Aging

Half-Empty or Half-Full? When Pessimism Can Be Life-Saving

By Romeo Vitelli, Ph.D. on June 3, 2013 in Media Spotlight

How happy do you think you will be in five years? We all make guesses about how our future will turn out and whether we will be happy or not. Whether we choose to be optimistic or pessimistic about the future largely depends on how we see ourselves, the people in our life and the world in which we live. As we grow older, pessimism becomes more common. Read More

Mean Girls: Senior Women Being Bullied in Assisted Care?

By Pamela Cytrynbaum on June 1, 2013 in Because I'm the Mom

Mean Girls: Is 'senior bullying' rampant among women in assisted living and nursing homes? Read More

Generational Differences at Work?

By Bryan J. Dik, Ph.D. on May 31, 2013 in Vocation Vocation Vocation

I've always been skeptical of whether generational differences are as much of an issue at work as some claim. After serving as the reluctant voice of GenX on a panel discussion, I've been rethinking my position. Read More

Is It OK For Adults to Collect Bobbleheads?

By Matt Beardmore on May 31, 2013 in Time Out!

Some argue that it's strange for adults to collect bobbleheads because they're just "dolls" or "toys." Many strongly disagree. Read More

The Old Age of Psychology

By Mario D. Garrett, Ph.D. on May 30, 2013 in iAge

Out of this changing situation, the fastest growing cause of death in America is however due to dementia. Unlike heart disease and cancer death rates--which are continuing to decline--deaths from Alzheimer’s disease are on the rise. Today is the age of "old age" and psychology is the science of gerontology. Read More

Mourning and Reinvention in Mid-Life

By Kathryn Betts Adams, Ph.D., M.S.W. on May 30, 2013 in Mid-Life: What Crisis?

It’s a cliché that at mid-life, we are “reinventing” ourselves. Sometimes the reinvention must be accompanied by mourning, a natural response to the losses that come during life transitions. Read More

Older Tourists

By Mario D. Garrett, Ph.D. on May 29, 2013 in iAge

Boomers are the wealthiest generation in history, and even though only 9 percent are truly affluent—defined as having pre-tax incomes of $150,000 or more if working, or $100,000 or more if retired—they will transform travel as we know it. Read More

Let's Hear It for Allo-Mothers!

By David P. Barash, Ph.D. on May 29, 2013 in Pura Vida

Human mothers—like all mammals—contribute enormously to the success of their offspring. Less well known, however, is the increasingly clear fact that human evolution involved substantial "alloparenting," by which other relatives (especially grandmothers) were especially important; indeed, they may hold the key to a biological mystery. Read More

Live-Blogging the APA: Better Aging Through Telomerase

By Katherine Sharpe on May 29, 2013 in Generation Meds

I am attending the American Psychiatric Association's 2013 annual meeting in San Francicso, CA, and writing something about it each day. In this installment, how a unique DNA region responds to stress, keeping you young (or aging you too fast). Also: the street drug ketamine as a treatment for depression. Read More

Aging and Pandemics

By Mario D. Garrett, Ph.D. on May 28, 2013 in iAge

Although we have entered a tranquil and stable stage in our population--with an aging population where we are mainly dealing with long-term diseases--we do have the threat of pandemics that will dramatically affect this equilibrium. The question is not how, but when. Read More

We Are All Becoming Demented

By Mario D. Garrett, Ph.D. on May 27, 2013 in iAge

The new NIA Alzheimer's disease guidelines miss out on the full picture of other mediating and moderating factors that control the expression of Alzheimer's disease. Why are the guidelines so skewed? Read More

Unconnected, Just Alive

By Wendy Lustbader, M.S.W. on May 27, 2013 in Life Gets Better

I don’t carry a cell phone or a web-connected device. I can’t stand the idea of having my attention taken away from who or what is immediately around me. I like to be where I am. Especially if I am walking with a beloved person in the woods near my home, I wouldn’t want to be transported electronically to the vicinity of some other person and place. Read More

Charm Bracelets and Women's Autobiographies: Part One

By Gina Barreca, Ph.D. on May 27, 2013 in Snow White Doesn't Live Here Anymore

Two aunts, Rose and Regina, had matching charm bracelets and these circles of gold are now mine. Having neither children nor riches of their own, the bracelets are the sum of what these good women left behind. Worth a few hundred bucks a piece, they are nevertheless priceless because they are records--the miniature, metallic biographies-- of Re’s and Rose's lives/ Read More

Body Symphony: My personal experience of aging

By Mario D. Garrett, Ph.D. on May 26, 2013 in iAge

Ill health is more than an inconvenience, it creates an imbalance. Read More

Body Music: My Personal Experience of Aging

By Mario D. Garrett, Ph.D. on May 25, 2013 in iAge

Kepler believed that music is the language of cosmology, but I believe music is also how our body communicates with us and our constant internal narrative. Read More

Aristotle and Cool Old Age

By Mario D. Garrett, Ph.D. on May 25, 2013 in iAge

In the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging, men with a core body temperature below the average (median) lived significantly longer than men with body temperature above the average. Read More

Taoist Orgasms Among Older Adults

By Mario D. Garrett, Ph.D. on May 24, 2013 in iAge

With women surviving longer than men, Taoist teachings ignored females in order to make their assertions about longevity hold true. Read More

How Background TV Undermines Well-Being

By Linda Wasmer Andrews on May 24, 2013 in Minding the Body

In many homes, a television playing in the background is the soundtrack for everyday life. This habit could have unintended consequences for cognitive and social well-being. Read More

Untreated Depression Linked to Telomeres, Aging, and Disease

By Christopher Bergland on May 24, 2013 in The Athlete's Way

Untreated depression creates biological changes that accelerate aging and increase the risk of life-threatening diseases. Read More

Parents Then vs. Parents Now: A Lesson in Craft

By Gina Barreca, Ph.D. on May 23, 2013 in Snow White Doesn't Live Here Anymore

When I was kid solicitous adults didn't gently ask a child “Are you happy?” after giving him or her something nice (an ice-cream cone, a college education, a car). Instead, when I was a kid adults demanded to know “Are you happy NOW?” after something terrible happened (your ice-cream cone fell in the gutter, you failed math, you vehicle was impounded). Is it generational? Read More

Essential Reads: Editor's Picks

Would You Like to Live Forever?
by Liah Greenfeld, Ph.D.
Can Robots Help Care for the Elderly?
by Romeo Vitelli, Ph.D.
Why Cinnamon Is Good for Your Aging Brain
by Professor Gary L. Wenk, Ph. D.

Aging Blogs

21st Century Aging
Living longer and better.
By Tamara McClintock Greenberg, Psy.D., M.S.
Face It
The challenges of aging in today's culture
By Vivian Diller, Ph.D.
Fulfillment at Any Age
How to remain productive and healthy into your later years
By Susan Krauss Whitbourne, Ph.D.
iAge
Changing how we see aging
By Mario Garrett, Ph.D.
Life Gets Better
The unexpected pleasures of growing older.
By Wendy Lustbader, M.S.W.
Live Long and Prosper
Strategies for healthy aging
By Jasmin Tahmaseb-McConatha, Ph.D.
Living With Mild Cognitive Impairment
How to maximize brain health and reduce the risk of dementia
By Nicole D. Anderson, Ph.D., Kelly J. Murphy, Ph.D., and Angela K. Troyer, Ph.D.
Mid-Life: What Crisis?
The many perspectives of mid-life
By Kathryn Betts Adams, Ph.D., M.S.W.
The Caregiver's Handbook
Caring for a loved one—and yourself
By Diana B. Denholm, Ph.D, LMHC
The Gift of Aging
The science of getting old.
By Ian Stuart-Hamilton, Ph.D.