exhibit 9.1 Youth and Elderly Dependency Ratios in the United States, 1900, 1995, 2010, and 2030

III. Diversity of the Late-Adult Population

i. Aging population reflects shifting racial and ethnic trends in general population
a. Hispanics are fastest growing segment
ii. Ethnic minorities experience unique challenges, such as adequate income and health disparities
iii. Protective factor: ethnic minorities may have closer support networks
iv. Older adults in rural areas face challenges
IV. Cultural Construction of Late Adulthood

i. Aging population viewed and treated differently in other cultures
ii. Exhibit 9.2 Six Traits for Growing Old With Grace
V. Psychosocial Theoretical Perspectives on Social Gerontology
i. Social gerontology: the social science that studies human aging
ii. Disengagement theory: suggests that as elderly individuals grow older, they gradually decrease their social interactions and ties and become increasingly self-preoccupied
iii. Activity theory: higher levels of activity and involvement are directly related to higher levels of life satisfaction in elderly people

iv. Continuity theory: individuals adapt to changes by using the same coping styles they have used throughout the life course, and they adopt new roles that substitute for roles lost because of age

v. Social construction theory: aims to understand and explain the influence of social definitions, social interactions, and social structures on the individual elderly person
vi. Feminist theories: suggest that gender is a key factor in understanding a person’s aging experience APA