Aging And Decision Making

Decisions large and small play a fundamental role in shaping life course trajectories of health and well-being: decisions draw upon an individual's capacity for self-regulation and self-control, their ability to keep long-term goals in mind, and their willingness to place appropriate value on their future well-being. Aging and Decision Making addresses the specific cognitive and affective processes that account for age-related changes in decision making, targeting interventions to compensate for vulnerabilities and leverage strengths in the aging individual. This book focuses on four dominant approaches that characterize the current state of decision-making science and aging - neuroscience, behavioral mechanisms, competence models, and applied perspectives. Underscoring that choice is a ubiquitous component of everyday functioning, Aging and Decision Making examines the implications of how we invest our limited social, temporal, psychological, financial, and physical resources, and lays essential groundwork for the design of decision supportive interventions for adaptive aging that take into account individual capacities and context variables.

Decisions large and small play a fundamental role in shaping life course trajectories of health and well-being: decisions draw upon an individual's capacity for self-regulation and self-control, their ability to keep long-term goals in mind, and their willingness to place appropriate value on their future well-being. Aging and Decision Making addresses the specific cognitive and affective processes that account for age-related changes in decision making, targeting interventions to compensate for vulnerabilities and leverage strengths in the aging individual. This book focuses on four dominant approaches that characterize the current state of decision-making science and aging - neuroscience, behavioral mechanisms, competence models, and applied perspectives. Underscoring that choice is a ubiquitous component of everyday functioning, Aging and Decision Making examines the implications of how we invest our limited social, temporal, psychological, financial, and physical resources, and lays essential groundwork for the design of decision supportive interventions for adaptive aging that take into account individual capacities and context variables. Divided into four dominant approaches that characterize the current state of decision-making science and aging neuroscience Explores the impact of aging on the linkages between cortical structures/functions and the behavioral indices of decision-making Examines the themes associated with behavioral approaches that attempt integrations of methods, models, and theories of general decision-making with those derived from the study of aging Details the changes in underlying competencies in later life and the two prevailing themes that have emerged—one, the general individual differences perspective, and two, a more clinical focus

For most Americans, staying "mentally sharp" as they age is a very high priority. Declines in memory and decision-making abilities may trigger fears of Alzheimer's disease or other neurodegenerative diseases. However, cognitive aging is a natural process that can have both positive and negative effects on cognitive function in older adults - effects that vary widely among individuals. At this point in time, when the older population is rapidly growing in the United States and across the globe, it is important to examine what is known about cognitive aging and to identify and promote actions that individuals, organizations, communities, and society can take to help older adults maintain and improve their cognitive health. Cognitive Aging assesses the public health dimensions of cognitive aging with an emphasis on definitions and terminology, epidemiology and surveillance, prevention and intervention, education of health professionals, and public awareness and education. This report makes specific recommendations for individuals to reduce the risks of cognitive decline with aging. Aging is inevitable, but there are actions that can be taken by individuals, families, communities, and society that may help to prevent or ameliorate the impact of aging on the brain, understand more about its impact, and help older adults live more fully and independent lives. Cognitive aging is not just an individual or a family or a health care system challenge. It is an issue that affects the fabric of society and requires actions by many and varied stakeholders. Cognitive Aging offers clear steps that individuals, families, communities, health care providers and systems, financial organizations, community groups, public health agencies, and others can take to promote cognitive health and to help older adults live fuller and more independent lives. Ultimately, this report calls for a societal commitment to cognitive aging as a public health issue that requires prompt action across many sectors.

By 2030 there will be about 70 million people in the United States who are older than 64. Approximately 26 percent of these will be racial and ethnic minorities. Overall, the older population will be more diverse and better educated than their earlier cohorts. The range of late-life outcomes is very dramatic with old age being a significantly different experience for financially secure and well-educated people than for poor and uneducated people. The early mission of behavioral science research focused on identifying problems of older adults, such as isolation, caregiving, and dementia. Today, the field of gerontology is more interdisciplinary. When I'm 64 examines how individual and social behavior play a role in understanding diverse outcomes in old age. It also explores the implications of an aging workforce on the economy. The book recommends that the National Institute on Aging focus its research support in social, personality, and life-span psychology in four areas: motivation and behavioral change; socioemotional influences on decision-making; the influence of social engagement on cognition; and the effects of stereotypes on self and others. When I'm 64 is a useful resource for policymakers, researchers and medical professionals.

Possible new breakthroughs in understanding the aging mind that can be used to benefit older people are now emerging from research. This volume identifies the key scientific advances and the opportunities they bring. For example, science has learned that among older adults who do not suffer from Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias, cognitive decline may depend less on loss of brain cells than on changes in the health of neurons and neural networks. Research on the processes that maintain neural health shows promise of revealing new ways to promote cognitive functioning in older people. Research is also showing how cognitive functioning depends on the conjunction of biology and culture. The ways older people adapt to changes in their nervous systems, and perhaps the changes themselves, are shaped by past life experiences, present living situations, changing motives, cultural expectations, and emerging technology, as well as by their physical health status and sensory-motor capabilities. Improved understanding of how physical and contextual factors interact can help explain why some cognitive functions are impaired in aging while others are spared and why cognitive capability is impaired in some older adults and spared in others. On the basis of these exciting findings, the report makes specific recommends that the U.S. government support three major new initiatives as the next steps for research.

The Aging Consumer: Perspectives from Psychology and Marketing, 2nd edition takes stock of what is known around age and consumer behavior, identifies gaps and open questions within the research, and outlines an agenda for future research. There has been little systematic research done with respect to the most basic questions related to age and consumer behavior, such as whether older adults versus young and middle-age adults respond to marketing activities including pricing, promotions, product design, and distribution. Written by experts, The Aging Consumer compiles research on a broad range of topics on consumer marketing, from an individual to a societal level of analysis. This second edition provides new versions of chapters contained in the 2010 volume that have been updated to reflect the latest psychological and marketing research and thinking. Included also are ten new chapters which cover exciting new ground, such as changes in metacognition in older adults, motivated cognition of the aging consumer, and a global perspective on aging and the economy across cultures. This updated volume is beneficial for researchers and practitioners in marketing, consumer behavior, and advertising. Additionally, The Aging Consumer, 2nd edition will appeal to professionals in other fields such as psychology, decision sciences, gerontology and gerontological social work, and those who are concerned with normal human aging and its implications for the everyday behavior of older individuals. It will also be of interest to those in fields concerned with the societal implications of an aging population, such as economics, policy, and law.

Part of the Wiley Series in Clinical Geropsychology, Changes in Decision-Making Capacity in Older Adults: Assessment and Intervention helps to familiarize you with the legal and social contexts for decision making in potentially impaired individuals. Editors Sara Qualls and Michael Smyer have brought together a notable team of international contributors to provide you with a unique framework of the legal, social, and psychological approaches to assessing the ability of older adults to make decisions.

The Handbook of the Psychology of Aging, Seventh Edition, provides a basic reference source on the behavioral processes of aging for researchers, graduate students, and professionals. It also provides perspectives on the behavioral science of aging for researchers and professionals from other disciplines. The book is organized into four parts. Part 1 reviews key methodological and analytical issues in aging research. It examines some of the major historical influences that might provide explanatory mechanisms for a better understanding of cohort and period differences in psychological aging processes. Part 2 includes chapters that discuss the basics and nuances of executive function; the history of the morphometric research on normal brain aging; and the neural changes that occur in the brain with aging. Part 3 deals with the social and health aspects of aging. It covers the beliefs that individuals have about how much they can control various outcomes in their life; the impact of stress on health and aging; and the interrelationships between health disparities, social class, and aging. Part 4 discusses the emotional aspects of aging; family caregiving; and mental disorders and legal capacities in older adults. Contains all the main areas of psychological gerontological research in one volume Entire section on neuroscience and aging Begins with a section on theory and methods Edited by one of the father of gerontology (Schaie) and contributors represent top scholars in gerontology